WASHINGTON: Laxmi, a victim of acid attack and a standard-bearer for the movement to end acid attacks, has been selected by the U.S. for the prestigious International Women of Courage Award.
Laxmi received the award from U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama at an awards ceremony at the State Department in Washington.
She was 16 when an acquaintance threw acid on her face while she waited at a bus stop in New Delhi's busy Khan Market in 2005, disfiguring her permanently.
Her attacker, a friend's 32-year old brother, planned to use the acid to destroy Laxmi's face after she refused to respond to his romantic advances.
"Many acid attack victims never return to normal life: they often go to great lengths to hide their disfigurement, many forgo education or employment rather than appear in public, and suicide is not uncommon. But Laxmi did not hide," the State Department said.
"She became the standard-bearer in India for the movement to end acid attacks. She made repeated appearances on national television, gathered 27,000 signatures for a petition to curb acid sales, and took her cause to the Indian Supreme Court," it said.
"Laxmi's petition led the Supreme Court to order the Indian central and state governments to regulate immediately the sale of acid, and the Parliament to make prosecutions of acid attacks easier to pursue," the State Department said.
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