The Martin Ennals Foundation and the City of Geneva (Switzerland), announced the nominations of Me Mario Joseph (Haiti) ; Me Mona Seif (Egypt) and Joint Mobile Group (Russia/Chechnya) for the Martin Ennals Award. This award recognizes individuals who distinguish themselves in an exceptional way in the fight against the human rights violations by courageous and innovative means. The objective of this award is to provide some protection to human rights defenders, through media coverage of their respective fights.

Me Mario Joseph, described as the most important human rights lawyer in Haiti, worked in very important cases, including that of former dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier. Although his family has decided to exile in the United States in 2004, he returned to Haiti. He suffered intimidation and threats over the past twenty years because of the actions he undertook as part of his work. These pressures have intensified in recent months, however, "this recognition of the Martin Ennals Award gives visibility to my work and that of all those who fight for human rights. This will help make our work safer and more efficient," declared Me Joseph.

Actively supported by the City of Geneva, the Martin Ennals Award will be awarded at a ceremony on Tuesday, 8 October 2013.

Learn more about the Martin Ennals Award :

The Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders is the result of a unique collaboration among ten largest organizations promoting human rights : Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), Front Line, International Commission of Jurists, Human Rights First, the International Service for Human Rights, German Diakonie, Human Rights Information and Documentation Systems (HURIDOCS) and the World Organisation against torture (OMCT).

HL/ HaitiLibre