Category: media reactions

06/11/13 Kreisky Prize for reporter imprisoned in Syria > KleineZeitung
www.kleinezeitung.at/nachrichten/politik/3330700/kreisky-preis-fuer-syrien-inhaftten-reporter.story 1/1
Last updated: 06/10/2013 at 07:26

The Bruno Kreisky Prize for services to human rights goes to the
Syrian journalist and activist Mazen Darwish, who has been in power by the regime since February 2012
being held in custody under President Assad. Darwish will be honored for standing up for
freedom of the press and the disappearance of reporters in his
The reason given was that I had drawn attention to my homeland.
Darwish established the Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression (SCM) in 2004
founded together with other activists and, according to the broadcast, about the
reported the situation of political prisoners in his home country. Because of his
A travel ban was imposed on Darwish for Engagements back in 2007.
He was arrested several times, most recently in February 2012 when the offices were stormed
his organization. To date he has not been released. His wife will take his place
Yara Bader presented the award on Monday evening at 7:00 p.m. in the state hall of the National Library in
receive Vienna.
The Ethiopian human rights activist Bogaletch Gebre is also honored loudly
Kreisky Foundation for her tireless and successful fight against women
genital mutilation in their home country. She and her sister have them
"Kembatti Mentti Gezzimma-Tope" (KGM) group was founded, which operates in Ethiopia to this day
campaigns for women's rights and marginalized groups. In addition to this, the KGM
women's health and education programs.
As a third party, Cecily Corti, chairwoman of the St. Vincent Community of St. Stephen and
Co-founder of the homeless facility VinziRast in Vienna, the award. the
VinziRast in Vienna-Meidling is an emergency shelter with 48 additional beds for the homeless
the VinziRast-CortiHaus with 16 apartments was added in 2008 and in 2011
opened a residential community for alcoholic homeless people. Corti has been among others with
the Golden Medal of Merit

06/11/13 Ethiopian women's rights activist in Gebre honored- dieStandard.at› Politics
diestandard.at/1369363188974/Aethiopische-Frauenrechtesaktivistin-Bogaletch-Gebre-excellent 1/2
© derStandard.at GmbH 2013

I

Your educational work has contributed to that
the number of circumcised girls in Ethiopia fell sharply
Vienna – The Ethiopian women's rights activist Bogaletch Gebre receives the Bruno Kreisky Human Rights Prize for her work against genital cutting in her home country. through her
The use and work of their group "Kembatti Mentti Gezzimma" (KMG) was able to increase the number of new
circumcised girls, according to a study by the United Nations Children's Fund UNICEF from 2008
be reduced to zero. The award ceremony will take place in Vienna on Monday evening.
Men and women involved in discussion processes
KMG was founded in 1997 by Bogaletch Gebre and her sister Fikrte. The work against FGM
picked up the group in 2000. Her approach is awareness and educational work in the
respective villages and towns. It is important at work that both men and women
of all ages can be involved in the process. “In addition to that, we had at the
Two people also took part in rounds of talks who provided basic facts on the subject. About,
that neither the Bible nor the Koran says anything about genital cutting, what are the risks
circumcision for girls and that many have died from it.” In Ethiopia included
circumcision traditionally involves cutting away the clitoris, as well as the inner and outer
Labia.
“We allowed the groups to have a week-long discussion process before they closed themselves
came to the conclusion that this practice had to be stopped," explained Gebre. According to Gebre
Genital cutting is neither an Ethiopian nor an African tradition. "I don't know where that came from
phenomenon is coming,” she said. It is obvious that it serves this purpose in a patriarchal system
To control and subdue women and deprive them of their sexual desire.
Demonstrative marriage
The first major success was achieved just two years after the organization started its activities
be recorded: A young couple decided to get married. “She was uncircumcised and the two
celebrated their wedding in public,” said Gebre happily. “There were 3,000 guests in total
came and the religious leaders blessed the marriage in front of all.” Thereupon was a kind
Competition arose in the neighborhood: “Suddenly everyone wanted an uncircumcised woman
get married,” said the award winner.
"I don't know if I won the fight. We are making achievements in the communities,”
said Gebre. “But there are numerous areas in addition to circumcision where the rights of
Women are being hurt.” The work is only done when women have the same rights and freedoms
and would possess the same value as men. “I hope that violence against women in the name
tradition will end one day," said Gebre. Every culture that violates human rights is a
System that should no longer be accepted in the 21st century. (APA, June 10, 2013)
link
Kembatti Mentti Gezzimma Ethiopia
dieStandard.at › PoliticsJune 11, 2013 Ethiopian women's rights activist in Gebre honored- dieStandard.at› Politics
diestandard.at/1369363188974/Aethiopische-Frauenrechtesaktivistin-Bogaletch-Gebre-excellent 2/2

APA0020 / 10.06 Mon, Jun 10, 2013

Syrian Mazen Darwish honored for his commitment to freedom of the press, Ethiopian Bogaletch Gebre in the fight against genital mutilation and Austrian Cecily Corti for his commitment to the homeless

Damascus/Addis Ababa/Vienna (APA) - This year's Bruno Kreisky Prize for services to human rights goes to the Syrian journalist and activist Mazen Darwish, who has been imprisoned by the regime under President Bashar al-Assad since February 2012. Darwish was honored at the suggestion of the international award commission because he campaigned for freedom of the press and drew attention to the disappearance of reporters and bloggers in his home country, the Kreisky Foundation justified its choice.
Darwish founded the "Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression" (SCM) together with other activists in 2004 and, according to the broadcast, reported among other things on the situation of political prisoners in his home country. Because of his commitment, a travel ban was imposed on Darwish in 2007. He was arrested several times, most recently in February 2012 when his organization's offices were stormed. To date he has not been released. In his place, his wife Yara Bader will accept the award on Monday evening at 7:00 p.m. in the state hall of the National Library in Vienna.
According to the Kreisky Foundation, the Ethiopian human rights activist Bogaletch Gebre is also honored for her tireless and successful fight against female genital mutilation in her home country. Together with her sister, she founded the "Kembatti Mentti Gezzimma-Tope" (KGM) group, which still campaigns for women's rights and marginalized groups in Ethiopia. In addition, KGM implements women's health and education programs.
Cecily Corti, chairwoman of the Vinzenzgemeinschaft St. Stephan and co-founder of the homeless facility VinziRast in Vienna, is the third person to receive the award. The VinziRast in Vienna-Meidling is an emergency shelter with 48 beds for the homeless. In addition, the VinziRast-CortiHaus with 16 apartments was opened in 2008 and a shared flat for alcoholic homeless people in 2011. Corti has been awarded the Gold Medal of Merit for services to the Republic of Austria.
(SERVICES: SCM: http://scm.bz/?lang=en, KGM: http://kmg-ethiopia.org/, Vinzirast: http://www.vinzirast.at/)
(final) eleven/fat

APA Mon, Jun 10, 2013

Due to the commitment of Kreisky Human Rights Prize winner Gebre, female genital mutilation in Ethiopia is almost non-existent
present

Vienna (APA) - The Ethiopian women's rights activist Bogaletch Gebre will be honored this Monday evening with the Bruno Kreisky Human Rights Prize for her efforts in the fight against female genital mutilation in her home country. "We are making progress," she told APA, referring to the global and Ethiopian women's rights situation. "But we haven't won the fight yet." Thanks to her commitment and the work of her group "Kembatti Mentti Gezzimma" (KMG), the number of victims of genital mutilation was reduced to almost zero, according to a study by the UN children's fund UNICEF in 2008 will.
The group began its work in 2000 and aimed to raise awareness and awareness-raising about the risks of the procedure for the affected girls within rural and urban communities. "We engaged in long discussions and reflection processes with the groups," said Gebre. It is important at work that both men and women of all ages are involved in the process. “In addition to that, we also had two people present at the talks who provided basic facts on the topic. For example, that neither the Bible nor the Koran says anything about genital cutting, what risks circumcision entails for girls and that many have already died from it.” In Ethiopia, the common method was cutting away the clitoris and the inner and outer labia.
"We allowed the groups to have a week-long discussion process until they came to the conclusion that this practice had to be stopped," explained Gebre. A 14-year-old girl once said that her parents protected her and were concerned about her health. "You mustn't do me any harm," she is said to have said. "If they hurt me, then that's a culture of killing." According to Gebre, however, genital cutting is neither an Ethiopian nor an African tradition. "I don't know where the phenomenon comes from," she said. It is obvious that it serves to control women in a patriarchal system and to make them compliant and to rob them of their sexual desire.
Gebre criticized that there was a big misunderstanding in the so-called West that mothers wanted to harm their daughters. "No mother in the world wants to hurt her daughter. They just think it's their duty or that their religion requires it of them,” she explained. Traditionally, circumcision is often seen as preparation for a wedding.
The first major success was achieved just two years after the organization started its activities: a young couple decided to get married. "She was uncircumcised and the two celebrated their wedding in public," said Gebre happily. "A total of 3,000 guests came and the religious leaders blessed the marriage in front of everyone." This led to a kind of competition in the neighborhood: "Suddenly everyone wanted to marry an uncircumcised woman," says the award winner.
"I don't know if I won the fight. We're seeing successes in the communities," Gebre said. "But in addition to circumcision, there are numerous areas in which women's rights are violated." The work is only done when women have the same rights and freedoms and the same values as men. "I hope that one day violence against women in the name of tradition will stop," said Gebre. Every culture that violates human rights is a system that should no longer be accepted in the 21st century.
(The interview was conducted by Mona El Khalaf/APA)

Wiener Zeitung, May 22, 2013, 8:20 p.m
(http://www.wienerzeitung.at/nachrichten/oesterreich/politik/548119_Kreisky-Preise-an-Corti-Darwish-und-Gebre.html)

This year's Bruno Kreisky Prize for services to human rights goes to the Syrian journalist and activist Mazen Darwish, who has been imprisoned by Bashar al-Assad's regime since February 2012. The Kreisky Foundation announced on Wednesday that Darwish was being honored at the suggestion of the international award commission because he campaigned for freedom of the press and drew attention to the disappearance of reporters and bloggers.
Also honored are the Ethiopian human rights activist Bogaletch Gebre and Cecily Corti, co-founder of the homeless facility VinziRast in Vienna. The prize will be awarded on June 10th in the state hall of the National Library in Vienna.

The "West Eastern Divan Orchestra" and three associations that look after torture and war survivors received the Bruno Kreisky Prize for services to human rights on Friday evening in the Musikverein.

 
Daniel Barenboim is one of the founders of the West Eastern Divan Orchestra.

“The musicians deserve it”
Conductor Daniel Barenboim received the award for founding the West Eastern Divan Orchestra. In 1999, together with the late Palestinian literary scholar Edward Said, he established an orchestra with young musicians from Israel, Palestine and various countries in the Middle East.

In his acceptance speech, Barenboim said in the Wiener Musikverein that a two-state solution within the borders of 1967 was the only conceivable option for the Middle East: "But the politics of the past few years have led to nothing but more hatred." You have to look at the price to say clearly: "I don't deserve it, but the musicians of the orchestra deserve it."

The orchestra has been based in Seville since 2002.

A concept for world culture
The orchestra was founded at the invitation of the Weimar Art Festival. First of all, an intercultural dialogue was made possible in a workshop for young musicians. The experience of working together on a common basis should be encouraged.
Barenboim and Said named the orchestra and the workshop after Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's collection of poems "West-Eastern Divan", a central work for the development of a concept of world culture. The orchestra's first appearances were in Weimar and Chicago. Relocated in 2002
to Seville, where it settled permanently.

Lots to do – also in Austria
In addition to the orchestra, three associations that look after survivors of torture and war also received awards: the psychosocial center ESRA and the associations ASPIS and HEMAYAT. Laudator Andre Heller was pleased that people were honored who "offer orientation in demon mazes, fear resolution and much more".

Help in "Orientation in Demon Mazes".

Foundation manager Oliver Rathkolb said that one should not believe "that we don't have enough to do in Austria to enforce human rights". Maria Lind from ASPIS described that Carinthia did not receive a cent in subsidies: "And today we are being awarded precisely for this work - that makes us proud."

ASPIS, an independent institution at the University of Klagenfurt, is dedicated to providing psychotherapeutic and psychosocial help for traumatized people. Particular attention is paid to today's victims of torture and survivors of Nazi terror.

Help for traumatized victims.

Long-standing commitment to people
The ESRA psychosocial center was honored for its social responsibility towards the survivors of Nazi persecution. For 17 years, the employees have been advising, accompanying and treating traumatized people free of charge. ESRA also offers help for survivors of Nazi persecution and their descendants, as well as for Jewish migrants and their families.

HEMAYAT was founded in Vienna in 1955. Translated, the name of the association means care and protection. In the meantime, the association has established itself as a center for medical, psychological and psychotherapeutic care for torture and war survivors.

First awarded in 1979
The Bruno Kreisky Prize for services to human rights is awarded at irregular intervals by a foundation. This was established on the occasion of Bruno Kreisky's 65th birthday in 1976 and endowed with 700,000 euros.

 
Prize for Bruno Kreisky's 65th birthday.

The prize was first awarded in 1979. Previous winners include Nelson Mandela, Benazir Bhutto and the former Archbishop of Vienna, Cardinal Franz König.

http://wien.orf.at/stories/516936/

For his commitment to reconciliation in the Middle East conflict, the Bruno Kreisky Prize for services to human rights was awarded to pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim and the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, which he and the Palestinian literary scholar Edward Said founded on May 20 at the Musikverein in Vienna awarded, which consists of young Israeli and Palestinian musicians. The three aid organizations ASPIS, ESRA and HEMAYAT, which are dedicated to caring for survivors of torture and war, are also honored.
The prize, worth 700,000 euros, was created in 1976 to mark the 65th birthday of the then Austrian Chancellor and is awarded at irregular intervals by a foundation. The eulogy for Maestro Barenboim was held by the President of the National Council, Barbara Prammer, and the artist André Heller addressed the aid organisations.

http://www.bka.gv.at/site/infodate__23.05.2011/7455/default.aspx?wai=true#id43665

Federal Chancellery Austria, Monday, May 23, 2011

Subtitle: Awarding of the 14th Bruno Kreisky Prize for services to human rights to ASPIS, ESRA, HEMAYAT, West-Eastern Divan Orchestra and Maestro Daniel Barenboim =

Vienna (OTS / SK) - President of the National Council Barbara Prammer emphasized the importance of political education in the fight for human rights at the presentation of the 14th Bruno Kreisky Prize for services to human rights on Friday evening. "Meanwhile, 20 percent in Austria want a strong leader instead of democracy," Prammer warned, referring to a study, emphasizing the value of tolerance and the need to know what intolerance and hate speech can lead to. According to Prammer, the award-winning organizations contributed to a harmonious coexistence with their work and set strong signs for tolerance and peace.

The President of the National Council praised "the leitmotif of crossing national lines of conflict by means of mutual cultural debate and acceptance", which has been the focus of the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra and Maestro Daniel Barenboim since it was founded together with the late literary scholar Edward Said. "The ensemble of the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, characterized by musical excellence, brings together young musicians from Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Syria, Tunisia and Andalusia," says Prammer. This contributes to mutual appreciation and recognition and promotes dialogue. The project is thus in the best tradition of Bruno Kreisky, who repeatedly endeavored to bring peace to the Middle East by means of initiatives for direct talks.

The "ASPIS" facility, which was also awarded, is an independent body at the University of Klagenfurt that offers help for people traumatized by the experience of violence, especially for survivors and victims of torture of Nazi terror, but also for younger displaced persons. The award winners emphasized the importance of "fighting against right-wing radicalism, racism and intolerance" and addressed their difficult situation in Carinthia, where they also received no subsidies. They also warned of the spread of right-wing extremist parties in Europe.

The association ESRA offers survivors of Nazi persecution and their descendants comprehensive help and supports Jewish migrants who have immigrated to Austria in the last few decades in their integration process. Over 1,500 people who survived the Holocaust and are still suffering from the long-term effects of the Shoah were treated. "Traumatized people need social recognition and acceptance," says David Vyssoki from ESRA. This recognition had to be won first.

HEMAYAT has established itself in Vienna as a center for medical, psychological and psychotherapeutic care for victims of torture and war survivors. The association tries to rebuild refugees in their country of exile. Terrible deportations often occur because traumatized people find it difficult to remember what they have experienced and those affected are not believed in the asylum procedure, said Friedrun Huemer, who spoke as a representative of the association. (close) pep/sv

Further inquiries: SPÖ federal organization, press service, Löwelstraße 18, 1014 Vienna, Tel.: 01/53427-275 http://www.spoe.at/online/page.php?P=100493

*** OTS ORIGINAL TEXT PRESS RELEASE UNDER THE EXCLUSIVE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE ISSUE FOR CONTENT – WWW.OTS.AT ***
OTS0029 2011-05-21/12:08

A bridge builder for the Middle East
Barely has President Obama spoken out in Washington in favor of a Palestinian state and the establishment of the 1967 border lines, which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promptly rejected, when one of the most renowned artists in the international concert scene is honored for his efforts to bring about peace in the Middle East conflict: Daniel Barenboim.

Midday Journal, 05/20/2011

(Susanna Dal Monte)
Barenboim is more committed to peace in the Middle East conflict than almost any other artist, has given concerts in the Palestinian territories, founded the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra of young Israeli and Arab musicians and campaigned for the highly controversial performance of Richard Wagner's works in Israel .

Not only does he make a guest appearance at the Musikverein in Vienna on Friday evening, he is also honored with the Bruno Kreisky Prize for services to human rights.

criticism of Israel's policies

At the beginning of the conversation, Barenboim was appalled that the Israeli prime minister immediately rejected Obama's speech without first analyzing it thoroughly. Netanyahu is harming not only Palestinians but also Israelis. In Israel there is a general lack of analytical skills "and as a Jew I can say that".

When it comes to the Middle East, Daniel Barenboim gets emotional: he doesn't want to wait for peace, he wants to go towards it and has been doing so for years.
Born in Buenos Aires of Russian, Argentinian, Spanish and Israeli descent, he is probably the only Israeli who has also held Palestinian citizenship since 2007.

What he is calling for is more international pressure against the Gaza blockade, because only an opening of the Gaza Strip will clear the way for an understanding, says Barenboim. But once again the signs are bad. In this context, Barenboim criticizes above all the most recent settlement construction: "Netanyahu is laughing his head off at Obama".

Alternative Thinking Laboratory

With the West Eastern Divan youth orchestra, which he founded together with the Palestinian-born literary scholar Edward Said and which is made up of Arab and Israeli musicians, Barenboim tries to teach tolerance on a small scale: "Bridges can only be built by people, not by politicians". .

He builds bridges and receives awards for it all over the world. In Vienna he received the Bruno Kreisky Human Rights Prize for his commitment to reconciliation in the Middle East conflict is awarded.

The West Eastern Divan Orchestra conducted by Daniel Barenboim can be heard today at the Wiener Musikverein.

Other award winners

The other award winners are the psychosocial center Esra, the association Aspis and the association Hemayat.

The Esra psychosocial center is being honored for its social responsibility towards the survivors of National Socialist persecution.

Aspis, an independent institution at the University of Klagenfurt, has also taken up the cause of psychotherapeutic and psychosocial help for traumatized people, especially for victims of torture and survivors of Nazi terror.

The Hemayat association, founded in Vienna in 1995, has established itself as a center for medical, psychological and psychotherapeutic care for survivors of torture and war. "Hemayat" comes from the Arabic language area and means "care" and "protection".

Text version: Joseph Schimmer
20.05.2011
http://oe1.orf.at/artikel/277424