The jury for the prize, based in the German city of Bremen, said in a statement that it wished to “honour all those who continue to resist reactionary developments in Russia despite persecution.”

Writer and activist Yuri Andrukhovych in Kharkiv, Ukraine.

They were jointly awarded the prize with Ukrainian author Yuri Andrukhovych for his role in the former Soviet republic’s democratic movement.

On making the 54-year-old the joint winner, the jury said it was to express its “respect for the campaigners for an independent and democratic Ukraine.”

The prize, which is worth 10,000 euros, has been awarded annually since 1995 and is financed by the Bremen Senate and the Böll Foundation.

via Pussy Riot wins Hannah Arendt Prize | News | DW.DE | 27.11.2014.