Renowned Ghanaian human rights activist, Emerita Prof. Takyiwaa Manuh, has won the Franco-German Prize for Human Rights and the Rule of Law award for 2023.
Prof. Takyiwaa Manuh, the former Director of the Institute of African Studies of the University of Ghana, was one of the 12 recipients of the award for 2023.
The 2023 winners of the Franco-German Prize for Human Rights and the Rule of Law were announced by the Foreign Ministers of Germany and France, Annalena Baerbock and Catherine Colonna, on Tuesday, December 12, 2023, on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations General Assembly.
A press release by the Federal Foreign Office of Germany indicated that winners “stand up for those whose voices would often not be heard without them, such as women, refugees, LGBTIQ+ people and prisoners. They are committed to the cause of justice, political participation and unbiased reporting in the media, often risking their own freedom, frequently even their lives, under the most difficult conditions”.
Prof. Takyiwaa Manuh is a staunch advocate of the LGBTQ+ community in Ghana.
She has made news headlines in the country following her strong opposition to the draft Promotion of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values bill (anti-LGBTQ+ bill) currently being considered by the Parliament of Ghana.
Below is a list of the 2023 winners of the Franco-German Prize for Human Rights and the Rule of Law:
Fadel Abdulghany, Syria
Marianela Balbi Ochoa, Venezuela
Chow Hang-Tung, SAR Hong Kong, China
Danièle Darlan, the Central African Republic
Choman Hardi, Iraq
Gisèle Khoury, Lebanon
Hanna Machińska, Poland
Takyiwaa Manuh, Ghana
Anny Modi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Oluwaseun Osowobi, Nigeria
Valery Wichman, Cook Islands
About the awards:
Since 2016, France and Germany have used International Human Rights Day as an opportunity to jointly pay tribute to individuals around the world who have shown outstanding commitment to promoting human rights.
The Franco-German Prize for Human Rights and the Rule of Law honours civil society’s commitment to human dignity and the inalienable human rights of all people. After all, protecting, preserving and strengthening human rights is a prerequisite for freedom, justice and peace around the world.
BAI/OGB
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Emerita Prof. Takyiwaa Manuh