SERGIO VIEIRA DE MELLO PRIZE Laureates 2006

About the Prize About Sergio Vieira de Mello Nomination form (doc) Awarding Process (pdf) Regulations (pdf)

The ceremony of awarding the Sergio Vieira de Mello Prize took place within the framework of an international conference "Society of Dialogue"  on 12 October 2006 at Villa Decius, Krakow. Among the laureates there are: Alaxandr Milinkevich (In the "individual" category) and The Jewish Culture Festival (In the "NGO" category).

Alaxandr Milinkevich

Alaxandr Milinkevich was born in 1947 in Hrodna. After graduating from the University of Hrodna, he passed his aspirantura at the Institute of Physics of the National Academy of Science of Belarus. Between 1980 and 1984 he was in charge of the (then forming) Faculty of Physics at the University of Sétif in Algiers. He also served as a docent at the University of Hrodna between 1978 and 1980, and then from 1984 on to 1990. At that time he also started to cooperate with local city authorities as a chief of one of the committees. Soon he reached the rank of vice-mayor of the city.

In 2001 he was the chief of staff of Siamion Domaš, one of the opposition leaders running for president in the 2001 presidential elections of Belarus. In October of 2005 he was chosen by the United Democratic Forces of Belarus as the joint candidate of the opposition in the presidential elections of 2006.

Milinkevich compared his campaign to that of another pro-Western opposition candidate in neighboring Ukraine, Viktor Yushchenko, whose victory in late 2004 was dubbed the "Orange Revolution." Although disappointment in Yushchenko's government has culminated in political crisis in September of 2005 amid renewed allegations of mass graft coupled with a worsening economic situation, Milinkevich calls last year's events in Ukraine an inspiration for his supporters. "We believe that Belarus will be next after... Ukraine," he told The Associated Press.

In the Belarussian Presidential election of 2006, official regime results gave Milinkevich 6% of the vote against 83% for the incumbent Lukashenko, while an alleged leak by the Belarussian KGB has stated that he actually won 28% of the vote, against 49% for Lukashenko, which would mean that there should have been a national runoff election including Milinkevich as the opposition candidate.

Official website: http://en.milinkevich.org/

The Jewish Culture Festival

The Jewish Culture Festival in Cracow is one of the most important and largest events of its kind in the world. The First Festival took place in 1988 and its program focused on a scholarly conference on the encounter between two cultures, Jewish and Polish. Shaped by outstanding figures in various fields of Jewish culture and art, the Festival became over time a place where Jews and non-Jews from all over the world could meet. For over a week, Kazimierz resounds with synagogue song, klezmer music, and Hasidic, classical, and Jewish folk music. There are films, performances, presentations, and exhibitions to see and stories told by the Jews about their culture to listen to.

In its present form, the Festival not only introduces the living Jewish tradition to a wide audience, but also offers a share of the joy in creating that tradition. Workshops in Hasidic dance and song, klezmology, Hebrew calligraphy, Jewish paper cutting and cooking, conducted by people from both Ashkenazy and Sephardic culture, attract numerous learners.

The Festival is a span of the symbolic bridge where Poles and Jews meet to strengthen the process of understanding and reconciliation. The Jewish Culture Festival in Krakow is, after all, a symbol of tolerance, pluralism, and the faith that we have a chance, through the celebration of Jewish culture and the celebration of life, to build mutual relations based on truth and respect.

More information: http://www.jewishfestival.pl/