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Photos from the Event 		Vicente Fox, the President of Mexico, received the National Endowment for Democracy's 2001 Annual Democracy Award September 5 at a well-attended Capitol Hill ceremony in Washington. The NED Board of Directors chose to honor Fox in recognition of his historic election to Mexico's highest office, ending more than seven decades of single-party rule. NED views the honor as a tribute to the people of Mexico for the change they embraced by choosing a new path and working toward a more open and more democratic future for their country. Fox himself articulated similar sentiments in his acceptance speech.

"Today, the National Endowment for Democracy proclaims Vicente Fox one of the heroes of democracy, one who embodies the new democratic spirit of the country (Mexico), and to whom we are proud to present the 2001 Democracy Award," said NED Chairman Vin Weber in presenting the award to President Fox.

About 400 people, including Mexico's First Lady, Martha Sahagun de Fox, and Congressional leaders attended the ceremony. Speakers included Majority Leader Dick Armey, R-Texas, Minority Leader Richard Gephardt, D-Mo., Vice-Chair of the House Democratic Caucus, Rep. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., and National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice. A Mexican democracy and human rights activist, Sergio Aguayo, the 1995 recipient of the award, also addressed the gathering.

Accepting the Award, President Fox said the greatest credit must go to the people of Mexico, who on July 2000, calmly and peacefully embraced a new vision for their country's political life. Fox said the elections were the first step in a process of strengthening democratic institutions and making a strong democracy a day-to-day goal for every Mexican.
"It is now required that we not only deepen the values that are part and parcel of democracy, but also promote a form of economic development that serves all and benefits all," Fox said. "Thus, political change must translate into tangible economic progress and the gradual eradication of poverty. My government is keenly aware of its social responsibilities and will seek to fulfill them within the framework of responsible economic management." (Read full text of Fox's statement).
The presentation ceremony coincided with Fox's trip to Washington September 5-7, the first official State visit by a foreign head of state for the Bush White House.

NED and its four Institutes (the International Republican Institute, the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs, the Center for International Private Enterprise, and the American Center for International Labor Solidarity) have been active in Mexico for a number of years, supporting groups that promote democratic reforms. Today NED grantees are working with the Fox government to tackle critical issues such as corruption, reform of the judiciary, and freedom of information.

The Democracy Award is given each year to recognize the courageous and creative work of individuals and organizations that has advanced the cause of human rights and democracy around the world. Past recipients include Violeta Chamorro (Nicaragua), Vaclav Havel (Czech Republic), Vesna Pesic (Serbia), Elena Bonner (Russia), Martin Lee (Hong Kong), Wei Jingsheng and Wang Dan (China), the Transition Monitoring Group (Nigeria), and most recently Veton Surroi (Kosovo) and Natasa Kandic (Serbia), who were honored in 2000.

NED is a private, nonprofit, grant-making organization created in 1983 to strengthen democratic institutions around the world. It is active in more than 90 countries, supporting grassroots democratic initiatives.

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