2011 Rights and Freedoms Prize: The Commission announces call for nominations
2011 Rights and Freedom Prize
THE COMMISSION DES DROITS DE LA PERSONNE ET DES DROITS DE LA JEUNESSE ANNOUNCES CALL FOR NOMINATIONS
Montréal, April 21, 2011 -The Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse is pleased to announce a call for nomination for the 2011 Rights and Freedoms Prize.
“The 2011 Rights and Freedoms Prize carries a special significance as this year marks the 35th anniversary of the coming into force of the Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms,” said Gaétan Cousineau, president of the Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse. “It is an opportunity to celebrate the advancement of human rights and also to assess the challenges that still need to be addressed.”
Since 1988, the Commission has awarded the Rights and Freedoms Prize each year to an organization or an individual as a public recognition for exceptional achievement or commitment to the defence of human rights and freedoms and of the rights of children and youth. The Prize is traditionally awarded at a ceremony in Montreal on the occasion of the adoption of Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
In order to recognize their long-term commitment to the defence of human rights and the rights of children and youth, the Commission will pay tribute to all the previous laureates during the 2011 award ceremony which will take place in Montreal on December 8, 2011.
In the past five years, the Commission awarded the Rights and Freedoms Prize to the Tolerance Foundation, the Regroupement des organsimes Espace du Québec, the Honourable Juanita Westmoreland-Traoré of the Québec Court, Fondation Émergence President Laurent McCutcheon and André Paradis, a well-known human rights activist.
How to submit a nomination
Institutions or individuals who wish to submit a candidacy must send the duly completed nomination form along with a CV or an organizational profile, a letter describing the nominees, their work and why they merit the Prize. Nomination forms and additional information are available on the Commission’s website atwww.cdpdj.qc.ca.
In a sustainable development effort, the Commission is urging individuals and institutions to submit nominations either by e-mail, on CD or a memory stick. However, it will continue to accept nominations by mail.
The deadline is Friday, July 1, 2011, 5 p.m. Completed nomination forms along with the required materials can be hand-delivered to the Commission’s headquarters located at:
Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse
Attention: Julie Lajoye
360 Saint-Jacques St., 2nd Floor
Montreal, QC H2Y 1P5
julie.lajoye@cdpdj.qc.ca
For more information, please contact Julie Lajoye at 514 873-5146 or 1 800 361-6477 ext. 230 or at julie.lajoye@cdpdj.qc.ca.
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