Malala Yousafzai, the 16 year old Pakistani school girl who was shot in the head by the Taliban, will receive Amnesty International’s “Ambassador of Conscience” award later today in Dublin. Malala, who now lives in Birmingham and campaigns for women's right to education says she is " truly honoured to receive this award” and that she “would like to take the opportunity to remind everyone that there are many millions of children like me across the world who fight every single day for their right to go to school," She will be sharing the award with the singer and human rights activist Harry Belafonte.
Salil Shetty, Secretary General of Amnesty International commented:"Our two new Ambassadors of Conscience are different from each other in many ways, but they share a dedication to the fight for human rights everywhere and for all,"
Last week, Malala was also nominated for this year's Sakharov Prize – the prestigious human rights prize awarded by the European Parliament. Among the nominees are Mikhail Khodorkovsky, the Russian oligarch known for his criticism towards Russian politics and President Putin; and the US whistleblower Edward Snowden. The award ceremony will take place on 20 November in Strasbourg.
