Human Rights Tulip

Sheena Hadi of Aahung with Human Rights Tulip. On the right: Frans Timmermans (2013)

The Human Rights Tulip (Dutch: Mensenrechtentulp) is an annual prize awarded by the Dutch ministry of Foreign Affairs to a human rights defender or organisation who promotes and supports human rights in innovative ways. The Human Rights Tulip was established in 2007 and presented for the first time on 10 December 2008 and designed by the artist duo Adelheid and Huub Kortekaas.

The prize consists of a statuette and support worth €100.000 to assist the winning individual or organization to further develop and scale up their innovation.

The procedure of awarding the Human Rights Tulip starts with an open nominating procedure. The winner is selected by the Dutch minister of Foreign Affairs on the basis of public voting and the advice of an independent jury.

In October 2013, The Netherlands Foreign Minister Frans Timmermans decided to retain the award but to seek greater awareness for it.[1]

In June 2014, the foreign ministry appointed the international development organisation Hivos to run the selection process for the award.[2] This partnership continued in 2015, when the shortlist of six candidates was composed of three gaining the most votes in a public voting process, and three more selected by the Foreign Ministry and Hivos.[3]

  1. ^ Human Rights Tulip to Continue to Exist, Netherlands Info Service, 2 October 2013
  2. ^ Hivos to assist MFA Human Rights Tulip Award 2014 and 2015, Hivos International, 3 June 2014
  3. ^ "About the Award". Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Retrieved 15 February 2016.