Biram Dah Abeid
Anti-slavery activist and an UNPO member Mr Biram Dah Abeid has been listed by Time Magazine as one of this year’s 100 most influential people. Mr Abeid is known for his courageous and unwavering fight for justice and the respect of human rights in Mauritania. The founder and President of the Initiative for the Resurgence of the Abolitionist Movement (IRA-Mauritania) was also been awarded the Emilio CASTELAR Prize in Spain.
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Virat Kohli is ranked 89 on the 2017 Forbes list of “The World’s highest paid athletes” with a total pay of USD 22 million. He is the only Indian sports person among the world’s 100 highest paid athletes in the Forbes list.
Prafulla Samantra
Social activist and iconic leader Prafulla Samantra was the winner of the Goldman Environmental Prize for his 12-year battle for Dongria kondh’s (an indigenous tribal people) land rights and protected the Niyamgiri Hills from a massive, open-pit aluminium ore mine, forcing companies to stop mining bauxite in this region.
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Donald Trump
The U.S President took charge in January this year. His presidency has raised major security questions in Asia. Some of his actions that have left eyebrows raised are Trump’s relationships with Russia and Putin. This was aggravated when his national security adviser Michael Flynn abruptly resigned. The US appears — at least for now — to be taking a more forceful role in foreign conflicts especially Iraq and Afghanistan. He has targeted the country’s foreign worker visa programme and ordered a review of waivers in free-trade agreements.
Xi Jinping
The Chinese President has been named The Straits Times’ Asian of the Year , chosen for having been a crucial source of stability at a time of great uncertainty for the region and the world. The award is given out in recognition of Asians who have made significant impact to their societies or the wider region over the year.
Shubhangi Swaroop
Swaroop is become the first woman to be inducted into the Indian Navy as a pilot. She will be flying a maritime reconnaissance aircraft. After being inducted, she will undergo year-long training at Dundigal Air Force Academy near Hyderabad.
Katrin Jakobsdottir
Iceland’s new Prime Minister, Katrin is a pacifist, environmentalist and expert on Icelandic crime thrillers. Katrin, 41, is the chairwoman of the Left-Green Movement and will lead the government of the North Atlantic island of 340,000 residents. She will govern in coalition with parties of very different creeds: the conservative Independence Party and the centre-right Progressive Party.
Fatou Bensouda
Former Gambian Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda, of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has been recognised among TIME magazine’s top 100 most influential people 2017 for her achievement in re-establishing her role as a leading voice pressing governments to support the quest for justice. She was commended for her resilience and determination during a turbulent time for the Court, when Bensouda’s home country’s dictator unceremoniously announced he was withdrawing the country’s membership of the Rome Statute.
With inputs from Neethu Menon (Graduate)BSc,Visual Communication, Women's Christian College, Chennai.
