Off the wire
• Ghana's inflation rises to 17.2 pct in Sept.  • UN chief welcomes Colombian gov't, ELN rebels to hold peace talks  • US 6th fleet flagship makes port visit to Georgia  • Roundup: East African ministers agree to revamp free movement of tourists  • Over 40 pct of British population lives in 11 biggest city regions  • Foreign exchange rate of Euro to other currencies  • ZTE presents vision for future in Athens  • Spotlight: Upper Egypt's women struggle to stand tall in conservative society  • EU report outlines priority areas in addressing security challenges  • LME base metals close mixed on Wednesday  
You are here: 　 Home

Portuguese parliament awards Guterres 2016 Human Rights Award

Xinhua, October 13, 2016 Adjust font size:

The Portuguese Parliament awarded the United Nation's next secretary general nominee Antonio Guterres the 2016 Human Rights Award on Wednesday.

The assembly of the Republic decided to attribute the award to Guterres "for the work he developed in defence of human rights, namely in carrying out duties as the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) between 2005 and 2015," read the statement by the Speaker of the Portuguese Parliament Ferro Rodrigues.

"Antonio Guterres' performance as high commissioner deserves one of the highest praises. I am very pleased with the decision taken today by the assembly of the republic. Antonio Guterres is the right man, at the right time, at the right place," Rodrigues added.

The award will be given to Guterres at a ceremony that is to be part of events to mark International Human Rights Day and the date has yet to be announced.

Guterres, a former prime minister, was the UN's refugee chief from 2005 to 2015, during which time he faced some of most serious displacements in history caused by conflicts in countries like Syria, Iraq, South Sudan, Central African Republic and Yemen.

He became leader of the Socialist Party in 1992 and prime minister in 1995, and dealt with a number of crises in the 1990s, including the East Timor conflict which he was involved in trying to resolve.

Guterres was formally approved by the Security Council Thursday last week as the UN's nominee for next secretary general who will replace Ban Ki-moon on Jan. 1. Endit