Helmut Kohl received the Roland Berger Human Dignity Award
Former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl received the Roland Berger Human Dignity Award along with EUR 1 m.
The Roland Berger Human Dignity Award was granted for the third time. Its aim is to honor people, institutions and communities that make efforts to respect, promote and protect human dignity and human rights. The designation is awarded by an independent foundation Roland Berger, based in Munich. It was founded by Prof. Dr. h.c. Roland Berger in 2008. Each year the Foundation grants the Roland Berger Human Dignity Award, which along with the prize of EUR 1 m, is dedicated to promote respect, support and protection of human dignity and human rights around the world.
Helmut Kohl received the award in recognition of his historic lifetime achievement in politics and especially his tireless efforts to unify a divided Germany. Kofi Annan, former UN Secretary General and a member of the Award Committee, explained the committee's decision:"The reunification of Germany has shown that enmity between nations is not destined to last forever and that a more peaceful world is possible."
Apart from Kofi Annan, the Award Committee included: Roland Berger, Nobel Laureates Dr. Shirin Ebadi and Prof. Muhammad Yunus, a physician and actor Dr. Maria Furtwängler, former German Foreign Minister and Vice-Chancellor Dr. Joschka Fischer and former Secretary of State, Head of Cabinet of the Federal Republic of Germany, Dr. Gert Haller.
The awards ceremony took place on 26th April in Berlin. It was attended by about 500 guests from politics, business, academia, culture and the media, among them the ambassadors of the United States, Russia, Great Britain and Italy. Hesse's Minister President Roland Koch accepted the Award on behalf of the former Chancellor.
In compliance with Fundation's rules and guidelines, EUR 700,000 of the award money of EUR 1 m will go toward creating a "Helmut Kohl Guest Professorship for European Culture and Political Philosophy" at the University of Heidelberg. The remaining EUR 300,000 will be used to rebuild a children's hospital in Sri Lanka, an institution Helmut Kohl has supported since the 2004 tsunami.
The Roland Berger Human Dignity Award was granted for the third time. Its aim is to honor people, institutions and communities that make efforts to respect, promote and protect human dignity and human rights. The designation is awarded by an independent foundation Roland Berger, based in Munich. It was founded by Prof. Dr. h.c. Roland Berger in 2008. Each year the Foundation grants the Roland Berger Human Dignity Award, which along with the prize of EUR 1 m, is dedicated to promote respect, support and protection of human dignity and human rights around the world.
Helmut Kohl received the award in recognition of his historic lifetime achievement in politics and especially his tireless efforts to unify a divided Germany. Kofi Annan, former UN Secretary General and a member of the Award Committee, explained the committee's decision:"The reunification of Germany has shown that enmity between nations is not destined to last forever and that a more peaceful world is possible."
Apart from Kofi Annan, the Award Committee included: Roland Berger, Nobel Laureates Dr. Shirin Ebadi and Prof. Muhammad Yunus, a physician and actor Dr. Maria Furtwängler, former German Foreign Minister and Vice-Chancellor Dr. Joschka Fischer and former Secretary of State, Head of Cabinet of the Federal Republic of Germany, Dr. Gert Haller.
The awards ceremony took place on 26th April in Berlin. It was attended by about 500 guests from politics, business, academia, culture and the media, among them the ambassadors of the United States, Russia, Great Britain and Italy. Hesse's Minister President Roland Koch accepted the Award on behalf of the former Chancellor.
In compliance with Fundation's rules and guidelines, EUR 700,000 of the award money of EUR 1 m will go toward creating a "Helmut Kohl Guest Professorship for European Culture and Political Philosophy" at the University of Heidelberg. The remaining EUR 300,000 will be used to rebuild a children's hospital in Sri Lanka, an institution Helmut Kohl has supported since the 2004 tsunami.
