"Without democracy, there is no justice" and Osman "fights for justice in Sudan". For this reason, the president of the European Parliament, Hans-Gert Poettering, announced that the Sacharov award this year will be given to the Sudanese lawyer "who fights against torture and provides legal advice to the victims of the civil war" in his country. The Award has been given since 1988 by the European Parliament to people or organisations that "stand out for defending human rights, democracy and the constitutional state". The award-giving ceremony will take place during the plenary session in Strasbourg on 11th December. Poettering explained that the awarding of this prize means to "acknowledge Osman’s brave work". The other two runners-up were: Anna Politkovskaya (posthumously), a Russian journalist and a human rights activist, known for opposing to the Chechen conflict, who was murdered on 7th October 2006; Zeng Jinyan and Hu Jia, defenders of human rights in China. Poettering confirmed that on the next day, December 12th, the European parliament will hold a ceremony for proclaiming the Charter of Fundamental Rights which will have a binding value under the new Lisbon Treaty.
