Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights wins Rights & Democracy ’s 2008 John Humphrey Freedom Award

Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights wins
Rights & Democracy’s 2008 John Humphrey Freedom Award

MONTREAL – Nov. 13, 2008 – Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights is the winner
of Rights & Democracy’s 2008 John Humphrey Freedom Award in recognition of
its courageous pursuit of justice for victims of human rights abuses inside
Zimbabwe.

The organization has played a leading role in the promotion and protection
of human rights across Zimbabwe since its founding in 1996. Guided by a
professional commitment to the rule of law and Zimbabwe’s international
human rights obligations, ZLHR provides essential services ranging from
legal support for victims of state-endorsed persecution to public education
and human rights training for activists and civil society organizations
working at the community level.

In 2003, ZLHR established a project to provide legal support for human
rights defenders facing prosecution. Up to 1,500 Zimbabweans now benefit
from the service each year, and its lawyers have yet to lose a single case
in the project's five year history. Irene Petras, Executive Director of
ZLHR, attributes this perfect track record to both the heroic tenacity of
the project's lawyers and the fact there is rarely any evidence to support
the charges brought against their clients. “Prosecution is used as a tool
of persecution,” she said. Ms. Petras and fellow lawyer Andrew Makoni will
accept the John Humphrey Freedom Award on behalf of ZLHR at an Ottawa
ceremony on Dec. 10, International Human Rights Day.

“Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights provides a vital democratic lifeline for
those who would otherwise have no recourse against state-sponsored abuses
and persecution,” said Dr. Jacques P. Gauthier, Interim Chair of Rights &
Democracy’s (the International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic
Development) Board of Directors. “Its determined, non-violent struggle
against impunity and repression reminds us that, in the end, tyranny is no
match for human dignity and the rule of law.”

Rights & Democracy established the annual John Humphrey Freedom Award in
1992 to honour an organization or individual for exceptional commitment to
the promotion of international human rights and democratic development.
Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights was nominated by the Canadian Embassy in
Harare. An international jury selected ZLHR unanimously from a field of
almost 100 candidates.

Named in honour of John Peters Humphrey, the McGill University law
professor who prepared the first draft of The Universal Declaration of
Human Rights, the annual John Humphrey Freedom Award includes a speaking
tour of Canadian cities to help increase awareness of the recipient's human
rights work. This year’s tour will bring Ms. Petras and Mr. Makoni address
public events in Calgary (Nov. 27), Toronto (Dec. 2), Halifax (Dec. 5),
Montreal (Dec. 8) and Ottawa (Dec. 10).

For further information
Please contact Steve Smith (ext 255) at Rights & Democracy, 514-283-6073

Rights & Democracy is a non-partisan, independent Canadian institution
created by an Act of Parliament in 1988 to promote democratic development
and to advocate for and defend human rights set out in the International
Bill of Human Rights. In cooperation with civil society and governments in
Canada and abroad, Rights & Democracy initiates and supports programmes to
strengthen laws and democratic institutions, principally in developing
countries.