Caddy Adzuba dedicates her honorary doctorate to all women victims of sexual violence

Of the five exceptional honorary doctorates awarded by the UAB in celebration of its 50th anniversary one has been awarded to lawyer Caddy Adzuba, activist fighting against gender violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, corresponding to the field of freedom of expression.

12/02/2019

On 5 March, the UAB present Congolese lawyer Caddy Adzuba with an honorary doctorate in a ceremony which took place at 12 noon at the conference hall of the Rectorat building. Sponsoring Adzuba was Gregorio Garzón, professor of international public law and international relations. This honorary doctorate forms part of the five exceptional doctorate being awarded by the UAB in celebration of its 50th anniversary.

Adzuba is known as an international speaker on the situation of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, especially on the topic of violence against women, as victims of sexual violence produced by the ongoing armed conflict which has afflicted the country since the 1990s. She is a founding member of the network "A Loudspeaker Against Silence" and presenter at Radio Okapi, a United Nations' radio station broadcast in Congo.

She has presented allegations to the International Criminal Court and the United States Senate and denounced the cases of rape in the Congolese conflict. She has received several death threats and has survived two attempts on her life. In 2014, she received the Princess Asturias Award for Peace. She also was awarded the Julio Anguita Parrado International Journalism Award in 2009 from the Federation of Journalists and an award from the Association of Women Journalists "Club de les 25", among many others.

Among the five exceptional honorary doctorates being awarded this year, Adzuba's award corresponds to the field of freedom of expression. It is the third distinction to be awarded this year, after sculptor Jaume Plensa received the first honorary doctorate corresponding to the field of cultural identity and biologist and activist Marie-Paule Kieny received the distinction for solidarity. On 25 March physicist Lisa Randall will receive the award corresponding to the field of knowledge and on 7 May, journalist Joaquim Maria Puyal will be awarded in recognition for his commitment to the Catalan language and society.

More information: The Audacity of Knowledge: 50 years UAB