A Symbol of Dialogue and Human Rights: The 2026 Anas Schakfeh Awards Presented at Vienna City Hall

The Anas Schakfeh Prize was awarded for the second time in the ballroom of Vienna City Hall. The Anas Schakfeh Charitable Private Foundation (GPAS) honored four individuals who are committed to human rights, democracy, social participation, and dialogue between people and religions in various fields.

The 2026 Award Recipients

Contributions to Islam and the participation of Muslims: Former Vienna Mayor and Provincial Governor Michael Häupl (SPÖ) was honored for his decades-long commitment to the Muslim community in Vienna. In his laudatory speech, SPÖ State Parliament member Omar Al-Rawi highlighted, among other things, the establishment of the Islamic cemetery in 2008 and the opening of City Hall to interfaith dialogue. In his acceptance speech, Häupl himself emphasized the city’s inclusive character: “Vienna has always been a city of bridges, not walls. Islam has long been a part of this city, just like St. Stephen’s Cathedral, the Danube, and the Viennese wit.” He also noted that anyone who lives in Vienna, pays taxes, and respects the law is a Viennese—no matter which direction they pray in.

Contributions to the advancement of women and their participation in society: The award was presented to Dr. Maria Katharina Moser, director of Diakonie Austria. FALTER’s chief reporter, Nina Horaczek, delivered the laudatory speech, while Doris Schmidauer surprised the audience with a video message from New York. Moser announced that she would donate her prize money to a project run by the Diakonie Refugee Service that supports women who have experienced migration and poverty. In her speech, she called for a critical examination of our own traditions within churches, religious communities, and other communities: “Anyone who wants to talk about women’s rights must not remain silent on poverty, social disadvantage, racism, and discrimination against religious minorities.”

Achievements in the fields of human rights, democracy, and the rule of law: The award went to MMag. Maria Mayrhofer, founder and co-executive director of the civil society organization #aufstehn. Anne Wiederhold, co-founder of Brunnenpassage Wien, emphasized in her laudatory speech: “Democracy is more than just elections. And what we do in the meantime determines our future. We are all democracy.”

Special Prize for Lifetime Achievement (Posthumous): A moving moment of the event was the presentation of the special prize to Prof. Heinz Nußbaumer (1943–2025), a journalist, publicist, and co-initiator of the “Platform for Christians and Muslims,” who passed away in October 2025. Theologian Paul Michael Zulehner paid tribute to Nußbaumer’s outstanding contribution to interfaith dialogue. Carla Amina Baghajati of the Islamic Religious Community in Austria (IGGÖ) accepted the honor on his behalf. The prize money associated with the Special Award goes to the Alpbach Vienna Initiative Group.

The Founder and the Background

The award is named after Anas Schakfeh (born 1943 in Hama, Syria), who served as president of the Islamic Religious Community in Austria (IGGiÖ) from 1999 to 2011. Schakfeh, who came to Austria in 1964 and received citizenship in 1980, played a decisive role in anchoring Islam within the Austrian legal and social system. Under his leadership, important declarations of principle were adopted at European imam conferences (e.g., Graz in 2003, Vienna in 2006 and 2010) that affirmed the secular legal order, gender equality, and dialogue. In his speech at the ceremony, the 83-year-old Schakfeh once again emphasized the need for an open and tolerant society in which diversity is understood not as a threat but as an enrichment.

Anas Schakfeh Charitable Private Foundation