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Jockin
Arputham :
Magsaysay
winner Jockin Arputham's vision and determination
helped transform the lives of slum dwellers in India
and abroad. Men
and women pour out of their homes as Jockin Arputham
walks into a residencial complex built by the
Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA)
at Mankhurd, a Mumbai suburb. By the time this short
man-he is just five feet-enters an office on the
ground floor of Building No.98, he is surrounded by
residents holding out papers and identity cards. Bowing
in acknowledgment, Jockin sits down and begins
scanning the papers. Three telephones ring
incessantly. Even as he speaks into one, he waves over
the people who keep streaming into his office. Is he a
Nayakan (godfather)? He is, in the noblest sense of
the term.There is something that sets him apart,
despite his weather-beaten face, crumpled full-sleeve
bush shirt and old-fashioned non-pleated
trousers. The
winner of this year's Roman Magasaysay award for
community leadership and international understanding
has a certain candour in his eyes and a humble yet
reassuring smile. People in MHADA colony swear by him.
He has helped them move up in life-literally, from
slums to 225-square-foot flats.
Aruna
Roy :
The
call from Manila, Philippines, put Aruna Roy in a
quandary. She was told that she had been selected for
the Ramon Magsaysay award. "Would she send her
acceptance?" asked the lady at the other end of
the line. But according to the norm Aruna and her
organisation, the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS),
had set for themselves, they were forbidden from
accepting an individual award for the work that was
collective.
Twice
before - for the Diwaliben and the Rotary awards -
Aruna had found an answer to her dilemma when the two
foundations agreed to give the award to the MKSS. But
the Magsaysay Foundation had only one award, in the
category of international understanding, which could
be conferred on an organisation. Moreover, they had
also taken into account Aruna's voluntary work in
Rajasthan since 1976 - years before the MKSS was set
up in 1990
After much debate with her family and friends, Aruna
decided her cause would be served best by accepting
the Magsaysay. She decided she would take another MKSS
worker, Chunni Singh, to Manila to share the
ceremonial limelight and use the prize money to set up
a trust to further human rights and democratic
struggle.
Receivers:- * Jockin
Arputham
* Aruna Roy
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