MULTAN, July 4: The Council of Europe has nominated Mukhtar Mai for its prestigious North-South Prize for the year 2006 along with Father Francisco Van Der Hoff of The Netherlands.

The chairperson of the North-South Centre of the council, Claude Frey, has informed Mai through a letter that she has been unanimously nominated in recognition of her determination to overcome humiliation and promote human rights, justice and education.

Created in 1995, the objective of the prize is said to raise public awareness in Europe on global interdependence and solidarity issues and to promote the values of human rights and democracy in other continents.

The prize is awarded each year by the president of Portugal during an official ceremony at the Portuguese National Assembly in the presence of eminent personalities from the North and the South. The ceremony this year is scheduled to be held in Lisbon in the last week of November.

The prize is traditionally awarded to a personality from the North and one from the South. This year, Father Van Der Hoff will be the recipient of the prize from the North while Mukhtar Mai from the South. Father Van Der Hoff is the founder of first fair trade label, Max Havelaar.

Among the previous recipients of the prize are Irish President Mary Robinson, Moroccan Prime Minister Abderrahman Youssoufi, musician Peter Gabrial, Canadian foreign minister Lloyd Axworthy, European parliamentarian Emma Bonino and former Chilean President Patricio Aylwin.