Mother Teresa Award for UAE minister

Mumbai: Shaikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, has been conferred the prestigious Mother Teresa International Award by the Mumbai-based Harmony Foundation, an NGO that acknowledges the extraordinary work done by individuals towards peace and harmony.

Shaikh Abdullah is being honoured for his work in establishing institutions that protect youth from being radicalised and indoctrination from terrorist groups and persons looking to propagate violence against innocent people.

Abdul Rahman Mohammad Al Owais, Minister of Health and Prevention, will receive the award on his behalf on on Sunday (November 20) in Mumbai, said Dr Abraham Mathai, President of Harmony Foundation.

Mathai said that Shaikh Abdullah was the obvious choice for the award because of his “tremendous contribution in promoting peace and stability in the Middle East”.

“By establishing the Hedayah and Sawab Centres, he has showed the world how serious his country was in ensuring that the youth is not swayed by extremist ideologies whose main purpose is to leave behind a trail of destruction and devastation.”

Hedayah is an Abu Dhabi-based international centre for countering violent extremism and the Sawab Centre is a joint UAE-US initiative to combat Daesh’s online propaganda and promote positive alternatives to extremism.

Mathai also added that “Shaikh Abdullah’s address at the United Nations General Assembly in September this year was relevant to the times we live in today.

“His stance against terrorism is well known. We respect His Excellency’s commitment and honour his efforts to ensure that peace and prosperity is enjoyed by the UAE in these turbulent times even as the neighbouring region stares at the uncertainty that comes from needless sectarian conflict and the shedding of innocent blood. He has proved that he is a man of peace and a visionary who believes that a stable UAE is in the interest of the free world.”

Mathai also praised Shaikh Abdullah’s initiative, Abu Dhabi Reads, whose aim is to spread a reading culture among students and the wider community.

The Mother Teresa Awards for Social Justice are conferred by the Harmony Foundation on persons who have taken a stand against injustice and prevented oppression of those who are voiceless and nameless in this world. The past recipients of the award include Nobel Laureates Dalai Lama and Malala Yousufzai, former Malaysian Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohammed, former Deputy Prime Minister of Afghanistan President Dr Sima Samar, former Deputy Speaker of the House of Lords Baroness Caroline Cox, and Medecines Sans Frontieres being the latest recipient last year.

An international conference on Combating Terrorism Through Education will be hosted during the awards. Some of the distinguished persons addressing the conference will be former Afghanistan President Dr Hamid Karzai, and former Indian union minister Farooq Abdullah. Also present will be diplomats of several countries.