EU awards human rights prize to Venezuelan opposition
By REUTERS
BRUSSELS - Venezuela's democratic opposition was awarded the European Union's human rights award on Thursday and the European Parliament called for a peaceful transition to democracy in the troubled country.The prize, named after Soviet physicist and dissident Andrei Sakharov, was awarded to the country's national assembly and all political prisoners, parliament said.Oil-rich Venezuela is suffering from a harsh economic crisis and President Nicolas Maduro's government has clamped down on the opposition, jailing or otherwise barring from office many dissenting leaders and activists."Today we are supporting a nation's freedom struggle," European Parliament President Antonio Tajani said."We also want to launch an appeal for a peaceful transition towards democracy and an opening of a humanitarian corridor to ease the suffering," he added.Previous winners of the prize, first awarded in 1988, include Pakistani education activist Malala Yousafzai and South African President Nelson Mandela.
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