“In a world in which the rights of women, children and those who cannot defend themselves are denied, Nadia Murad and Denis Mukwege are people who can explain their pain to a wider global audience.” With these words, Abraham Mathai, founder of the Harmony Foundation, set forth the reasons that led the institution to bestow its 2018 Mother Teresa Award on the Yazidi activist and Congolese doctor, who had already won the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize. The coveted recognition, named in memory of the saint of Calcutta, has reached its 14th edition.
At the awards ceremony, Nadia Murad told her story in person and launched a plea that the thousands of people still in the hands of the jihadists be liberated and helped along the road to recovery.