Jewish human rights advocate and former Canadian Justice Minister Irwin Cotler will receive a Defender of Freedom Award for his advocacy for political prisoners throughout the world, the Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy announced earlier this month.
“I’m deeply moved and humbled by this award, which I take to be in recognition of the cases and causes I’ve been privileged to engage in, as well as the heroic political prisoners and human rights defenders—represented at this year’s Geneva Summit—and the victims of injustice who need us to be their voice, all of whom have underpinned and inspired my advocacy all these years,” Cotler said.
“The liberation of these brave journalists, dissidents, lawyers, and community leaders can—and does—change the course of history. We must never stop advocating for their release from authoritarian regimes across the globe.”
30 Human Rights NGOs Announce: Canadian human rights icon @IrwinCotler will receive the #GenevaSummit2025 Defender of Freedom Award for his renowned advocacy for political prisoners worldwide. https://t.co/MTC4cOYXmc pic.twitter.com/sNdJpTULLJ
— The Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy (@GenevaSummit) February 14, 2025
“Although there is still much work to be done to free these heroes, the Geneva Summit inspires me because it proves that even in the face of tyranny, the voices of truth and justice will not be silenced,” he concluded.
A look into the Geneva Summit
The summit is a coalition of more than 30 human rights organizations, and it serves as “a global hub for dissidents, offering a unique opportunity to hear first-hand from frontline defenders of human rights, many of whom have endured brutal arrest, incarceration, and torture,” said Hillel Neuer, the executive director of United Nations Watch.
Cotler worked as a McGill University law professor and was recognized as an eminent scholar of constitutional law, international law, and human rights law, the statement noted. He then served as a member of Canada’s parliament and as the country’s Minister of Justice and Attorney General.
Clients of Cotler include Russian opposition politician Vladimir Kara-Murza, who was released from prison in August, and Saudi activist Raif Badawi, who remains barred from leaving Saudi Arabia.
Starting in late 2023, Cotler was the target of assassination threats from the Iranian regime.
“I was told then, to use their words, that there was credible evidence of ‘an imminent and lethal threat,’” Cotler said of his initial meeting with Canadian law enforcement. “From then on, I had 24-7 protection, which included armored cars outside my house” and “security people accompanying me on any encounter that I was engaged in, whether I went to a medical appointment or whether I went to a family gathering.”
Cotler has long been an outspoken critic of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
“I recall that the 21st century began with, on January 3, 2000, the Supreme Leader of Iran saying … there can be no resolution to the Arab-Israeli conflict without the annihilation of the Jewish state,” he said. “This open and public call for genocide is a standalone violation of the Genocide Convention.”
In February 2023, Cotler spoke to the Jerusalem Report, discussing his stance on advising Israel’s government not to pass judicial reforms that would significantly weaken the Supreme Court.
Later that year, Cotler was among a group of 12 others to receive Israel’s Presidential Medal of Honor.
Today, Cotler heads the Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights in Montreal.