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Bianca Jagger accepts her first doctorate from a British university

Friday 3 December 2010

 

Bianca Jagger, Founder and Chair of the Bianca Jagger Human Rights Foundation (BJHRF) and Council of Europe Goodwill Ambassador, was conferred with an honorary doctorate from the University of East London today at the Barbican Centre in central London.

A forthright champion of human rights across the world, Jagger has led the charge on a vast number of campaigns in countries from her native Nicaragua to Bosnia, from Iraq to India, often putting her own safety on the line in the name of justice.

She has campaigned in defence of human rights and peace, civil liberties, social and economic justice, the international rule of law, and environmental protection for nearly thirty years. Under the auspices of the BJHRF, Jagger is bringing the rights of present and future generations to the centre of policy making. The Foundation is working to develop a legal definition of Crimes Against Present and Future Generations; and a legal framework that will hold accountable corporations committing grave human rights abuses and environmental destruction. The BJHRF is a voice for the most vulnerable members of society: children, women, indigenous people, and prisoners on death row.

Jagger is also a member of the Executive Director's Leadership Council for Amnesty International.

Most recently she has been supporting the Kondh tribe in Orissa, India, in their campaign to protect their sacred Niyamgiri mountain from a proposed bauxite mine.

During the course of her exceptional career, fighting for the rights of ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances, she has been recognised with a number of prestigious awards.

She received the Right Livelihood Award, also known as the ‘alternative Nobel prize’ in 2004; the United Nations Earth Day award in 1994; the Amnesty International USA Media Spotlight Award for Leadership in 1997; the World Achievement Award, presented by Mikhail Gorbachev in 2004; the World Citizenship Award from The Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, in 2006; and the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers Champion of Justice Award in 2000. She has honorary doctorates from Stonehill College, Massachusetts, and Simmons College, Boston, but this is the first one she has ever accepted in the UK.

She described receiving her doctorate today as having a ‘tremendous significance’ in her life.

‘Throughout my thirty years as a human rights, social justice and environment protection advocate, I have defended the rule of law, liberty, due process, and judicial review. My unwavering belief in these principles has underpinned my work, and been at the heart of the Bianca Jagger Human Rights Foundations’ campaigns. It is an honour and a privilege to receive a Doctorate in Law from such a distinguished institution.’

In a personal and heartfelt speech she paid tribute to her mother, saying that she had dedicated her life to the defence of human rights as a tribute to her.

The other honorary graduates conferred today were Malaysian human rights lawyer Dato’ Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, Deputy Mayor of London, Richard Barnes AM, Time Out editor Mark Frith, and MOBO-winning saxophonist Yolanda Brown.

To read a copy of Bianca Jagger's speech, click here.

Bianca Jagger Human Rights Foundation on Twitter: @biancajagger on Facebook, click here.

Notes to Editors

The University of East London (UEL) is a global learning community with over 28,000 students from over 120 countries world-wide. Our vision is to achieve recognition, both nationally and internationally, as a successful and inclusive regional university proud of its diversity, committed to new modes of learning which focus on students and enhance their employability, and renowned for our contribution to social, cultural and economic development, especially through our research and scholarship. We have a strong track-record in widening participation and working with industry.

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