French honor for PIO judge |
Navanetham Pillay, South Africa`s first non-white woman judge who is of Indian origin, has been conferred upon the highest French civilian honour.Pillay, 74, was the first non-white woman judge of the high court of South Africa and has also served as president of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda which tried leaders of a genocide that left nearly a million people dead. Pillay, the daughter of a bus driver who qualified against great odds through community support, said she considered it a great honour to have received the Commandeur de la Legion d`Honneur (the Legion of Honour). A former UN high commissioner for human rights, Pillay became the first non-white woman to open her own law practice in Natal Province — where she was born. French ambassador to South Africa Elisabeth Barbier said the award was a recognition of Pillay`s work for international justice system, human rights and women`s rights.During her 28 years as a lawyer, Pillay defended anti-apartheid activists and helped expose the use of torture and poor conditions of political detainees.
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