TOKYO, April 20 /PRNewswire/ — The Niwano Peace Foundation awards the 40th Niwano Peace Prize to the PV of Rajagopal of India in recognition of his outstanding commitment to serving the poorest and most marginalized of his country and his struggle for equal human dignity and equal rights for all men and women, regardless of caste and gender.
The award ceremony will take place on May 11 in Tokyo. In addition to a certificate, Rajagopal, 74, will receive a medal and a cash prize of 20 million yen.
His credits include negotiations for extradition and gang rehabilitation and his commitment to the environment, as the poor need water, land and forests first. Rajagopal’s work for justice and peace also advances through dialogue with institutions, enforcing land redistribution and land tenure allocation. He only uses his first name in public to avoid being associated with the caste system, reflecting his view of human equality.
The Niwano Peace Prize Committee said the selection of the 2023 laureate is “extremely significant” as it comes in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic “which has revealed a handicap in our interconnected world and forced us to rethink globalization”.
Niwano Peace Prize:
The Niwano Peace Foundation established the Niwano Peace Award to honor and encourage individuals and corporations who have made significant contributions to interfaith cooperation, thereby promoting world peace, and to publicize their achievements as widely as possible. The foundation hopes to improve interfaith understanding and cooperation and encourage more people to work for peace in the world. The award is named after the founder and first president of the Buddhist lay organization Rissho Kosei-kai, Nikkyo Niwano.
Niwano Peace Foundation:
The Niwano Peace Foundation was established in 1978 to contribute to the realization of world peace and promote a culture of peace. The foundation promotes research and other activities based on religious principles and serves the cause of peace in the fields of education, science, religion and philosophy.
https://www.npf.or.jp/english/
Questions and contact:
Contact:
(Mr.) Seiji Hironaka/ (Mrs.) Natsuki Kudo/ (Mrs.) Aina Hirano
Niwano Peace Foundation
Phone: +81-3-3226-4371
Fax: +81-3-3226-1835
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