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	2012: A year of courage and conviction by Transparency International   Standing up to corruption requires both courage and conviction, often in the face of great personal danger. Again in 2012 we saw how people took on this challenge. This article is a tribute to a few of those from around the world who have made a difference in the fight against corruption, one of whom paid with his life.   Despite the risks, they understood the devastating effect corruption can have on people’s livelihoods and decided to act. In some cases that meant doing their jobs, despite intimidation. In others it meant speaking out in the face of danger.   They are inspirations to us all. Our mission – a world free of corruption – depends on everyone taking up the anti-corruption challenge.   Rafael Marques de Morais is an Angolan journalist, writer and founder of Maka Angola, the country’s only anti-corruption website. Maka is a noun in Kimbundu, one of the indigenous languages of Angola, referring to a delicate, complex or serious problem, an apt description of what it takes to fight corruption in a country recovering from years of civil war.   Mohammad Abu Amryed, a worker at the ministry of finance in Palestine, discovered in the course of his daily duties that a citizen was being blackmailed when requesting a grant to have his properties rebuilt after the Intifada al Aqsa. He uncovered a scheme to extort US$375,000 and the perpetrator is now facing justice. This year, AMAN, Transparency International’s chapter in Palestine, honoured Amryed with its 2012 Integrity Award alongside Ali Abu Yunus, from local government bodies, and Nizar Habash, from the media sector, for their courage in speaking out against corruption.   Chut Wutty was murdered in April this year in the rain forests of Cambodia that he struggled to protect. He dared to stand up to the powerful vested interests that threaten the livelihoods of villagers and the environment where they live because of illegal logging, particularly of rosewood. He inspired local protests and gathered information on the corrupt practices of government officials in granting logging permits.   Costas Vaxevanis, a Greek journalist, was arrested and tried for publishing a list of the names of more than 2,000 wealthy Greeks with Swiss bank accounts. The list had been lying unread on government desks for several years. He was later acquitted but is now facing retrial. The revelation of the list raises questions about whether there are credible, enforceable measures in place to ensure that people pay their taxes in line with all requirements of the law, or whether some rich people are able to shelter their income.   G. J. Sanath Fernando was honoured with the 2012 national integrity award from Transparency International Sri Lanka for doing his job in the face of death threats in a position that is particularly vulnerable to bribery and corruption. Over his career he has uncovered numerous scams, including the illegal importing of cigarettes and the under-valuation of vehicles and palm oil.   Ocasa – which means truth in an ancient, indigenous Colombian language – was founded in 2009 by young people who want to promote democracy and good governance, particularly among their peers. It has helped support 30 projects across Colombia that have touched the lives of more than 13,000 people. Visit the related web page
	Desmond Tutu awarded UNESCO Prize for the Promotion of a Culture of Human Rights by Stephane Hessel UNESCO   UNESCO Director-General, Irina Bokova, has designated Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu from South Africa as laureate of the 2012 UNESCO/Bilbao Prize for the Promotion of a Culture of Human Rights.   Archbishop Desmond Tutu was selected by an International Jury in recognition of his exceptional contribution to building a universal culture of human rights at the national, regional and international levels.   In selecting Desmond Tutu, the jury recognized the outstanding role he played in building the new democratic, non-racial South Africa and his invaluable contribution as Chairperson of South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission, to national reconstruction which became a model for other post-conflict societies.   Furthermore, the Prize recognizes his courageous activism, particularly with young people, to promote of non-violence and oppose all forms of discrimination and injustice.   The jury also stressed the outstanding contribution of Archbishop Tutu to the work of the United Nations and UNESCO on various human rights issues, including the promotion of a culture of human rights.   The UNESCO/Bilbao Prize for the Promotion of a Culture of Human Rights rewards outstanding contributions made by organizations and individuals to the cause of human rights through education and research. The Prize also serves to raise awareness of human rights, particularly among decision-makers. French human rights activist Stéphane Hessel was the first laureate of the Prize. In 2010, the Prize was given to eminent Pakistani human rights campaigner Asma Jahangir.   11.12.2012   Ambassador Stéphane Hessel, laureate of the 2008 UNESCO/Bilbao Prize for the Promotion of a Culture of Human Rights and co-author of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, applauds the award of the 2012 UNESCO/Bilbao Prize to Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu and expresses his concern that human rights are still too often violated.   Four years after having received the first UNESCO/Bilbao Prize for the Promotion of a Culture of Human Rights, another emblematic figure, who has dedicated his entire life to the cause of human rights, takes your place. Your path has crossed several times the one of Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu. Tell us about your encounters with him.   I have had the privilege of meeting Archbishop Desmond Tutu sometime after the outstanding work he had accomplished in South Africa. I should begin by saying that the case of South Africa is a tremendously important example for us all.   Not only because apartheid, that prevailed for years and led to the expulsion of South Africa from the United Nations, has been overcome, but because we know now that, even after dramatic episodes such as apartheid, it is possible to bring together anew the citizens of a country and overcome, not always smoothly, but still overcome antagonisms of the past.   Desmond Tutu’s role in this process was considerable! Later on, I also had the privilege of sharing with Desmond Tutu a session at the Roosevelt Institute in Middelburg, in the Netherlands, where every two years “Prizes of the Four Freedoms of the Atlantic” are awarded – freedom from fear, freedom to refuse misery, freedom of expression and freedom of religion. That year Desmond Tutu received the prize for freedom of religion, and I, myself the prize for freedom to refuse misery.   I again met Desmond Tutu last year at a meeting in Cape Town (where he was living) on the situation in Palestine. During this meeting, we worked together for the right to statehood of Palestine, and the Palestinian people. At each of my encounters with the Archbishop, I had the same sense of wonder at his sense of humour and mirth even when dealing with tough problems such as human rights violations.   Reconciliation is a common ground in your work and that of Archbishop Tutu. Why is this so important?   Archbishop Desmond Tutu made us realize what it takes to have people living together who have fought with each other and experienced the dramatic era of Apartheid, the years of imprisonment of Nelson Mandela and the coming to power of a new government repudiating the principles of apartheid.   Such a victory can only be consolidated and rendered permanent through a certain process - called in South Africa "truth and reconciliation" – which should be made possible in all countries where people have experienced and overcome similarly dramatic periods.   The message of Desmond Tutu applies perfectly to numerous situations in countries where there have been unanswered claims, combats and conflicts. These conflicts, finally pacified, must be integrated into people’s consciousness through an effort of conciliation and reconciliation.   This is also the message that I have tried to convey in a few cases where I had a little influence. I think of Burundi, where on numerous occasions I have attempted to have conciliation prevail over conflict. I also think of what a young German, having arrived in France at the age of seven, and having to overcome the Second World War, may consider essential for relations in Europe, and between France and Germany: again, there is memory of conflicts and mutual aggressiveness that has to be replaced by knowledge and understanding of each other. This is what we have managed to attain in Europe and what we aim to preserve in this part of the world.   Sixty-four years after the proclamation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, what current trend preoccupies you the most as regards human rights?   I am particularly worried because global society is still stricken by conflicts, rivalries and tensions - religious, ethnic and between different civilizations. I am afraid we are heading to a confrontation rather than to a compromise which reconciles opposing viewpoints.   The rights of every individual, every man and every woman, are being restrained because States, and also large communities, have not yet found a way to live together on this small planet, showing each other the respect and consideration every human being deserves.   That is why, without underestimating the progress made thus far, there is still much to be done so that women, men and children - living together and communicating with each other - can become genuine global citizens, living together in the mutual respect that is essential to their well-being. Visit the related web page
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