"As long as violence against women, sexual or otherwise, remains strictly and exclusively a women’s issue, it will always be an issue. We men must own this and we must recognize it as vital to our own survival. And we must help our brothers see it as such."

"An event like this can really make a difference. I have seen it in the faces of those women who know that they're not laboring in vain. I've seen it in the networks that have been created to support them. And I've seen it in the changed attitudes of governments and leaders."

"In honoring me, you are honoring the 700,000 women who are standing behind me. You may not see them, but they are here in spirit — their stories, their struggles and their triumphs echo throughout this hall."

"It is an award to recognize the full human rights of our girls and of our women, but most of all, it is a reminder of the remaining task for equality, development and peace in our respective nations."

"This award, you must know, is going to protect my life...No one can silence me because I have new friends — you are my friends — and you are watching over me."