“Clear political signal at the right time”: Memorial co-founder Scherbakowa awarded the Marion Dönhoff Prize

The co-founder of the Russian human rights organization Memorial, Irina Scherbakowa, and Tafel Deutschland have been honored with the Marion Dönhoff Prize 2022 for international understanding and reconciliation. Against the background of the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine, Scherbakova’s award was a “clear political signal at the right time,” said Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) on Sunday in his laudation at the Deutsches Schauspielhaus in Hamburg.

People like the 73-year-old Russian historian sent the message that “another, better, brighter Russia is possible”. Scholz said Russian President Vladimir Putin was “hopelessly lost” in the war against Ukraine.

But Russia is trying all the harder to achieve its goal by destroying the Ukrainian infrastructure. “By firing rockets at the defenseless civilian population – children, women, old people – it not only commits the most serious breach of international law – it also opens up an unbelievable moral abyss,” said Scholz.

“Putin is ordering the worst crimes against Ukraine and at the same time has put his own country on a catastrophically precipitous path,” said the Chancellor. He promised: “Ukraine must not and will not lose this war.”

Germany and its partners will therefore continue to provide massive support to Ukraine. “And we will continue to do so until he (Putin) withdraws his troops.”

The human rights organization Memorial and human rights activists from Belarus and Ukraine were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in October. In 2021, the Supreme Court banned the organization in Russia.

The prizes, each endowed with 20,000 euros, were awarded for the 20th time by “Zeit”, the “Zeit” Foundation Ebelin and Gerd Bucerius and the Marion Dönhoff Foundation. They are named after the former “Zeit” editor Marion Gräfin Dönhoff, who was born in Königsberg in 1909 and died in Hamburg in 2002. (dpa)

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