Laureates

 

Reverend Canon Andrew White of Iraq and the United Kingdom

Press Release 

 

2010

 
 

A leader in the struggle for peace in Iraq and the Middle East, Canon White works to reconcile Iraq’s disparate religious factions.

Known as the "Vicar of Baghdad," White is rector of the last Anglican church in Iraq. He co-founded the Foundation for Relief and Reconciliation in the Middle East.

Canon White's dedication to non-violent solutions has led him to build relationships with many of the most senior religious leaders within the Sunni, Shia, Kurdish, Christian and other minority communities. He has led the voices that condemn sectarian violence, while supporting the rights of religious minorities and the emergence of an Iraqi state under the rule of law.

Canon White's facilitation of ongoing inter-religious dialogue in Iraq resulted in 2004's Baghdad Religious Accord, the formation of the Iraqi Institute for Peace, a series of conferences among senior Iraqi religious leaders, and 2008's historic joint Sunni-Shia Fatwa condemning sectarian violence. Canon White also initiated a similar process between religious leaders of Israel and Palestine, known as the Alexandria Process.

He has also worked as a mediator in over a hundred cases of kidnapping, effecting a successful release in many of those cases.

Canon White and his staff are exposed to considerable danger and are under constant threat of death and kidnapping. He has been beaten, held at gunpoint and had his quarters ransacked.