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Liberty Medal Recipients
| 2005 |
Victor Yushenko
“Viktor Yushchenko has demonstrated this courage, this spirit, and this commitment in challenging corruption and election fraud, and winning his nation's mandate to lead after the Orange Revolution. Today, his continuing vigilance in the service of liberty is guiding Ukraine's transformation to become a truly free and democratic society, and a prosperous nation.”
The Philadelphia Liberty Medal Citation
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| 2004 |
Hamid Karzai
"The Philadelphia Liberty Medal has always been awarded to world leaders of great courage, vision and faith in the future…President Karzai is working tirelessly and skillfully to unify his country’s diverse factions, strengthen its economy and move towards democratic values and practices"
The Philadelphia Liberty Medal International Selection Commission |
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| 2003 |
Justice Sandra Day O’Connor
"Sandra Day O’Connor is a leader of exceptional dignity, character and integrity...she has been a champion of justice, and her fairness and prudence on major decisions have made a lasting impact on our society….Justice O’Connor is one of the great legal minds in the United States, and she is a role model not only to women, but to millions of Americans."
Philadelphia Liberty Medal Media Release
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| 2002 |
Colin Powell
"Among the leaders who are in the forefront of supporting human liberties, and those who have earned respect for their courage and resoluteness in upholding rights held dear by Americans throughout their careers, Colin Powell is a giant"
Philadelphia Liberty Medal International Selection Commission
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| 2001 |
Kofi Annan
“Secretary General Annan is admired alike by leaders from the countries of the world and by their grass roots populations. He is recognized for his moral character, for his faith and loyalty. And for his attachment to social justice as well as to economic development…He has affirmed the worldwide right of ‘life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness’ – rights held so dear by the founders of our own nation.”
Philadelphia Liberty Medal International Selection Commission
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| 1996 |
King Hussein
"King Hussein and Prime Minister Peres have played extraordinary roles, over many years, in pursuing peace and liberty in the Middle East. The 1994 accord between Jordan and Israel is remarkable because it goes beyond the cessation of belligerency and focuses on the normalization of relations. It is a model for the Middle East and a stimulus for the world"
Philadelphia Liberty Medal International Selection Commission
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Shimon Peres
"King Hussein and Prime Minister Peres have played extraordinary roles, over many years, in pursuing peace and liberty in the Middle East. The 1994 accord between Jordan and Israel is remarkable because it goes beyond the cessation of belligerency and focuses on the normalization of relations. It is a model for the Middle East and a stimulus for the world"
Philadelphia Liberty Medal International Selection Commission
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| 1995 |
Sadako Ogata
"There is no greater champion and activist on behalf of the refugees of the world than Mrs. Ogata. In her four years as High Commissioner for Refugees, she has been their protector and provider of relief…No one has played a greater humanitarian role in this regard, or is a more significant symbol of future aspirations, than Sadako Ogata."
Philadelphia Liberty Medal International Selection Commission
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| 1994 |
Vaclav Havel
"President Havel will receive this award at Independence Hall, where 76 years ago, his predecessor, Tomas Masaryk, proclaimed the independence of Czechoslovakia. Vaclav Have inspired the ‘velvet revolution’ which returned his country in 1989 to democratic liberties, civility and a market economy….He is a symbol to the world of the successful pursuit of cultural and political freedoms"
Philadelphia Liberty Medal International Selection Commission
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| 1993 |
Nelson Mandela
"The Philadelphia Liberty Medal’s International Selection Commission had America’s founder in mind in selecting this year’s awardees F. W. de Klerk and Nelson Mandela, for their enormous courage, integrity, forbearance, sense of justice and devotion to freedom and consensus for the common good. Once again, a “new order of the age” is being forged and we are privileged to be beholders"
Remarks by Martin Meyerson, Chair, Philadelphia Liberty Medal International Selection Commission
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F. W. de Klerk
"F. W. de Klerk and Nelson Mandela have worked tirelessly to reform the South African political system and create a unified country. The have mutual goals for South African peace and understanding among their people. They are men of vision and determination, and they epitomize the ideals behind the Philadelphia Liberty Medal."
Philadelphia Liberty Medal International Selection Commission
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| 1992 |
Thurgood Marshall
"Thurgood Marshall’s long history of defending and protecting individual rights and our nation’s liberties under the Constitution and securing legal equality for Americans of all races and creeds make him a magnificent choice for this year’s Philadelphia Liberty Medal"
Philadelphia Liberty Medal International Selection Commission
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| 1991 |
Dr. Oscar Arias
"Oscar Arias Sanchez is the most persuasive advocate in all of Latin America for peace, for democracy and for development...He is an heir to Simon Bolivar and Bolivar’s predecessors, and a vital contributor to that heritage of liberty. He has a secure place in that pantheon of heroes and visionaries who gave, and give, of their minds, their spirits and sometimes their very lives in the pursuit of liberty"
Philadelphia Liberty Medal International Selection Commission
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| 1991 |
Médecins Sans Frontières
(Doctors Without Borders)
"In the score of years they have functioned, Médecins Sans Frontières and its missions have ranged across over sites, from Peru in South America, to Cambodia in Southeast Asia. Their premise that human freedom and the human spirit are inseparable from the well being of the human body echoes the beliefs of the 200-year-old Bill of Rights by including in its charter a Bill of Duties and Responsibilities. We salute them for their outstanding contributions to human well-being"
Philadelphia Liberty Medal International Selection Commission
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| 1990 |
Jimmy Carter
"President Jimmy Carter...has demonstrated among his other virtues that liberty is internalized within him – in his mind, in his heart, in his soul, and in the use of his time and his immense energy. Liberty is both a means and an end. It flourishes best in those cultures in which leaders – like Carter – are models of loyalty, faith and honesty, and persuasive advocates of other moral principles"
Philadelphia Liberty Medal International Selection Commission
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| 1989 |
Lech Walesa
“The movement for human liberty, like all great religious, social, cultural, economic and political movements, has its set of saints, its hagiology. Lech Walesa of Poland illuminates the constellation of saints devoted to liberty. We hope and expect that this award from this city, which over 200 years ago lit a large lamp of liberty for the United States and the globe, will add to your strength…”
Philadelphia Liberty Medal International Selection Commission
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