UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize
The Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize is a prize, which is awarded annually by UNESCO. The award was created in 1997 and is a person, organization or institution honor that has been used in a special way, especially under danger to press freedom.
The prize is worth $ 25,000 and is awarded each on 3 May, World Press Freedom Day. It is named after Guillermo Cano Isaza, editor of the newspaper El Espectador in Colombia, who was assassinated in Bogotá on 17 December 1986. Cano was an audible voice to the criticism of the powerful drug barons in the country.
The winner will be determined by an independent jury of 14 members who are selected by the UNESCO Director-General. Nominations may be made UNESCO Member States and NGOs working in the field of freedom of the press.
2011 at the time of the award ceremony imprisoned Iranian journalist Ahmad Zeid-Abadi was honored. He had been employed as a former editor of the newspaper Azad and as an employee of the newspaper Hamshahari in Tehran on Civil Liberties.