Japanese animator, doctors among Magsaysay awardees

MANILA, Philippines —  One group and four individuals, including award-winning Studio Ghibli co-founder Hayao Miyazaki, were proclaimed as recipients of the Ramon Magsaysay Awards this year.

Aside from Miyazaki of Japan, environmental activist Farwiza Farhan of Indonesia, reproductive health advocate Nguyen Thi Ngoc Phuoc of Vietnam, scholar Karma Phuntsho of Bhutan and the Rural Doctors Movement from Thailand will receive the award, dubbed as “Asia’s highest prize and highest honor,” now on its 66th year.

Miyazaki, known for Oscar-winning animated films “Spirited Away” and “The Boy and the Heron” that he both wrote and directed, was recognized for “his lifelong commitment to the use of art, specifically animation, to illuminate the human condition, especially lauding his devotion to children as the torchbearers of the imagination, to whom he has passed the light and spark of his own,” according to a statement from the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation (RMAF).

It added the Japanese animator and filmmaker “tackles complicated issues, using his art to make them comprehensible to children, whether it be about protecting the environment, advocating for peace or championing the rights and roles of women in society.”

Farhan was given the award for her “profound understanding of the vital connection between nature and humanity, her commitment to social justice and responsible citizenship through her work with forest communities, and her promotion of greater awareness of the need to protect the beating heart and lungs of her country’s and Asia’s rich, but endangered natural resources.”

She founded the Yayasan Hutan Alam dan Lingkungan Aceh or HAKA, or Forest Nature and Environment of Aceh Foundation, which protects the Leuser Ecosystem, a 2.6-million hectare forest in Aceh province “where some of the world’s most highly endangered species have managed to survive.”

A physician specializing in obstetrics and gynecology, the RMAF cited Phuong for her “extraordinary dedication and talent, but also the spirit of public service and the message of hope she continues to propagate among her people.”

Her study established that people exposed to tetrachlorodibenzodioxin – one of the most toxic and poisonous chemicals and a component of “Agent Orange” – that was sprayed by American forces in Vietnam during the war, suffered birth defects and miscarriages. She also took her advocacy against Agent Orange before medical forums particularly in the United States, demanding accountability and compensation from chemical companies.

The RMAF added in acknowledging Phuong, “She offers proof that it can never be too late to right the wrongs of war, and gain justice and relief for its hapless victims.”

The RMAF also bestowed the award on Bhutan’s Phuntsho, a former Buddhist monk who finished his master’s and doctorate degrees at Oxford University, for his “invaluable and enduring contributions towards harmonizing the richness of his country’s past with the diverse predicaments and prospects of its present, inspiring young Bhutanese to be proud of their heritage and confident in their future.”

He founded the Loden Foundation, which advocated social entrepreneurship and led efforts to document and digitize the culture and heritage of Bhutan, a kingdom located on the eastern side of the Himalayas.

Also awarded was Thailand’s Rural Doctors Movement, which campaigned for the improvement of and easier access to health care, especially in the country’s rural areas where residents had nothing to pay for health care programs. It is composed of the Rural Doctor Foundation and the Rural Doctor Society.

“By championing the rural poor, the movement made sure to leave no one behind as the nation marches forward to greater economic prosperity and modernization,” said the RMAF about the Rural Doctors Movement.

The conferment ceremonies of the 66th Ramon Magsaysay Awards – named after the seventh president of the Philippines known as “Champion of the Masses” – will be held on Nov. 16 at the Metropolitan Theater in Manila.

The Philippines has the highest tally of Ramon Magsaysay awardees with 65, the latest being former government peace panel chair Miriam Coronel-Ferrer in 2023.

The RMAF was established in 1957, the same year Magsaysay died in a plane crash, with the help of the Rockefeller Brothers Foundation with the objective of “honoring greatness of spirit in selfless service to the peoples of Asia.”