Martin Ennals Award Ceremony 2013 - 8 October 2013 in Geneva

Follow the live broadcast of the Ceremony here (from 18:00 GVA time)!

Live streaming video by Ustream
This award is given to human rights defenders whohave shown deep commitment and face great personal risk. The aim of the awardis to provide protection through international recognition.

The Jury will also select two recipients of the NewMartin Ennals Prizes.

The nomineesfor the 2013 Martin Ennals Award are: Ms. MonaSeif from Egypt, the JointMobile Group working Chechnya and Mr. Mario Joseph from Haiti.

Mona Seif, Egypt:Core founder of the” No To Military Trials for Civilians”, a grassrootsinitiative which is trying to stop military trials for civilians. SinceFebruary 25, 2011, Mona has brought together activists, lawyers, victims’families, local stakeholders and started a nationwide movement against militarytrials. They have succeeded in putting military trials on the politicalagenda, and have helped to overturn of long sentences by military courts. "International solidarity, and I meanpeople's support not governments, empowers us to continue our battle and stopmilitary trials for civilians".

Mona Seif - Martin Ennals Award Nominee 2013 from Martin Ennals Award on Vimeo.

Joint Mobile Group, Russia: After the murder ofseveral human rights activists working in Chechnya,Igor Kalyapin started the Joint Mobile Group. To reduce the risk they sendinvestigators on short missions to Chechnya to document Human Rights abuses.This information is then used to publicise these abuses to seek legal redress. Igor Kalyapin speaking of the effect ofinternational publicity said “… whenthe international community is watching us it is more difficult for theauthorities to take steps against us…”

Joint Mobile Group - Martin Ennals Award Nominee 2013 from Martin Ennals Award on Vimeo.

Mario Joseph, referred to as Haiti’s most important human rightslawyer, he has worked on some of the most important cases in Haiti, includingthe current case against the former dictator Jean-Claude “Baby Doc”Duvalier. His family received asylum in the United States in 2004, while hechose to return to Haiti. He has faced threats and harassment for much of his20 years as a lawyer although it has intensified in recent months. “Thisrecognition from the Ennals Award shines a vital spotlight on my work, and onthe work of everyone who is fighting for human rights in Haiti. That spotlightwill make our work safer and more effective.”

The main award of the human rights movement. TheMartin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders (MEA) is a unique collaborationamong ten of the world’s leading human rights organizations to give protection to human rights defendersworldwide. The Jury is composed of the following NGOs:

- Amnesty International

- Human Rights Watch

- Human Rights First

- Int’l Federation for Human Rights

- World Organisation Against Torture

- Front Line Defenders

- International Commission of Jurists

- German Diakonie

- International Service for Human Rights

- HURIDOCS

For further information, please contact: Michael Khambatta +41 79474 8208

khambatta@martinennalsaward.org or visit www.martinennalsaward.org