Missing in action: Wheelchair-bound human rights advocate Ni Yulan failed to attend the awarding ceremony in the U.S. She told the BBC that her passport was withheld. (Photo : U.S. Department of State/Flickr)
Human rights lawyer and activist Ni Yulan became a 2016 recipient of the International Women of Courage Award conferred by the U.S. Department of State.
Ni, 56, shares the recognition with 13 other women:
Thelma Aldana (Attorney General, Guatemala)
Nihal Naj Ali Al-Awlaqi (Minister of Legal Affairs, Yemen)
Nisha Ayub (Transgender Rights Advocate, Malaysia)
Debra Baptist-Estrada (Port Commander, Belize Immigration and Nationality, Belize)
Sara Hossain (Barrister, Supreme Court, Bangladesh)
Nagham Nawzat (Yezidi Activist and Gynecologist, Iraq)
Zhanna Nemtsova (Journalist and Activist, Russia)
Vicky Ntetema (Executive Director of Under the Same Sun, Tanzania)
Awadeya Mahmoud (Founder and Chair of the Women’s Food and Tea Sellers’ Cooperative and the Women’s Multi-Purpose Cooperative for Khartoum State, Sudan)
Fatimata M’baye (Co-founder and President of the Mauritanian Association for Human Rights, Mauritania)
Zuzana Stevulová (Director of the Human Rights League, Slovakia)
Rodjaraeg Wattanapanit (Bookstore Owner and Co-founder of Creating Awareness for Enhanced Democracy, Thailand)
Latifa Ibn Ziaten (Interfaith Activist, France)
“Every one of these women who are here today and those who were celebrated previously have all dedicated their lives to the pursuit of justice,” said Secretary of State John Kerry during his speech.
Kerry conferred the awards on March 29 in a ceremony held at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C.
The U.S. Secretary of State’s International Women of Courage Award, established in 2007, “honors women around the globe who have exemplified exceptional courage and leadership in advocating for human rights, women’s equality, and social progress, often at great personal risk,” according to its website.
The State Department said that “it is the only Department of State award that pays tribute to emerging women leaders worldwide.”
Ni, who started practicing law in 1986, was sent to jail in 2012 after the Xicheng District People’s Court of Beijing sentenced her for “picking quarrels and provoking troubles,” according to Human Rights in China.
The Dutch government presented its 2011 Human Rights Defenders Tulip award to Ni. China Aid Association and Christian Solidarity Worldwide nominated her, according to Euroasia Review.
The demolition of her neighborhood in Bejing in 2001 as part of the country’s preparation for the 2008 Olympic Games led her to pursue activism.
The award from the Netherlands “is intended as a tribute to a man or woman who has shown exceptional courage defending and promoting the rights of their fellow citizens,” according to the award’s website.
Kerry, in his speech, stated why the department recognizes the efforts undertaken by these women from different parts of the world: “We will not accept violence against women or the marginalization of women and girls from their communities.”
