15
Dec
2021
Watch
Award of the Sakharov Prize (formal sitting)
Ladies and gentlemen, ladies and gentlemen, we are gathered here today to award the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought to Alexei Navalny. The empty chair in this hemicycle symbolizes, once again unfortunately, that a winner of our prize is deprived of freedom. To our deep regret, Alexei Navalny cannot be here with us today, because he is being unjustly detained in a prison in the Russian Federation. But I am very honoured to have with us Daria Navalnaya, daughter of Alexei Navalny, who is here today to represent him, and his chief of staff, Leonid Volkov. Kira Yarmysh, a press officer, is also with us. On behalf of the European Parliament, I would like to welcome you all and thank you for being here. I invite you now to watch together a video dedicated to this year's winner of the Sakharov Prize. Ladies and gentlemen, ladies and gentlemen, 2021 is the centenary of Andrei Sakharov. His peaceful struggle to promote human rights and his courage in confronting the repressive and brutal Soviet regime inspired the prize we are about to award today. Andrei Sakharov would perhaps be sad and at the same time proud to know that, more than thirty years after the fall of Communism, the prize that bears his name is awarded to Alexei Navalny, his compatriot. If the sadness can be motivated by the fact that today the Russian political regime is guilty of repressing civil society organisations, restricting media freedom and putting political opponents in prison, no doubt Sakharov would be proud of the determination with which Alexei Navalny is fighting for human rights and fundamental freedoms. Alexei Navalny's courage arouses astonishment and admiration. They threatened him, mistreated him, poisoned him, arrested him, imprisoned him, but they failed to silence him. He fought tirelessly for the Russian people, as an anti-corruption activist, was a political candidate and is a blogger and lawyer. In other words: His action for freedom of thought and expression is here today recognized by us as an absolute value. As he once said, corruption thrives when human rights are not respected. And I think he's right. The fight against corruption is a fight for respect for universal human rights and is certainly also a fight for human dignity, good governance and the rule of law. It was to defend these principles that Alexei Navalny was deprived of his liberty and nearly lost his life. He's a political prisoner. And on behalf of the European Parliament I call for his immediate and unconditional release. As every year, I also urgently call for the release of all the other Sakharov Prize laureates – let us not forget them, let us not forget them – who are still in prison: Ilham Tothi, Nasrin Sotoudeh, Aymara Nieto and Raif Badawi. Sergei Tsikanousky and Mikalai Statkevich, two of the 2020 winners, were wrongfully sentenced yesterday by the illegitimate Belarusian regime to 18 and 15 years in prison. Among the hundreds of political prisoners in Belarus there are also four winners, including Maria Kolesnikova and Ales Bialiatski. Other Sakharov Prize winners are being harassed. This is the case of Dr. Mukwege, who is facing an alarming increase in intimidation and death threats. This is also the case for Memorial, the 2009 award-winning organisation and one of the oldest and most important voices in defence of fundamental freedoms in Russia, which is currently undergoing a liquidation process. In a world where authoritarian regimes and populist forces attack human rights and undermine fundamental freedoms, all these Sakharov Prize winners, and Alexei Navalny among them, are demonstrating to all of us, by their example, what it means to fight for freedom. They are a source of inspiration for all those who dream of a better and fairer society, in Russia but not only. The European Parliament will spare no effort to support their battles and protect them. I and the whole of the European Parliament look forward to the day when Alexei Navalny will be able to return to the European Parliament to collect the Sakharov Prize in person. I now give the floor to Mrs Navalnaja, and Members of the European Parliament from all Member States who are present or remotely connected are eager to listen to her.