National Democratic Institute Awards President Johnson Sirleaf

Washington, D.C. - USA - A day after receiving the prestigious 2007 International Freedom Award, Liberian President Ellen Johnson has been awarded the Harriman Award for Democracy by the National Democratic Institute (NDI) in Washington, D.C. (USA).

At a ceremony Wednesday marking the occasion, the Institute said it was honoring the President for her courageous leadership in Liberia and distinguished role in encouraging female participation in the democratic process. The NDI said President Johnson Sirleaf has set her country on the road to political and economic recovery. In its efforts to rebuild a shattered infrastructure in partnership with the international community, Liberia’s new democratic government has begun the long road to improving the lives of citizens through greater access to clean water, electricity and roads, the Institute noted.

In remarks, the Liberian leader said she was humbled both by the Award’s distinction and to be in the presence of such accomplished women, including the first woman to become an American Secretary of State, Madeline Albright, and the first woman to become speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi.

The President also thanked the NDI and other non-profit organizations and expressed gratitude to Secretary Albright for promoting democracy throughout the world.

The Liberian leader urged the United States to continue its role of promoting democracy around the world, despite arguments in some quarters that the policy is irrelevant in contemporary contexts. She cautioned  that if the United States were to lose its will and go quiet on issues of liberty and human rights, such an approach would shake the foundation of democracy around the world.

President Johnson Sirleaf criticized governments and leaders who pay lip service to democracy. “I still believe that democracy is sacred. We should not allow countries to call themselves democracies, or to be accepted into global democratic institutions when behind the rhetoric, liberty, personal freedoms, and civil rights fall pray to fear and repression,” the President maintained.

Democracy, President Johnson Sirleaf said, is not just about elections. “It is about sustaining institutions of government and civil society that protect the individual over the State.  It is about freedom of speech, and the inherent right to criticize State authorities.  It is about due process and rule of law.  It is about a level economic playing field, about the right to educate our children and practice any religious beliefs.”

To achieve these goals, the President said, “we must support those institutions that provide the checks and balance in governments and in the society at large-those civil society organizations such as the media that serve as the watchdog, exercising freedom with responsibility; those institutions that represent the pillars of integrity to ensure the sanctity of choice, a far and speedy recourse in the violation of rights. We must ensure that our vulnerable youth can become part of and contribute to society once again through equal opportunity for education and skills learning.  We must be responsive to the needs of our grassroots women by improving their conditions of work and formulate measures to protect our girls against rape and abuse.”

As part of Wednesday’s ceremony the 50/50 women advocacy group of Sierra Leone received this year’s Madeline Albright Award, established in 2005 as a means of supporting organizations around the world that create greater roles for women in political and civil life.

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi delivered the keynote address at Wednesday’s Harriman Award ceremony.

The President has meanwhile been meeting with senior American policy makers in Washington, D.C., including members of Congress.  President Johnson Sirleaf Wednesday visited the Pentagon where she held talks with Defense Ministry officials, including Deputy Secretary of Defense, Gordon England and IMF First Deputy Managing Director, John Lipsky. A meeting is planned later on Thursday with New Jersey Congressman Donald Payne at the U.S. Capitol.

The Chief Executive rounds up her U.S. visit on Friday when she undergoes a routine medical checkup before departure for home on Saturday.

Read President Sirleaf's remarks.