The Reach all Women in WAR organisation has honoured Ethiopian reporter Lucy Kassa with the 2023 Anna Politkovskaya Award, which is given to women who defend human rights during armed conflict.
In its press release, RAW in WAR noted Kassa’s “courage and determination in informing the world about the brutal treatment of civilians during the civil war in Ethiopia and for standing up for peace and justice for the women of Tigray, in the face of grave danger”.
Lucy Kassa continues to report on the war and works as a freelance journalist for major media outlets such as Al Jazeera, The Telegraph, and the Los Angeles Times.
“It means a lot to me to receive such a great honour in the name of Anna Politkovskaya, particularly during this time when impunity and injustice is persisting in my home country, Ethiopia,” Kassa said in response to the news of her award.
RAW in WAR is an international non-profit that supports female human rights defenders as well as women and girls who are victims of armed conflicts worldwide. Last year, the organisation gave the Anna Politkovskaya Award to Svetlana Gannushkina, a Russian human rights activist, and Tetiana Sokolova, a midwife from Ukraine’s Mariupol.
Today is the 17th anniversary of Anna Politkovskaya’s murder. The Russian journalist, who actively reported on the war in Chechnya, was killed on 7 October 2006 at the entrance to her home. The investigative authorities still have not named those responsible for organising the assassination.
