International Press Freedom Award
Shakeman Mugari, Zimbabwe
Shakeman Mugari is a Zimbabwean journalist working for The Zimbabwe Independent, and also as a stringer for The Globe and Mail in Canada. He has been fearless in consistently exposing the corrupt government and the multitude of human right abuses plaguing his country. He has written candidly about the many governmentally instituted economic initiatives that have consistently failed to improve conditions for the 80% of Zimbabweans living below the poverty line.
2008Sahar al-Haideri, Iraq
A dedicated reporter who knew her life was in danger, Sahar al-Haideri was the third female journalist killed in Iraq in a single deadly week in early June 2007.
The mother of four held a BA degree in Media, participated in numerous journalism training courses and workshops provided by international organisations in Iraq and actively worked for a number of news agencies. These include the National Iraq News Agency (NINA), the Voices of Iraq (VOI) and the Institute for War and Peace Reporting (IWPR).
2007Farida Nekzad, Afghanistan
Farida Nekzad is strongly committed to press freedom and women's rights in Afghanistan. She is the current editor in chief of the Pajhwok News Agency, the sole independent news agency in Afghanistan.
2007Ali Iman Sharmarke, Somalia/Canada
Ali Iman Sharmarke is the recipient of the Tara Singh Hayer Award, which recognizes Canadians for courage in journalism.
Ali Sharmarke returned to his homeland of Somalia in 1999 to help rebuild the media in the war-shattered country. Along with Mohamed Elmi and Ahmed Abdisalam Adan, he was one of three founding members of one of Africa's great media success stories, HornAfrik.
He was killed on August 11, 2007, when his car drove over a remote-controlled landmine as he was returning from the funeral of another journalist, Mahad Ahmed Elmi.
2007Abeer Al-Askary, Egypt
Abeer Al-Askary is a young Egyptian journalist who has published several investigative reports on controversial and threatening issues. Among her writings are reports on state security officers within the Ministry of Interior who have supervised torture against activists and prisoners. She has also written on corruption and lack of transparency in the educational system in Egypt. Additionally, her writings have contributed to revealing fraud during the Egyptian elections, especially concerning the President's son and the issue of bequeathing the presidency to him.
2006Hollman Morris, Colombia
Morris has been a reporter since the early 1990s, covering Colombia's internal armed conflict and human rights abuses. He reports for local and national radio, television, newspapers, and works as a documentary filmmaker and independent writer. Morris' highly acclaimed television program Contravia, addresses some of the most difficult and controversial issues in Colombian society. Morris produced a number of special reports on the peace negotiations, including a series of pieces designed to educate the public at large about the circumstances and consequences of the resulting agreements.
2006Hayat Ullah Khan, Pakistan
Hayat Ullah Khan was a freelance tribal journalist and photographer. He worked under dangerous circumstances, covering the military action in Pakistan's tribal areas bordering Afghanistan. He was abducted on December 5, 2005. His family suspects that he was picked up by an intelligence agency because four days prior to his disappearance he had released pictures from an attack on North Waziristan. His reports contradicted official accounts claiming that a senior Al-Qaeda commander, Abu Hamza Rabia, died after munitions exploded inside a house.
2006Alagi Yorro Jallow, Gambia
Alagi Yorro Jallow is a passionate advocate for human rights in his work as a journalist in Gambia where he is the Managing Editor of The Independent, one of the few media outlets not controlled by the government. For four years, he served as the Vice-Chairman of the Gambia Press Union where he was part of a successful campaign to disband a government controlled media commission with extensive powers to punish journalists. His work as a journalist and human rights advocate has not been without opposition.
2005Mykola Veresen, Ukraine
Mykola Veresen is a veteran Ukrainian journalist who became, for many, the voice and face of the Orange Revolution. In November 2004, the Orange Revolution began in Ukraine as a series of political protests and events in response to charges of election fraud. Mr. Veresen was the anchor for the independent TV channel 5, a small cable station which was the sole media outlet to give unbiased coverage to the challenger, Viktor Yushchenko. The station was closely watched by international monitors as a key indicator of the fairness of the elections. Mr.
2005The Daily News, Zimbabwe
The Daily News was started in 1999 by a group of senior journalists. In its heyday it was the biggest independent newspaper in Zimbabwe. However it paid dearly for its popularity and for its uncompromising opposition to government repression. The paper's offices and printing presses have been firebombed, police have brutally and relentlessly harassed its journalists, and have shut down the paper for months at a time, many Daily News journalists, most famously, Geoffrey Nyarota have been forced to flee the country, and even ordinary Zimbabweans have been threatened for buying the Daily News.
2004
