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Rabat – President of Morocco’s National Human Rights Council (CNDH) Amina Bouayach will receive her North-South Prize of the Council of Europe on Tuesday in Lisbon.
The Portuguese Parliament will host the ceremony, where the President of Portugal Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa and President of the Portuguese Assembly Jose Pedro Aguiar Brancho will hand the prize to Bouayach.
The CNDH chairperson will also address the ceremony with a speech.
Bouayach is the first Moroccan woman and third Moroccan figure to win the prize after King Mohammed VI’s advisor Andre Azoulay and late former Prime Minister Abderrahmane Youssoufi.
The Council of Europe awarded the prize to Bouayach in recognition of her commitment to the promotion of human rights, gender equality and the prevention of torture on a regional and continental levels.
The council announced Bouayach as the winner of the prize in January of this year, recognizing her engagement in political advocacy for the abolition of the death penalty. She was also recognized for her efforts to reinforce both civil society structures in the Mediterranean region as well as North-South cooperation based on common democratic values.
The Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Bjørn Berge, as well as the Chair of the Executive Committee of the North-South Centre, Ambassador Francesca Camilleri Vettiger, will also take part in the award ceremony.
The prize honors two candidates — of which can be activists, public figures or organizations — every year since 1995 in recognition of their exceptional commitment to promoting North-South solidarity.
In March, the Spanish French Friendship Association awarded Bouayach with the 2024 Women Future Prize in Madrid, recognizing her unwavering commitment to protection and promotion of fundamental rights.
Commenting on the award, Bouayach said that the prize reflects Morocco’s “constant commitment and progress in promoting human and women rights,” noting that being the president of CNDH is an “honor “ for her.
The jury of the event also emphasized Bouayach’s role in contributing to promoting human rights, describing her journey as “exemplary.
The jury added that her career embodies the “relentless struggle for justice, equality, and human rights in Morocco.”
