Civil Rights Defender of the Year – Past Award Recipients

The Civil Rights Defender of the Year Award is an award for outstanding work in defence of civil and political rights. With the award, we recognise a prominent human rights defender who, despite the risk to their own safety, continues the struggle for civil and political rights.

Read about previous award recipients below or visit our FAQ.

Civil Rights Defender of the Year Award 2023 – Foro Penal

Latin America, News, Venezuela
25 April 2023

The influential Venezuelan legal organisation Foro Penal has been awarded the Civil Rights Defender of the Year Award 2023. Thanks to their tireless work, thousands of arbitrarily detained protesters,...

Civil Rights Defender of the Year 2022 – Xheni Karaj and Frank Mugisha

Albania, Award, News, Uganda
21 April 2022

LGBTI+ activists and human rights defenders Frank Mugisha from Uganda and Xheni Karaj from Albania are awarded the Civil Rights Defenders of the Year Award 2022. Despite threats, harassment, and...

Civil Rights Defender of the Year 2021 – OVD-Info

Award, News, Russia
23 September 2021

The Russian human rights and media project OVD-Info is awarded the Civil Rights Defender of the Year Award 2021. OVD-Info is a lifeline for the thousands of people who suffer from political perse...

Civil Rights Defender of the Year 2020 – Naw Ohn Hla

Award, Burma
10 December 2020

Human rights defender and democracy activist Naw Ohn Hla has been awarded the Civil Rights Defender of the Year Award 2020. She is a leading voice for human rights in Burma – a country where the milit...

Civil Rights Defender of the Year 2019 – Márta Pardavi

Award, Hungary
4 April 2019

Hungarian human rights lawyer Márta Pardavi has been awarded the Civil Rights Defender of the Year Award 2019. As an outspoken critic of the Hungarian government and its policies, Márta is often smear...

Civil Rights Defender of the Year 2018 – Murat Çelikkan

Award, Turkey
8 February 2018

Turkish human rights defender Murat Çelikkan has been awarded the Civil Rights Defender of the Year Award 2018. Murat Çelikkan is a journalist by profession, and one of the most tenacious voices for h...

Civil Rights Defender of the Year 2017 – Edmund Yakani

Award, News, South Sudan
4 April 2017

Human rights defender Edmund Yakani from South Sudan is the recipient of the Civil Rights Defender of the Year Award 2017. Despite the many risks to his own security, he continues to strive to ensure ...

Civil Rights Defender of the Year 2016 – Intigam Aliyev

Award, Azerbaijan, News
7 April 2016

Human rights lawyer Intigam Aliyev is the Civil Rights Defender of the Year 2016. Recently released from prison, he is one of several human rights defenders in Azerbaijan who has been detained for the...

Civil Rights Defender of the Year 2015 – “Mother Mushroom”

Award, Vietnam
4 April 2015

Vietnamese blogger and human rights defender Nguyễn Ngọc Như Quỳnh is the 2015 Civil Rights Defender of the Year. She is Coordinator for the Vietnamese Bloggers Network and well known for her use of s...

Civil Rights Defender of the Year 2014 – Ales Bialiatski

Award, Belarus, News
4 April 2014

Ales Bialiatski, founder of the Belarusian human rights organisation Viasna, is the recipient of the 2014 Civil Rights Defender of the Year Award. For over 30 years, he has pursued a life of continuou...