SÃO PAULO, Brazil – A Chilean nun who voluntarily spent 18 months in prison in order to support inmates has said that she hopes a recent award she was given will help call attention to the issue of protecting the human dignity of people behind bars.
Sister Nelly León, who’s worked with imprisoned women for 25 years, was among the 2024 winners of the Zayed Award for Human Fraternity, which recognizes individuals and institutions that promote peace, understanding and solidarity.
“It will help us to keep fighting to restore the lives of so many people deprived of liberty, especially women,” Sister León says. “But we have to invite more people for that task. That’s a problem that society as a whole needs to address.”
