Marzieh Hamidi, an Afghan taekwondo athlete and women’s rights activist, received the 2026 Geneva Summit International Women’s Rights Award on Wednesday at the 18th annual Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy.
The event, held ahead of the United Nations Human Rights Council session, drew activists, dissidents and diplomats from around the world.
Hamidi’s advocacy work has drawn international attention as she continues to speak out against the sweeping curbs on women’s rights imposed by the Taliban since their return to power in 2021. Forced into exile in France, she trains under 24-hour police protection following repeated death threats tied to her activism.
“I am honored to accept this award in the fight to ensure women’s rights are restored,” Hamidi said in her acceptance remarks, according to summit organizers. “The world cannot turn a blind eye as Afghan women are removed from existence.”
Also honored at the summit was Masih Alinejad, an Iranian journalist and founder of the campaign “My Stealthy Freedom,” who received the summit’s Courage Award. Alinejad, who now lives in the United States, has long been a prominent critic of the Iranian government’s mandatory hijab laws and a vocal supporter of women’s rights in Iran and beyond.
In her remarks, Alinejad condemned Tehran’s treatment of protesters and dedicated her award to the Iranian people. She used her speech to call for sustained international support for movements resisting repression at home.
The Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy is sponsored by a coalition of human rights organizations and provides a platform for activists from countries including Afghanistan, Iran, China, Russia and Venezuela to share testimony about abuses in their homelands. The annual event, which precedes the UN Human Rights Council meeting, is intended to spotlight urgent rights crises and mobilize global advocacy.
In addition to Hamidi and Alinejad, the summit also recognized Pedro Urruchurtu Noselli, a Venezuelan academic and opposition activist, for his work supporting democratic transition in his country after more than 400 days in refuge at the Argentine Embassy in Caracas.
