The award is part of the wider Human Rights Tulip program of the Government of the Netherlands, which includes Embassy Tulip Awards organised by 26 Dutch embassies around the world, as well as the Central Human Rights Tulip Award: a flagship international award awarded in The Hague during the Human Rights Day celebration in December.

The Embassy of the Netherlands in the Republic of Korea works with partners to support and promote human rights. This award is meant to stimulate human rights advocacy, research and to promote the protection of human rights in North Korea. It also aims to support and strengthen the civil society network and increase awareness and appreciation of the work of human rights defenders by the general public.

The winner of the Netherlands Embassy Korea Tulip Award will receive:

o    EUR 5,000 to use for your human rights work;
o    A commemorative bronze tulip sculpture and recognition and visibility via the Embassy;
o    Access to media and storytelling training with opportunities to network and showcase their work with other Embassy Tulip winners from around the world;
o    Automatic nomination into the global Central Tulip with other Embassy Tulip winners. Out of 26 Embassy Tulip winners, 5 will be selected as Central Tulip finalists to participate in a 4-Day Fellowship in the Netherlands and 1 final Central Tulip winner will receive a grand prize of EUR 50,000;

Nominations are open to:

•    Human rights defenders, informal groups, networks, movements, and civil society organisations that demonstrate a strong commitment to improving human rights in North Korea. 

•    Their work is preferably linked to one of the six human rights priorities of the Netherlands, being:

o    freedom of expression and internet;
o    freedom of religion and belief;
o    equal rights for LGBTI-persons;
o    human rights defenders and civic space;
o    tackling impunity for serious crimes;
o    equal rights for women and girls.

•    Multiple nominations for the same nominee will not give the nominee an advantage; each nominee will be considered once.

Embassy Tulip Nominees will be assessed based on the following criteria:

•    Impact and beneficiaries: The nominee’s work has made a meaningful contribution to the promotion or protection of human rights, including through concrete changes in people’s lives, communities reached, or increased awareness and advocacy.
•    Courage and risk: The nominee demonstrates commitment and courage in advancing human rights, including where relevant in contexts of repression, resistance, restricted civic space or personal, legal, digital, reputational, financial or physical risk.
•    Innovation and creativity: The nominee uses creative, adaptive or effective approaches to address human rights challenges in their context, including through new methods, partnerships, tools, narratives, or mobilisation strategies.
•    Community ownership and partnerships: The nominee works with affected communities and relevant partners, in a way that is inclusive, locally rooted and responsive to community needs – to the extent possible given the absence of civil society in North Korea itself.
•    Sustainability and potential for further impact: The nominee’s work has the potential to continue, grow or inspire wider change.

The Embassy Tulip winner will be announced in September, and the award ceremony will take place around International Human Rights Day in December.  

To nominate a human rights defender or organisation, please submit a short nomination to SEO@minbuza.nl by 31 July 2026 with reference to “Embassy Tulip Award 2026”.

The nomination should include:

•    the contact details of the nominee;
•    the contact details of the nominator;
•    a short letter that describes the nominee’s human rights work and explains why the nominee fits the Embassy Tulip Award linked to the selection criteria.

Please do not hesitate to reach out to us in case of any questions about the award and the process through SEO@minbuza.nl.