Documentation of the 2012 Hessian Peace Prize

The latest Standpunkt issue documents the awarding ceremony of the Hessian Peace Prize 2012, given to Elisabeth Decrey Warner for her engagement against landmines.

Landmines are not differentiating between civilians and soldiers, they maim their victims and complicate long-term peacebuilding. It is Elisabeth Decrey Warner’s aim to fight the deployment and the consequences of this type of weapon. Along with her organization Geneva Call she is persuading non-state armed actors to refrain from the deployment of landmines – with remarkable success. Already 42 armed groups committed themselves to stop using these weapon systems. At the beginning of her work she earned a lot of criticism from states representatives, as she was talking to supposed rebels and insurgents. Nowadays criticism has vanished, as the value and positive impact of her work is recognized.

 

Another proof for this recognition is the Hessian Peace Prize 2012, whose awarding ceremony is documented in this Standpunkt issue (in German). You can read all the speeches of the ceremonial act, including the laudatory speech by Thomas Gebauer, CEO of medico international and Decrey Warners long-year companion in her fight against landmines. Moreover, you will find the acceptance speech, in which the honoree claims new instruments for peace.

 

This HSFK-Standpunkt is available as a free PDF download (in German).