Published: 14.12.2022
The European Parliament’s Sakharov Prize, which has been awarded to individuals and groups who have defended human and fundamental rights since 1988, was presented this year to the courageous people of Ukraine. The award was handed over today to representatives of the Ukrainian government and Ukrainian civil society at the European Parliament’s plenary session in Strasbourg.
The launch of the EU-Ukraine initiative InPUT was also timed to coincide with the event, announced Vice-Chair of the EP Committee on Transport and Tourism and initiator of the InPUT action programme MEP István Ujhelyi in Strasbourg. The programme „InPUT – Industry of Peace for Ukrainian Tourism” is a joint effort of European tourism organizations to support the Ukrainian tourism sector. „Tourism is an industry of peace. In war there is no tourism, no peace and no stability. Tourism in peacetime brings people together, builds strong bridges between different cultures, but also means economic and intellectual development that goes beyond the boundaries of the sector. Ukraine needs help to start reconstruction as quickly and efficiently as possible after the war is over and rebuild the transport and tourism infrastructure that has been destroyed. Ukraine must also be put back on the map of popular and valuable tourism destinations as soon as possible after the end of the war. The InPUT action programme is gathering professional supporters for this purpose”, said István Ujhelyi.
The MEP said that InPUT was launched in cooperation with Mariana Oleskiv, head of the Ukrainian State Tourism Agency, and that more than 80 tourism and tourism-related professional organizations have already been invited to join the initiative, including the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO).
Strasbourg – 14/12/2022