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<\/a>The Croatian Helsinki Committee for Human Rights (Hrvatski helsin\u0161ki odbor, HHO) was founded in March 1993 to protect and promote human rights in Croatia. Starting as a branch of the International Helsinki Federation, it has run as a local NGO under Croatian law since April 2003, staffed by independent intellectuals, artists, lawyers, and journalists committed to the protection and promotion of human rights.<\/p>\nDr Matak is an Adventist pastor and theologian who is also General Secretary of the Croatian Religious Liberty Association. He involves himself in all the major religious and politically current issues in Croatia and the Balkans. As such, his contribution to public life in Croatia is widely known and appreciated.<\/p>\n
Matak stood alongside two distinguished colleagues.<\/p>\n Dr Dubravka \u0160imonovi\u0107 is the United Nations Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, and a member of the UNHCR Advisory Group on Gender, Forced Displacement and Protection. She began her diplomatic career in Croatia in 1994 including being head of the Human Rights Department at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.<\/p>\n Dr Inoslav Be\u0161ker has spent a lifetime in journalism and is renowned for his outstanding contribution to human rights. Since 1989 he has worked as Rome correspondent for the Vjesnik<\/em> and Ve\u010dernji list<\/em> newspapers, the BBC, Radio 101, Danas, Croatian Radio & TV, and Globus. Since 2000 he has been a correspondent and columnist for the Jutarnji list<\/em> newspaper.<\/p>\n<\/a>Among his recent activities Matak was part of a delegation of religious representatives from Croatia who visited the religious and political leaders of Iran during the summer. In his acceptance speech Matak emphasised the need for personal moral responsibilities in achieving human and religious freedom.<\/p>\n