Women of Courage Award to Hungarian lawmaker

United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton presented one of the 2011 Women of Courage Awards to Ágnes Osztolykán, a lawmaker of the Hungarian parliamentary party Politics Can Be Different (LMP), in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday.

Osztolykán received the honour for her role in advancing Roma integration at a ceremony attended by First Lady Michelle Obama on International Women's Day in the State Department.

Secretary Clinton thanked Osztolykan for her efforts in "overcoming racism and discrimination to emerge a leader in elected office, serving as a proud defender of the Roma people and culture, and tirelessly pressing for equal rights and the inclusion of minorities in society."

Osztolykán told the hungarian News Agency MTI she had accepted the award for all Hungarian Roma women.

"I received this award not only on my part but on behalf of all those Roma women in Hungary who have done so much in parliament and civil life to aid Roma integration," she said.

The award also reflects that the US government is paying special attention to the social inclusion of Europe's 15 million Roma, she added.

Osztolykán graduated in political science in 1998. She worked as a teacher and later as head of the Secretariat of the Roma Decade Inclusion Program in the government's Equal Opportunities Office from 2002. She entered parliament in the 2010 elections.