Human Rights Heroes Awards Ceremony held at UN Headquarters

August 24, 2006

Delegates from 49 nations joined diplomats and human rights leaders in UN Headquarters to honor human rights activists and view the international premier of 30 public service announcements promoting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Embassy Representatives, United Nations officials and human rights advocates joined actress Anne Archer and delegates from 49 nations from across the globe at an international youth summit honoring the international human rights heroes. The “Summit on Making Human Rights a Global Reality” was held at the United Nations headquarters, in Assembly Room One. It drew human rights activists from countries all over the world including the United States, Britain, France, Uganda, Liberia, Nepal, Egypt, Guyana, Colombia
and Mexico.

Mr. Enzo di Taranto Director of the United Nations Action Two project and Mr. Hans Janischek, the President of the United Nations Society of Writers, welcomed delegates to the conference. The event premiered the release of the new tool for teaching human rights—30 public service announcements (PSAs), each portraying a different article of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The new PSAs received a standing ovation from the 450 people attending the summit. A highlight of the event was the honoring of five international Human Rights Heros for their work to the implement the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

LEFT: Attendees watch the new human rights PSAs. RIGHT: Human Rights Heroes honored: (from left) Maxim Weithers, Teresa Cheung; (from right) Luse Berking, Joseph Jay Yarsiah, Nazanin Afshin-Jam. Actress Anne Archer (center) presided with Youth for Attendees watch the new human rights PSAs. Human Rights Internatioal executives. See page 4 for each of their individual stories.

Back to News & Press Index