Simone de Beauvoir Prize for Women’s Freedom 2013 awarded to Malala Yousafzai

Mr Yousafzai received in Paris, on behalf of his daughter, the Simone de Beauvoir Prize for Women’s Freedom, presented to him on Wednesday, 9 January, at the Maison de l’Amérique latine. Malala Yousafzai, who is currently living in the UK, was the victim of an assassination attempt in October last year because of her determined commitment to the right to education.
Awarding the prize, express France’s commitment to women’s rights and solidarity with Malala Yousafzai in her fight for the right to girls’ education.
Earlier, M. Laurent Fabius, Minister of Foreign Affairs, received Mr Ziauddin Yousafzai, the father of Malala Yousafzai at Quai d’Orsay in recognition of French support and solidarity for Malala Yousafzai.

Later in the evening, Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, the Minister for Women Rights and Spokesperson of the Government of France, organized a reception in honor of Mr. Ziauddin Yousafzai at the Ministry of Women rights in the presence of civil and diplomatic community of France. She termed Malala an icon of courage and hope for the millions of girls who could not go to schools.
Afridi (President of IRESK) along with Huguette Chomski Magnis (Secretary General of MPCT) in presence of Ziauddin Yousafzai informed the honorable Minister, Najat Vallaud-Belkacem about the SUPPORT COMMITTEE FOR MALALA` in France and apprised her of the MALALA PRIZE FOR PEACE & EDUCACTION to be awarded to Malala first and then to the journalists and Human Rights Activists working for the defense of human rights and education in Pakistan and Afghanistan. The honorable Minister took keen interest in the project and appreciated it.
Simone de Beauvoir Prize for Women’s Freedom
For its sixth edition, the Simone de Beauvoir Prize for Women’s Freedom has been awarded to Malala Yousafzai, the young Pakistani human rights campaigner. Malala Yousafzai, 15, came to prominence through the blog she wrote for the BBC in 2009, when the Taliban controlled the Swat Valley. In it she condemned their actions and championed the right of girls to education. In 2011 the Pakistani government awarded her the National Youth Peace Prize. Malala continued to campaign for girls’ access to education and women’s rights after the Pakistani army operation to drive the Taliban out of the Swat Valley. The victim of a Taliban assassination attempt on 9 October 2012, she was taken to the UK to receive the treatment necessary for her recovery.
The jury – chaired by Josyane Savigneau, with Julia Kristeva and Sylvie Le Bon de Beauvoir as honorary chairs – is made up of figures from the world of the arts and literature. The Simone de Beauvoir Prize for Women’s Freedom – created on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Simone de Beauvoir’s birth – distinguishes men, women and voluntary organizations who, like Simone de Beauvoir, fight to defend women’s rights wherever they are under threat. Supported by the Institut français, Paris Diderot University and the international audit and consulting group Mazars, the prize is endowed with €20,000.
Simone de Beauvoir
French philosopher, novelist and essayist Simone de Beauvoir was a major feminist theorist of the 20th century. Author of the Le Deuxième Sexe [The Second Sex] in 1949, in countless different ways throughout her life she demonstrated her total support for the defence of women’s rights.
The jury for the Simone de Beauvoir Prize for Women’s Freedom
Composition:
Josyane Savigneau (Chair of the Jury, Le Monde journalist)
Julia Kristeva (Founding Chair, professor at Paris Diderot University, writer and psychoanalyst)
Sylvie Le Bon de Beauvoir (Honorary Chair of the Jury)
Elisabeth Badinter (philosopher)
Constance Borde (translator)
Gérard Bonal (writer)
Chahla Chafiq (writer and sociologist)
Denis Charbit (professor of French civilization at Tel Aviv University)
Cécile Decousu (PhD student)
Annie Ernaux (writer)
Claire Etcherelli (writer)
Madeleine Gobeil-Noël (former arts director at UNESCO)
Sihem Habchi (President of the “Ni Putes ni Soumises” movement)
Liliane Kandel (sociologist)
Ayse Kiran (professor at Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey)
Claude Lanzmann (writer, film-maker and director of the Revue des Temps modernes)
Björn Larsson (writer, professor at Lund University, Sweden)
Liliane Lazar (Simone de Beauvoir Society, United States)
Annette Lévy-Willard (Libération journalist, writer)
Anne-Marie Lizin (Senator, President of the Conseil des Femmes de Wallonie, Belgium)
Sheila Malovany-Chevallier (translator)
Malka Marcovich (historian)
Kate Millett (writer, artist and sculptor, United States)
Yvette Roudy (Minister for Women’s Rights from 1981 to 1986)
Danièle Sallenave (writer)
Alice Schwarzer (writer, Germany)
Margaret Simons (professor of philosophy, Southern Illinois University, United States)
Annie Sugier, (President of the Ligue du Droit internationale des Femmes)
Linda Weil-Curiel (lawyer)
Anne Zelensky (writer, President of the Ligue du Droit des Femmes, cofounded with Simone de Beauvoir)