Fischhof-Preis
Fischhof-Preis
The 2011 Fischhof Prize goes to Claudia Kaufmann, ombudswoman of the City of Zurich, and Dick Marty, member of the Council of States
The Fischhof Prize is awarded every two years by the GRA Foundation against racism and antisemitism along with the GMS Society of Minorities in Switzerland. In line with the stipulations set by its founder, Nanny Fischhof-Barth, the Fischhof Prize is awarded to “people who have stood up against racism, anti-Semitism and any form of discrimination in an exemplary manner”. This year’s winners of the Fischhof Prize are Claudia Kaufmann and member of the Council of States, Dick Marty.
On 25 October 2011 the GRA Foundation against racism and antisemitism and the GMS Society of Minorities in Switzerland will award the Fischhof Prize, which is endowed with 50,000 francs overall, to Claudia Kaufmann, now ombudswoman of the City of Zurich, and Dick Marty, member of the Council of States (Free Democratic Party/Ticino) and of the Council of Europe. This year’s honours will therefore go to two people who have earned recognition through their approach and actions in support of the rights of minorities, respect, enlightenment and the fight against any kind of racism.
Claudia Kaufmann has shown great commitment over many years to ensuring that every individual, regardless of background, gender, skin colour or religion, actually enjoys the rights they are entitled to. She does so audibly and tirelessly and does not shy away from taking a stand for the cause. For her, the words “human” dignity form no cliché to be used lightly, but it is the driving force and guiding principle of her actions. Commitment to the rights and dignity of all human beings runs like a leitmotiv throughout her life.
Claudia Kaufmann was politicised by the new women’s movement. A law graduate, she began her career as secretary of the Swiss Federal Commission for Women’s Issues, and she was the first head of the Federal Office for Equality of Women and Men. This “Madame Égalité” strongly influenced the politics of equality in Switzerland, and the progressive equality act, introduced in Switzerland 15 years ago, bears many of her hallmarks.
An issue close to her heart is the rights of traveller communities in Switzerland. As general secretary of the Federal Department of Home Affairs she worked hard to build up trust between the Jenisch, Sinti and Roma peoples in Switzerland on the one hand, and federation and cantons on the other. In doing so she also made a significant contribution to the nation’s efforts in confronting the history of the “Kinder der Landstrasse” (children of the highways) for the first time. Her involvement has consistently led to improvements in the current living conditions of travellers in Switzerland.
Today Claudia Kaufmann works as ombudswoman for the City of Zurich. In this role she does not shy away from making it publicly known when, in her opinion, people of different social and ethnic backgrounds are discriminated against or treated ignominiously. Wherever she sees a violation of the principle of equal treatment for all people – regardless of origin or skin colour – she demands that the authorities show respect for basic rights and human dignity.
The life of lawyer and politician Dick Marty is marked by a commitment to human rights and the rule of law as well as his courageous proceedings against all those who violate human rights and abuse their power for their own gain. His courage in bringing even influential and powerful people to account for their actions has not always made Dick Marty friends. But despite various attempts to deter him he has never turned a blind eye when hearing of such practices.
Dick Marty studied law at the University of Neuenburg, and became a state prosecutor in 1975 and a councillor of the canton of Ticino in 1989. Since 1995 he has been a member of the Council of States. Since 1998 he has been a member of the Council of Europe, for which he served as chairman of the Commission for Human Rights, and today he presides over the Monitoring Committee of the Council.
In 2005 Marty was given the task of leading the investigations into the suspected secret transport and detention of CIA prisoners in Europe. For his courageous report, in which he denounced the illegal activities of the American secret service, the CIA, in Europe, he
On 14 December 2010 Dick Marty published a report for the Council of Europe in which the Kosovan President, Hashim Taci, and other former leaders of the Kosovo Liberation Army (UCK) are charged with trading in the organs of Serbian prisoners and having been involved in contract killings and other crimes. This brave act also gained him many enemies, and he constantly receives threats. Yet he will not allow himself to be silenced.
