Croatian Member of European parliament, Biljana Borzan (SDP-S&D), won the MEP of the Year Award in women's rights and gender equality category on Wednesday (March 21).

Awarded by the Brussels-based The Parliament Magazine, the annual MEP Awards recognise contributions of individual deputies in the 750-seat European Parliament in 18 policy categories.

Borzan was nominated by 29 NGOs from Croatia and abroad, and in her short acceptance speech, Borzan dedicated the award to all women across the Balkans.

“This fills me with pride, and of course, with joy. This is a category that is extremely important, but is often overlooked. It is especially great when you come from a small country, and get an award here for your work. This is a huge thing for me because in Croatia I am mainly known for fighting for consumer rights, even though I work on gender equality just as much,” Borzan said after the award ceremony.

Borzan also called on Croatia’s government and parliament to ratify the so-called Istanbul Convention on combating violence against women as soon as possible.

“I think it is very important to send a message to Croatia that somebody in Brussels is watching what’s going on there, as women’s rights are becoming increasingly threatened. We need more good stories. I’m eagerly awaiting the government’s new abortion bill, and, of course, I’m closely following the Istanbul Convention ratification process,” Borzan added.