The President of the Generalitat, Artur Mas, proclaimed that Catalonia “will make its small voice heard” in order to remind the world that in the defense of collective and individual rights stands “the Catalan People, with many centuries at its back, that has not abandoned its hope for the present, and above all for the future, and that will defend its rights of freedom with vehemence and passion”. “These are rights that affect us all and that are based on the sense of democracy and a peaceful and constructive spirit,” he stated.

 

The head of the Executive spoke these words in Sant Jordi Hall in the Palau de la Generalitat Catalan Government building, where the 25th Catalonia International Prize was awarded this evening. This prize, which is given out each year by the Government, was granted to the former Prime Minister of Norway, Gro Harlem Brundtland, and to Pakistani student Malala Yousafzai, who in the words of the President, “share the same attitude of valor and courage”. “They are two women that the jury wished to recognize for their ideas and their ideals.”

 

The head of the Government began his speech underscoring that this year is the 25th anniversary of the International Prize, an award that was created, he explained, with the dual motive of “pointing out exemplary personalities to the people of Catalonia” and in that sense, he said that “it has been an honor for Catalonia to be able to confer the award on the distinguished recipients” and secondly to “project Catalonia to the world through a prestigious prize”. “Both objectives have been achieved,” he affirmed.

 

In his presentation, President Mas described the former Prime Minister of Norway, Gro Brundtland, as a “leader, not just in her country but in all the world, in the introduction of the concept of sustainable development, which means living better without mortgaging the future of our children”. The President noted that Catalonia had not introduced this concept at its start but “it got on the bandwagon later and was one of the pioneers in creating an advisory council for sustainable development comprised of top-notch experts who have helped the Government to fully introduce the concept of environmental sustainability.”

 

With respect to Gro Harlem Brundtland’s remarks—she spoke just before the President, and defended health as an investment in the future—Mas pointed out that “Catalonia has a long tradition and considerable prestige in the health sector” and stated that, despite the austerity policies dictated by the present circumstances, “the Catalan health system continues to be a reference point for the Spanish State and in the whole of Europe”.

 

The former Prime Minister for Norway also called for the rejection of “the persistent discrimination against women and girls”, which makes them have to leave school and enter into forced marriages, and added that “the educational inequality of today will result in the inequality that continues unabated tomorrow”.

 

“We want to construct a model of peace and freedom”

 

 

The Pakistani student Malala Yousafzai, who spoke a few words in Catalan, as did the former Norwegian Prime Minister, asked in her remarks that she not be remembered as the girl who got shot, but rather as “the girl who fought for the right of all boys and girls to have an education”. “That is my dream, my obsession, and the objective that I pursue.”

 

President Mas praised Malala’s remarks and said “she has given us an important lesson with them”, as he rejected the violence and intolerance that persists in many areas of the world, which is counteracted, he stated, by the “model of peace, freedom, and respect for the rights of the people that we are trying to achieve, despite enormous difficulties.”

 

The head of the Government thanked the students from two Catalan schools, Eugeni d’Ors Institute of Badalona, where Malala visited this morning, and Can Serra, in Barberà del Vallès, for their participation in the ceremony. The President was thrilled that the Pakistani student had been able to visit the school and witness “the intergenerational model of social cohesion that exists in the Catalan schoolsystem”.

Also present at the ceremony were Irene Rigau, Education Minister for Catalonia, Xavier Rubert de Ventós, President of the Prize Committee, and the Culture Minister, Ferran Mascarell, among other dignitaries.

 

The Catalonia International Prize is awarded annually by the Generalitat in order to distinguish those persons who have important contributions with their creative work to developing cultural, scientific, and human values around the world. The Prize is accompanied by 80,000 euros and The Key and the Letter sculpture, created by recently deceased Catalan sculptor Antoni Tàpies. President Mas officially announced the winners of the prize last May 24th, in a press conference at the Generalitat palace.

 

The jury awarded the 25th Catalonia International Prize unanimously to Gro Harlem Brundtland and to Malala Yousafzai considering them “emblematic figures in the defense of the rights and improvement of conditions of women”. In Brundtland’s case, the jury recognized her capacity for “connecting health and environmental issues both with the direct delivery of services as well as from a political and strategic viewpoint”. In Malala Yousafzai’s case, they valued the fact that she has been “struggling and fighting for her life in order to have an education, from a very young age and in very difficult circumstances.”