By Rodolfo C Estimo Jr
Riyadh, Dec 19 (Arab News): Ambassador Luigi Narbone, head of the European Union Delegation in Saudi Arabia, announced on Saturday the winners of the 2010 Chaillot Prize at the EU headquarters in Riyadh.
"This year, it has been particularly difficult to select the winner from the impressive projects that were submitted. It was not an easy decision for us and the ambassadors of the EU member states. It is therefore my pleasure to announce the 2010 Chaillot Prize," he said during the awarding ceremony.
The Multi-Purpose Cooperative of Women in Qassim and the Kuwait Lawyers Association were cowinners of the first prize of 9,000 euros and the Global Connections Center (Tawasul) in Oman for the second prize and 3,000 euros.
Narbone said the Herfah-based Multi-Purpose Cooperative in Qassim received the award for its courageous and continuous work for and with women in "the particularly challenging environment of its region." He said the cooperative trains women of all age groups in different areas of commercial activities and, in particular, helps protect the rights of women working in handicrafts, for example, by defending their intellectual property rights relating to their products.
Narbone added that the Kuwait Lawyers Association was awarded the prize not so much for having women among its members — even though, historically speaking, this is already an achievement as such.
"The association also works on defending the equal rights of women in the legal profession. But the main reason why it receives this year's award is for its efforts to promote the appointment of female lawyers to the judiciary. We hope the Kuwaiti lawyers will also achieve what has been achieved in recent years in some other Gulf countries," Narbone said.
The Global Connections Center, a think-tank providing policy research papers to civil society organizations and leaders in Oman, won the second prize for a project involving the rights of women.
"It receives the award for a program to prepare women for the next Shoura Council elections in 2011. We hope that the 3,000 euros that goes with the second place will help it continue its valuable work," said the Italian envoy. He expressed hope that many other organizations will be encouraged to apply for the Chaillot prize in coming years.