16:40GMT—11:40AM/EST

Washington, 9 November (WashingtonTV)—Iranian lawyer, journalist and women’s rights defender, Shadi Sadr, was awarded a Dutch human rights prize on Monday, for her efforts to promote human rights in the Islamic Republic.

Sadr received the Human Rights Defenders Tulip from Dutch Foreign Minister Maxime Verhagen at a ceremony in The Hague.

Verhagen described Sadr as “an ordinary woman who has extraordinary deeds to her credit.”

“Her courage, her struggle, her work, have made her truly extraordinary,” he said in presenting the award, according a Foreign Ministry statement.

Verhagen said he was “deeply concerned” about the situation in Iran, “where human rights are increasingly trampled underfoot.”

The foreign minister assured Sadr that his government would continue to press the Iranian authorities to improve the human rights situation.

He said Sadr’s efforts to improve the lives of women in Iran was a “powerful reminder” of the work still needed to ensure that equality between men and women is the norm worldwide.

Sadr has been repeatedly threatened and arrested for her work as a critical journalist and as a lawyer defending women’s rights, the ministry statement said.

She is a leading figure in the campaign against stoning as a punishment in Islamic countries.

The award comes with a 10,000 euro [15,000 dollar] cash reward. The winner may also submit a proposal for a project to the value of 100,000 euros which the Dutch government would sponsor.

In receiving the prize, Sadr urged Western governments to put pressure on Iran.

“It is necessary that the issue of human rights in Iran remains on the table of negotiations, alongside the issue of nuclear energy,” she said in a prepared speech, according to AFP.

In late September, Sadr and two other Iranian human rights activists received the Lech Welesa Prize, for their promotion of human rights, freedom of expression and democracy in Iran.

Sources: Website of the Dutch Foreign Ministry, in English; Agence France-Presse

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