The European Parliament has made public this year's nominees for the 2011 Sakharov Prize. They are Izzeldin Abuelaish (Palestinian Territories), a group of five activists from the Arab world, Dzmitry Bandarenka (Belarus), Boris Pahor (Slovenia) and the San José de Apartadó Peace Community (Colombia).

The European Parliament has made public its nominees for the 2011 Sakharov Prize. This is the EP's prize for defenders of human rights and democracy and it has been put forward from 2009. The nominees for this year's edition are:

• Izzeldin Abuelaish, a Palestinian doctor and founder of the Daughters for Life Foundation. Mr Abuelaish has dedicated his life to pursuing peace between Israel and Palestine and is known for creating a "magical, secret bridge" between the two peoples.
• Five Arab spring activists: Mohamed Bouazizi is the young man who set fire to himself on 17 December 2010 in Sidi Bouzid (Tunisia). Asmaa Mahfouz is one of the founders of the Egyptian youth movement. Her call for freedom recorded on 18 January and posted on YouTube was seen by hundreds of thousands of people and inspired them to gather in Tahrir square. Ahmed al-Zubair Ahmed al-Sanusi, 77-year-old dissident and Libya's longest-serving "prisoner of conscience". He was accused of conspiracy in an attempted coup against Col Gaddafi in 1970 and spent 31 years in prison, four more than Nelson Mandela. Razan Zeitouneh is one of the leaders of the committees coordinating the revolt in Syria. Ali Farzat is a renowned Syrian political satirist, who has published more than 15,000 cartoons in Syrian, Arab and international newspapers.
• Dzmitry Bandarenka is a Belarusian civil activist and member of the Belarusian Association of Journalists. He is one of the co-founders of the Charter '97 civil rights initiative and co-ordinator of the European Belarus civil campaign.
• Boris Pahor is a Slovenian writer, fighter for freedom of thought, strong opponent of totalitarian regimes, defender of human rights and fundamental freedoms and a strong advocate of minority rights and minority languages.
• The San José de Apartadó Peace Community: According to the nomination, this Colombian community of "campesinos" - peasant farmers, has become an internationally recognized symbol of courage, resilience and dedication to the values of peace and justice, in an environment of brutality and destruction.

Now these nominations will be presented at the joint meeting of the committees on Foreign Affairs, and Development and the Subcommittee on Human Rights on 5 October 2011, followed by a vote on 20 October to pick the three finalists. The Conference of Presidents of the European Parliament will choose the laureate on 27 October and the laureate will be invited to the award ceremony on 14 December, in Strasbourg.