VOP Trustee Arnold Tsunga Wins Human Rights Award
Kudos To You Arnold!!!!

By Martin Ennals Awards
Additional Reporting by Zim Journalists Arise
Chairperson of the Zimbabwe Human Rights Association (ZimRights) and trustee of the radio station Voice of the People (VOP) has won this year’s Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders.

The Chairman of the Jury of the MEA, Hans Thoolen described the laureates as “symbols of the human rights movement in their respective countries, where standing up for human rights and democracy is a dangerous activity; they continue to be involved in this struggle despite repressive measures and harassment.

Tsunga made the headlines recently when the courts dismissed charges against him a five other VOP Trustees for running a radio station, of contravening section 7(1) of the Broadcasting Services Act Chapter 12:06 as read with Section 6 (a) (b) which prohibits broadcasting without a licence.

In a bizaare incident typical of the Mugabe regime, Tsunga had his employee in his home town of Mutare and Harare arrested, as police were trying to find and question him over his Trusteeship of VOP early this year.

In recognition of his legal work on human rights and strong reputation in his field he became the new director of the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) in early 2003.

Despite great personal risk, Arnold Tsunga has been representing individuals arrested under new,repressive legislation, including individuals who have been physically abused in custody. For representing these victims of human rights violations and denouncing the legal system and the human rights situation, he is constantly harassed and threatened. He was arrested several times and recently released on bail. His courage and work are internationally recognized: last June he was requested to speak out on behalf of human rights organizations at the first session of the new United Nation Human Rights Council in Geneva.

Another winner of the award is Akbar Ganji a Iranian Journo who was jailed, beaten and placed in solitary confinement for spreading propaganda against the Islamic system.
Background
A unique collaboration among eleven of the world's leading non-governmental human rights organizations makes the MEA the main award of the human rights movement. The JURY is composed of the following NGOs: Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Human Rights First, International Federation for Human Rights, World Organization Against Torture, Front Line, International Commission of Jurists, German Diakonie, International Service for Human Rights, International Alert, and Huridocs.