On Monday, March 14, at 10:00 a.m. EST, Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken will host the annual International Women of Courage (IWOC) Awards in a virtual ceremony at the U.S. Department of State. The 2022 IWOC Award ceremony will honor a group of twelve extraordinary women from around the world who are working to build a brighter future for all. The First Lady of the United States, Dr. Jill Biden, will deliver remarks in recognition of the courageous accomplishments of this year’s IWOC awardees.
Now in its 16th year, the Secretary of State’s IWOC Award recognizes women from around the globe who have demonstrated exceptional courage, strength, and leadership in advocating for peace, justice, human rights, gender equity and equality, and the empowerment of women and girls, in all their diversity – often at great personal risk and sacrifice. Since March 2007, the Department of State has recognized more than 170 women from over 80 countries with the IWOC Award. U.S. diplomatic missions overseas nominate one woman of courage from their respective host countries and finalists are selected and approved by senior Department officials. Following the virtual IWOC ceremony, the awardees will participate in an International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) Virtual exchange to connect with their American counterparts and strengthen the global network of women leaders. The 2022 awardees are:
Rizwana Hasan – Bangladesh
Rizwana Hasan is a lawyer who demonstrates exceptional courage and leadership in her mission to protect the environment and defend the dignity and rights of marginalized Bangladeshis.
Simone Sibilio do Nascimento – Brazil
Simone Sibilio do Nascimento is one of Brazil’s most prominent prosecutors and a former civil police delegate and Captain of the Military Police.
Ei Thinzar Maung – Burma
An inspiring and influential pro-democracy voice who emerged as a symbol of peaceful public resistance just days after the February 1, 2021, coup d’état, Ei Thinzar Maung serves as Burma’s pro-democracy opposition NUG Deputy Minister for Women, Youths, and Children Affairs.
Josefina Klinger Zúñiga – Colombia
Josefina Klinger Zúñiga is a courageous Afro-Colombian human rights and environmental defender from Nuquí, Chocó, a rural municipality in western Colombia with a majority Afro-Colombian and Indigenous population.
Taif Sami Mohammed – Iraq
Taif Sami Mohammed assumed the Deputy Finance Minister position in 2019 and simultaneously holds this position as well as Director General of the Budget Department.
Facia Boyenoh Harris – Liberia
Facia Boyenoh Harris is a life-long activist for women’s rights and against gender-based violence in Liberia.
Najla Mangoush – Libya
Appointed on March 15, 2021, Najla Mangoush became the first woman Foreign Minister of Libya and the fifth to hold such a position in North Africa.
Doina Gherman – Moldova
Doina Gherman has served in the Moldovan Parliament since 2019, where she has championed efforts to promote women’s inclusion and protect survivors of domestic and gender-based violence.
Bhumika Shrestha – Nepal
Transgender activist Bhumika Shrestha has advocated for gender minorities’ rights and social justice in Nepal since 2007.
Carmen Gheorghe – Romania
Since 2013, Carmen Gheorghe has been the president of E-Romnja, an NGO that promotes Roma women’s rights.
Roegchanda Pascoe – South Africa
In South Africa, a country grappling with high rates of organized crime, gender-based violence, and murder, Roegchanda Pascoe has courageously advocated for peace, justice, and economic inclusion in the historically underserved and violent Cape Flats of Cape Town.
Phạm Đoan Trang – Vietnam
Phạm Đoan Trang is an internationally recognized author, blogger, journalist, and human rights defender who, through her writing and interviews, uses thoroughly researched legal arguments to advocate for human rights, rule of law, and the inclusion of all voices in political spaces in Vietnam.
Source: www.state.gov
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