The Covax mechanism, for the global distribution of vaccines against Covid-19, and the Afghan activist Zarifa Ghafari are the two winners of the North-South Prize of the Council of Europe. The award ceremony was held this Tuesday at the Assembly of the Republic, and was attended by President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa.
Zarifa Ghafari, the youngest female mayor to be elected in Afghanistan, took to the stage as a symbol of all Afghan women.
With a standing ovation, the women’s rights advocate dedicated the award “to all the brave women of Afghanistan.” “To all the girls who are at the university in Kabul, to all the girls who stand strong across the country and give us the privilege, trust and honor to be their voice outside of Afghanistan,” she continued.
Zarifa Ghafari, who was forced to leave Afghanistan when the Taliban came to power and who found asylum in Germany, appealed to governments and policymakers: “Please dare to speak out and support the fight for education of women, for primary schools, for basic human rights, for freedom of expression.
The other winner of the night was the Covax mechanism, launched in April 2020 in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, to provide access to vaccines around the world.
The mechanism was represented at the ceremony in the Assembly of the Republic by José Manuel Durão Barroso, from GAVI – Alliance for Vaccines, by Jane Halton, from the Coalition for the Preparation of Epidemic Innovations (CEPI), Etleva Kadilli, from the United Nations United Fund for Children (UNICEF) and Bruce Aylward, of the World Health Organization (WHO).
In his award acceptance speech, Durão Barroso highlighted the “1.6 billion [de vacinas] -approximately 90%- that went to people in the 92 lowest-income countries.” “Without Covax, many of these countries would not have access to vaccines,” he stressed.
The President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, highlighted the mission of “building a better world” as the impetus for the North-South Award. “This is the aspiration of the Council of Europe, this is the struggle of the victors of today and always”.
The ceremony was also marked by an ostentatious fall of the deputy Edite Estrela, who was speaking as a representative of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and was quickly rescued.
The North-South Prize of the Council of Europe annually distinguishes two personalities or organizations that have distinguished themselves for their contribution to human rights, democracy and the rule of law.
Source: TSF
