EU Commissioner Michel awards the 2005 Lorenzo Natali Prize to Wijedasa Namini

Summary: EU Commissioner Michel awards the 2005 Lorenzo Natali Prize to Wijedasa Namini (Brussels, 10 March 2006)

European Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid, Louis Michel, today awarded the Sri Lankan journalist Wijedasa Namini the "grand prix" of the 2005 Natali Prize for his report "Blatant Relentless Child Recruitment" on the practice of recruiting children as soldiers by the Sri-Lankan Tamil-Tigers. Fourteen other journalists also received Natali Prizes for their commitment to Human Rights and Democracy.

Congratulating Ms Namini, Commissioner Michel expressed his belief that principled and skilled journalists are vital to the defence of democracy and human rights. "Human rights and democracy are closely linked to economic and social development. Without democracy, without freedom of press, development cannot be sustainable", he said.

Ms Wijedasa Namini was chosen by an independent jury from among 15 nominees,
all of whom were present at the ceremony. The journalists Ahmad Zéïdane Bichara (Chad), Marina Walker Guevara (Argentina), Nick Paton Walsh (UK) and Anne-Marie Jazzar el-Hage (Lebanon) also received first prizes in their respective regions.

The Natali Prize commemorates Lorenzo Natali, a former European 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 a record interest, with 996 nominees from 138 countries. The 15 prize winners were selected by an independent jury drawn from representatives of organisations such as Reporters sans Frontières, Amnesty International, World Association of Newspapers and major newspapers and press agencies.

The prize winners

Africa :

1^st Prize : Ahmad Zéïdane BICHARA (Chad)

« Centre de dressage pour les enfants et les
épouses » published in Syfia

2^nd Prize : Larisse HOUSSOU (Bénin)

« Maisons carcérales au Bénin: silence, des
détenus maladies agonisent » published in Le Point au
Quotidien

3^rd Prize : Kahtarine HOURELD (South Africa)

« Tracing a Tragedy » published in Mail &
Guardian

Latin America and Caribbean

1^st Prize : Marina WALKER GUEVARA (Argentina)

« Los Ninos del plomo» published in
Gatopardo

2^nd Prize : Luiz António RYFF (Brasil)

« O segundo cadáver de Tim Lope"»published
in No Minimo

3^rd Prize : Mauri KONIG (Brasil)

«A infância no limite » published in Gazeta do
Povo

Asia - Pacific

1^st Prize : Wijedasa NAMINI (Sri Lanka)

«Blatant, Relentless child recruitment » published in
The Sunday Island

2^nd Prize : Yusuf HUMA (Pakistan)

« In the wake of violence » published in Herald
Magazine

3^rd Prize : Luv PURI (India)

« In an alien land » published in The Hindu

Europe

1^st Prize : Nick PATON WALSH (UK)

« Tracing a Tragedy » published in The
Guardian

2^nd Prize : Julia FICATIER (France)

« Les femmes vivent dans la peur des exactions des milices»
published in La Croix

3^rd Prize: André LEHMANN (Germany)

« Moldavie - La plaque tournante de la traite des
blanches » published in Marianne

Arab World, Lebanon & Israel

1^st Prize : Anne-Marie JAZZAR EL-HAGE (Lebanon)

« Droits de l'homme : le drame des libanais
détenus dans les geôles syriennes » published in
L'Orient - Le Jour

2^nd Prize: Mustafa EL MENSHAWY (Egypt)

« Growing Anger at Arrests » published in Al-Ahram
Weekly

3^rd Prize: Azeddine BENSOUIAH (Algeria)

« Immigration clandestine: "Saga Africa" »
published in Horizons

Ref: EC06-098EN
EU source: European Commission
UN forum:
Date: 10/3/2006

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