Africa: Ghanaian receives international human rights honor

Artists for Human Rights recently presented its International Human Rights Hero Award for 2007 at the Celebrity Centre International in Hollywood, Los Angeles USA.

Recipients of this year’s award include Sammy Jacobs Abbey, Director of the International Centre for Conflict and Human Rights Analysis (ICCHRA) Jack Harley, the Founder and Executive Director of the Human Rights Action Centre and Martha Montoya, Internationally renowned cartoonist.

Mr. Sammy Jacobs Abbey is the Director of International Centre for Conflict and Human Rights Analysis (ICCHRA) in Ghana. His 2007 International Human Rights Hero Award was in recognition for successfully implementing Human Rights Education and leadership program in Africa, Asia, Europe, North and South America, at the United Nations and all over the world, providing hope to thousands of youth and potential leaders Mr. Abbey became involved in mediation and conflict resolution issues at the age of 18. In addition to conducting dozens of peacekeeping missions for the United Nations and in 2005 he was made an honoring Peace Ambassador by the Apeadu Peace Centre at a ceremony witness by top UN officials Sammy Jacobs Abbey became involved with Youth for Human Rights International in 2005 at its human trafficking conference held in the Cape Coast Castle, a relic of the African slave trade. In 2006, the United Nations asked him to give a series of human rights lectures to students from around the world at the UN headquarters in Geneva.

The programme was so successful that Mr. Abbey is now conducting an on-line human rights teaching program to the benefit of students around the globe. For the last two years, he has directed the Youth for Human Rights International’s education and leadership programs to students in Africa, and is the Sub-Sahara Africa Director for Youth for Human Rights International.

Accepting the award, Mr. Sammy Jacobs Abbey recounted his motivation by the experiences he had while partnering with the United Nations in a very high torn war prone areas in the world.
“Taking inspiration from Timothy Bowles, Director, International Development for Youth for Human Rights International, I was motivated to restore hope among deprived children and bring smiles to their faces” Sammy Jacobs Abbey said.

Within the last two years, Sammy Abbey has traveled to over forty-eight (48) countries virtually to every continent to teach and make the United Nations Universal Declaration on Human Rights a reality.

In his endeavor to make the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights a reality, he has fruitfully had discussions with government officials, top UN officials and Human Rights institutions across the African continent to consider Human Rights Education as an important aspect of curriculums development Mr. Sammy Jacobs Abbey who is also an advisory member of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) Human Rights NGO Forum, a coalition of Human Rights institutions and individuals promoting Human Rights Education in Ghana dedicated his award to all people who one way or other working and helping to bring smiles to the faces of Children