The annual nomination for the Human Rights Champion award was announced on December 10, 2014. This prestigious award is given to the person that has made a significant contribution to the defense of human rights and liberties in Lithuania. This year, its recipient was Linas Linkevičius, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania.

"Pope John Paul II said: 'Do not be afraid,' and this 'do not be afraid' is especially relevant in today's context, we must not be afraid to defend our dignity, our freedom and our rights, we must constantly and systematically strive towards of a society that respects human rights, that can share its experiences and extend a helping hand to others," said Minister Linkevičius on the day of the award ceremony.

While in office, Minister Linkevičius signed the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence and never ceased expressing his support for human rights defenders abroad. He also welcomed his colleague, Edgars Rinkēvičs, the minister of foreign affairs of Latvia, when the latter publicly "came out" in November.

This year's decision on the recipient of the Human Rights Champion award was commented on by Leonidas Donskis, the chair of HRMI and a former MEP: "Minister of Foreign Affairs Linas Linkevičius has more than once greatly strengthened respect for human rights and civil liberties with his actions - from actively supporting dissidents and human rights defenders in Russia and Belarus to lending aid to civil society in Ukraine."

The Human Rights Champion award was established in 2006 by the Human Rights Monitoring Institute. Since then, its recipients have been distinguished human rights defenders in Lithuania: psychologists, psychotherapists, whistleblowers, lawyers, representatives of victims of trafficking in women.