Winners

George Thomas is a senior journalist with over a quarter century experience in active journalism for Malayala Manorama, with a circulation of over 1.6 million copies the second largest selling daily newspaper in India. Currently he is assistant editor and serves on the editorial board. He was an accredited correspondent to the US presidential election in 1992, President Clinton’s presidential inauguration in 1993 and the India-US Nuclear Negotiations in Washington DC in 2006. His current responsibilities include writing editorials, commentaries, analyses, in-depth reports on international issues, peace and security, environment, climate change, and human rights.

Raghu Karnad moved to New Delhi to work for the Public Interest Legal Support and Research Centre, where he researched refugee law and drafted the Assisted Reproductive Technologies Bill (Regulation Bill, 2006). From October 2006 to February 2007, he wrote for Outlook magazine in New Delhi, and since then he has worked on a freelance basis, writing primarily for Tehelka magazine in New Delhi. He reports mainly on issues of freedom of speech and political rights.

Aries Rufo is a senior staff writer at Newsbreak. He covers subjects ranging from human rights to the judiciary, politics, the Church, and labour issues. His prize-winning story is an account of the unabated killings of judges in the Philippines and the slow response of authorities to the problem. In his article, Rufo explores what lies behind the recent killings and what emboldened the culprits to strike fear into the very people who are supposed to administer justice. His story touches on several pertinent issues, ranging from the deteriorating respect and trust for law to negligent police work, poor security conditions in the courts and for members of the court. The government’s apathetic attitude towards the killings also comes under the spotlight.