Saudi, Ukrainian women among US First Lady's honourees

US First Lady Michelle Obama on Tuesday awarded 10 women from 10 different countries the Department of State's 2014 International Women of Courage Award, honoring "exemplified exceptional courage and leadership in advocating for human rights, women's equality, and social progress, often at great personal risk." Among the recipients are a Saudi advocate against violence and child abuse, Dr. Maha Al-Muneef, and Ukrainian singer and pro-EU protest leader, Ruslana Lyzhychko. The First Lady urged young Americans to devote themselves to their education, something she highlighted as a common factor among the honorees. "On stage today, we have doctors and lawyers, we have a bishop, even a classically trained musician," she said. "These women have spent years in schools and universities equipping themselves with the knowledge and skills they now use to tackle the challenges before them. "While our circumstances may be different, in so many ways, the solutions to our struggles are the same," she added. "So when we see these women raise their voices and move their feet and empower others to create change, we need to realize that each of us has that same power and that same obligation." Obama also reflected on how she has personally been inspired, and hoped to find courage in her own life. "Every day, with every life they touch and every spirit they raise, these women are creating ripples that stretch across the globe," she remarked. "They teach us that if a woman can fight torture and oppression and get her name on the ballot in Tajikistan; if she can break a glass ceiling and advocate for equality and tolerance as a bishop in Georgia; if she can go door to door, police station to police station, court to court to combat domestic and child abuse in Saudi Arabia -- if these women can do all of that, then surely we can summon a fraction of their bravery in our own lives and communities." Other honorees hailed from Afghanistan, Fiji, Georgia, Guatemala, India, Mali, Tajikistan and Zimbabwe. The women's biographies are available on the Department of State's website.