Honoring those who defend the rights of others [infographic]

Human rights defenders advocate peacefully for the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms — often at great personal risk.

“Making progress on these issues requires bravery, requires resilience. Above all, it requires dogged persistence,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said, announcing the eight winners of the Human Rights Defender Award on December 10. “For these individuals, advancing human rights, it’s not a job; It’s quite literally a lifelong mission.”

The 2024 winners include Rufat Safarov, of Azerbaijan, who was unable to attend the award ceremony in Washington because he was unjustly detained. The honorees also include Thulani Maseko, who advocated for civil rights and a peaceful democratic transition in Eswatini before he was murdered in 2023 by unknown assailants.

The Department of State announced the winners of the 2024 Secretary of State’s Human Rights Defender Award on Human Rights Day, which commemorates the anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). The UDHR promises that, “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.”