Laureates since 1982

VACLAV HAVEL

International Four Freedoms Award

Born in Prague, Czechoslovakia, in 1936. The dissident playwright Václav Havel was forbidden to engage in artistic and political activities after the Soviet occupation of Czechoslovakia in 1968. In the years 1970 to 1989 he was imprisoned three times and spent nearly five years in prison. On December 29, 1989 he was elected President of the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic. For representing the courageous men and women who, by refusing to be silent, have torn down the Iron Curtain and opened their countries to the possibilities of freedom and democracy.

JACQUES DELORS

International Four Freedoms Award

Born in Paris, France, in 1925. His career in high economic and financial positions at the Banque de France, the European Parliament and in the French cabinet culminated in January 1985 when he was elected President of the Commission of the European Community. For representing all those who have labored for the economic and political unity of Europe envisioned by Jean Monnet and embodied in the European Economic Community.

In memory of those whose voices helped destroy the Iron Curtain

Freedom of Speech and Expression Award

In 1990, the Award for Freedom of Speech and Expression was given in memory of those whose voices helped destroy the Iron Curtain. Andrei Sakharov is their symbol – one of the bravest men of our time. A poem by Yevgeny Yevtushenko is dedicated to his memory. The poem was read by Adrian Brine, one of the leading stage personalities of the Netherlands.

LASZLO TOKES

Freedom of Worship Award

Born in Cluj, Romania, in 1952. A minister of the Reformed Church of Romania in Timisoara, László Tökes he organized protests in defiance of President Ceausescu's systematic repression of the Hungarian minority. Attempts by the secret police to remove him from his office led to a general protest against the draconian regime and its overturn. For his commitment to religious freedom and the rights of ethnic minorities.

JONKHEER EMILE VAN LENNEP

Freedom from Want Award

Born in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, in 1915. Between 1951 and 1969 he was Treasurer-General in the Netherlands Ministry of Finance. From 1958 to 1969 he chaired the Monetary Committee of the E.E.C. and from 1969 to 1984 he served as Secretary-General of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. His work reminds us of the spirit with which "freedom form want" was pursued in Western Europe after World War II and the need for a similar effort in Eastern Europe today.

SIMON WIESENTHAL

Freedom from Fear Award

Born in Buczacz, Poland, in 1908. After his imprisonment in different Nazi concentration camps he founded the Jewish Documentation Center in Vienna in 1947 for tracing of Nazi criminals. He brought to justice more than 1,100 Nazi criminals from all over the world. He has compelled us to remember the barbaric horror of Nazism and thus helped ensure that it will not be repeated. His life has been dedicated to justice, not vengeance, and as the new Europe emerges, his work must never be forgotten.