Protesters hold up photos of Jina Mahsa Amini outside the Iranian embassy in Berlin in September 2022 after the 22-year-old died in Iranian police custody for not complying with Iran's strict dress code for women. File photo by Clemens Bilan/EPA-EFE
Oct. 12 (UPI) -- Jina Mahsa Amini, the 22-year-old Kurdish woman who died last year in Iranian police custody after her arrest for not wearing her hijab properly, was announced Thursday as one of three finalists for the European Union's top human rights prize.
Amini, who is represented by the Woman, Life and Freedom Movement in Iran, was selected as a result of two committee votes in the European Parliament, raising the possibility for a posthumous award of the 2023 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought.
Also making the list for the high honor are Vilma Nunez de Escorcia and Bishop Rolando Jose Alvarez Lagos, both of Nicaragua; and women fighting for a free, safe and legal abortion in three countries, including Justyna Wydrzynska, of Poland, Morena Herrera, of El Salvador, and Colleen McNicholas, of the United States.
The nominees made the list as they faced enormous challenges while confronting oppression, human rights abuses or legal constraints to fundamental humanitarian needs around the world.
Nunez faces ongoing persecution in Nicaragua after serving many decades as a freedom fighter against the country's oppressive government, while Alvarez -- who faced banishment as an outspoken critic of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega -- was sentenced in February to 26 years in prison after he refused to leave the country.
Among the abortion advocates, Wydrzynska faced criminal penalties recently for helping a Polish woman obtain the procedure; while Herrera is an advocate for safe and legal abortion access in El Salvador. McNicholas, meanwhile, works as an obstetrician-gynecologist and was nominated for her "strong track record of high-quality patient care and impactful reproductive health advocacy" amid legislative efforts to limit abortion in the U.S., the nominating committee wrote.
European Parliament President Roberta Metsola will announce the winner Oct. 19, followed by a presentation ceremony to honor the newest recipient in Strasbourg on Dec. 13.
The humanitarian prize has been awarded by the body each year since 1988, when the prize was established to honor "exceptional individuals" who stand up for fundamental rights and freedoms around the world.
Amini's death sparked violent street protests throughout Iran that tested the endurance of the authoritarian government for several months, while dozens of demonstrators have since been sentenced to death and thousands more incarcerated for taking part in the unrest.
Amini's nomination comes nearly a week after another Iranian activist, Narges Mohammadi, won the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize for her determination to fight for women's rights in Iran, where she is currently serving 31 years in prison for her work to combat female oppression.
The prize, which is named for Soviet physicist and political dissident Andrei Sakharov, includes 50,000 euros to the winner. In 2022, the award went to the people of Ukraine as the country remained under siege by Russia.
Notably, among those who did not make the short list for the award was billionaire executive Elon Musk, who was nominated by the Identity and Democracy group for exposing business practices by Twitter's previous owners, which he claims barred freedom of expression on the platform.
