Desmond Tutu takes Unesco human rights prize
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PARIS (AFP) - Archbishop Desmond Tutu was on Monday awarded the Unesco/Bilbao human rights prize for "his exceptional contribution to building a universal culture of human rights at the national, regional and international levels."
The jury highlighted the role he played in building the new non-racial South Africa and his contribution as head of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to national reconstruction which became a model for other post-conflict societies, Unesco said in a statement.
Mr Tutu's daughter was in the UN cultural organisation's Paris headquarters to receive the award on behalf of her father.
The biennial Unesco/Bilbao Prize was established in 2008 after an endowment from the city of Bilbao in Spain. It includes a US$30,000 (S$36,650) cheque, a diploma and a bronze trophy.
