Hillary to receive human rights prize

Hillary Clinton will receive the  2013 Lantos Human Rights Prize for her work as secretary of State and in the decades prior as a lawyer, first lady and U.S. senator, the Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice announced Thursday.

The award, named after the late House International Relations Committee Chairman Tom Lantos (D-Calif.), adds to Clinton’s prestige as she ponders a presidential run in 2016. Past winners include Nobel Peace Prize laureates Elie Wiesel and Tenzin Gyatso, the Dalai Lama.

“Hillary Rodham Clinton has gained global recognition for her leadership in so many critical arenas, but we are particularly proud to recognize the enormous contributions she has made to human rights causes,” said Katrina Lantos Swett, president of the Lantos Foundation. 

Lantos Swett highlighted Clinton’s declaration that ‘women’s rights are human rights’ during her 1995 address to the U.N. World Conference in Beijing and her 2010 declaration that Internet restrictions were akin to human-rights abuse.

The award ceremony will take in Washington, D.C., on December 6.

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