Sofia, December 10 2014
The awards were handed out on December 10th - the International Human Rights Day, during an official ceremony at the Institut Francais in Sofia. The volunteers and donours who worked during the floods were given the grand award "Person of the Year" 2014 at the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee's annual awards ceremony for contributing to human rights protection. This award is also for the health mediators who went as volunteers to help cope with the consequences of the floods in Asparuhovo, Dobrich and Miziya. The Roma Matrix Project as a whole received the award for overall achievements in ensuring equal access to education and healthcare for the Roma as well as fighting the formed stereotype about them in the society. A part of the project is the campaign "We are not an exception", the focus of which is on Roma medical students and health mediators. "Integrated Roma are invisible" said Dimitrinka Borisova, former health mediator and a 4th year nursing student that will graduate this year. "Open your senses!" is the message of Tzveta Petkova, coordinator and the moving force behind the project for Bulgaria and also a member of the Board of NNHM. We are very proud and happy with the award for the Mediators' Network - it is a recognition for the work of our whole team!
