Commissioner Louis Michel awards Natali Prize

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Commissioner Louis Michel today awarded Chilean journalist Juan Cristóbal Fletcher the Natali Prize gold medal for his report "The Blood of a Poet" on the 1973 killing of Chilean singer Victor Jara. Four other journalists also received Natali Prizes today for their commitment to human rights and democracy as key factors in any sustainable development process. Congratulating Mr. Fletcher, Commissioner Michel expressed his personal belief that principled and skilled journalists are vital to the defence of democracy and human rights.

Juan Fletcher was chosen by an independent jury from among 15 nominees, all of whom were present at the ceremony. The journalists Abdoulaye Ibbo Daddy (Niger), Sarah Boseley (United Kingdom), Ahmed Benchemsi (Morocco) and Zulfiqar Shah (Pakistan) also received EUR 10 000 prizes.

The annual Natali Prize commemorates Lorenzo Natali, a former Commissioner for development and a fervent defender of human rights. It comprises five regional prizes: Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean and the Arab World, Lebanon and Israel.

This year the prize attracted great interest, with 451 nominees from 108 countries. The 15 prize winners were selected by an independent jury drawn from representatives of such organisations as Reporters sans Frontières, Amnesty International, Arab Freedom Watch and major newspapers and press agencies.

The prize winners

Latin America and the Caribbean:

1st Prize and Gold Medal: Juan Cristóbal Peña Fletcher (Chile)

"La Sangre de un Poeta", published in Chilean "Rolling Stone"

2nd Prize: José Adán Silva Mendieta (Nicaragua)

"Nemagón, Herencia Maldita", published in "La Prensa"

3rd Prize: Roberto Navia Gabriel (Bolivia)

"Trabajar o morir", published in "El Deber"

Africa:

1st Prize: Abdoulaye Ibbo Daddy (Niger)

"Les Bastions de l'excision", published in "Les Echos du Sahel"

2nd Prize: Sheila C. Kulubya (Uganda)

"Echoes from the Past. Torture Claims Return", published in "The Monitor"

3rd Prize: Ahmed Newton Barry (Burkina Faso)

"Argent facile et cupidité locale", published in "l'Evènement"

Europe:

1st Prize: Sarah Boseley (United Kingdom)

"Saving Grace", published in "The Guardian"

Joint 2nd Prize: Lutz Mükke (Germany)

"Der inszenierte Hunger", published in "Die Zeit"

Joint 2nd Prize: Paulo Moura (Portugal)

"Missana, the light sleep of death" and "A baby is a passport to heaven", published in "Publica"

Arab World, Lebanon and Israel:

1st Prize: Ahmed Benchemsi (Morocco)

"Sidi Moumen, La Poudrière", published in " TelQuel"

Joint 2nd Prize: Anne-Marie El-Hage Jazzar (Lebanon)

"Des arrestations injustifiées, une jeunesse dégoûtée", published in "Orient Le Jour"

Joint 2nd Prize: Mohammad Daraghmeh (Israel)

"Nonviolence and art: Life emerging from the rubble", published in "Amin"

Asia and Pacific:

1st Prize: Zulfiqar Shah (Pakistan)

"Till death do us part", published in "Newsline - Karachi"

2nd Prize: Hasan Syed Shoaib (Pakistan)

"Nightmare at Colony Gate", "The Colony Gate Cover-Up" and "A Long Overdue Obituary", published in "Herald Magazine"

3rd Prize: Siew Ying Leu (China)

"Crime and Banishment", published in "South China Morning Post"

Photos, radio interviews and videos are available on request. The 15 prizewinners' articles are available online at:

http://www.nataliprize.com/

ProPager Agency: Noémie Tel.: +33 1 40 04 93 00 - Fax: +33 1 40 04 96 12 - e-mail: presse@propager.com

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