Prestigious Award for Syrian Activist Hanadi Zahlout

IWPR extends its congratulations to Syrian activist and rights advocate Hanadi Zahlout, who has received this year's Human Rights Defender Award from the US Department of State.

This prestigious award recognises individuals or non-governmental organisations that show exceptional valour and leadership in advocating the protection of human rights and democracy in the face of government repression.

A valued member of the IWPR family, Hanadi attended IWPR's first workshop on journalism skills inside Syria in 2007. Since then, she has been a close collaborator in the work of the Damascus Bureau. 

Hanadi was involved in the struggle for human rights and freedom of expression before the 2011 uprising, and then worked with the opposition’s local organising committees to inform the world of the ongoing abuses.

From Syria’s Alawite community, she focused particularly on including minorities and women in the struggle for change.

She was seized by Syrian security forces in August 2011, held incommunicado for two months, charged with sedition and inciting unrest, and finally released in December that year. She has since left the country, and continues to forge links between activists in Syria and international media.

Presenting the award in Washington, DC on November 15, Deputy Secretary of State William J. Burns described Hanadi as a “remarkable, courageous, and inspirational defender of human rights” who was being recognised for her “tireless commitment to a peaceful democratic transition in Syria, at great personal cost”.

Burns went on to say that “Ms. Zahlout serves as a powerful symbol of both what is possible and what is necessary for Syria’s future. She did not suffer or sacrifice for sect or tribe, but for a Syrian nation where the rights of all – Sunni and Shia, Alawite and Druze, Muslim and Christian – are protected.

“So while the regime and extremists work to tear Syria apart, Ms. Zahlout and her peers work to repair its social fabric and build a new, democratic, and tolerant Syria.”

IWPR began working in Syria in 2007 to help sow the seeds of a media movement which played a major role in getting information out about the atrocities that have occurred since the 2011 uprising began. Our efforts are now focused on building capacity for fledgling independent media, citizen reporters and journalists.

We aim to support local efforts for freedom of expression, independent media and human rights, and empower Syrian citizens to contribute to a transition to a democratic, accountable system of government, and to long-term reconciliation.