South Africa's Institute for Justice and Reconciliation, an organization that was founded in 2000 to encourage social peace after the end of apartheid, has won UNESCO's 2008 Prize for Peace Education, according to official sources.
Koichiro Matsuura, Director General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), issued the award based on the recommendations of an international jury, the UN agency said in a statement published Wednesday.
The South African-based organization, according to the jury, was rewarded "for its remarkable efforts in the search for lasting reconciliation through education and fight against the systemic injustices in Africa," says the release.
The Institute for Justice and Reconciliation, which has its headquarters in Cape Town, "is working with governments, associations and intellectuals in countries undergoing transition to strengthen human justice, development and security," said the UNESCO statement.
The institute, which is active in countries such as Rwanda, Sudan and Burundi, publishes an annual report, dubbed Transformation Audit, which assesses the social, economic and educational needs for achieving a lasting peace in states where it operates, according to the statement.
One of its major projects, Turning Points in History, has resulted in the publication of "the first exhaustive manual on the history of South Africa" for secondary education since the end of apartheid, according to UNESCO.
The award is expected to be formally presented to the organization on September 18, 2008 at UNESCO's Paris headquarters, as part of celebrations to mark the International Day of Peace.
Created in 1981, the prize, which has a price tag of 40,000 U.S. dollar, is used to reward initiatives "aimed at educating the public about the importance of peace," said the UNESCO statement.
Among previous winners of the prize include the Jewish-Arab Center for Peace, which is located at Givat Haviva in Israel, Argentina's Association of Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo and India's Mother Teresa, according to the same sources.
Source:Xinhua
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