The inaugural Sergei Magnitsky Human Rights Awards ceremony was held in London on November 16. The ceremony was timed to coincide with the sixth anniversary of the death in Matrosskaya Tishina detention centre of the Hermitage Capital auditor, who had uncovered massive government fraud.

Boris Nemtsov, who was killed a stone’s throw away from the Kremlin on February 27, 2015, was posthumously honoured with a special award in the “Campaigning for Democracy” Category, presented by Open Russia founder Mikhail Khodorkovsky to Nemtsov’s daughter, Zhanna.

Mikhail Khodorkovsky introduces @ZhannaNemtsova – receiving #magnitskyawards in name of her murdered father pic.twitter.com/fUE8wqnxvI

— Andrew Stroehlein (@astroehlein) 16 ноября 2015

“Boris Nemtsov spent his entire life fighting to secure a democratic future for Russia,” said Mr Khodorkovsky, “but, alas, he died in this battle. Russia will eventually become a democratic country, but, for this to happen sooner rather later, there have to be people who’ll continue fighting this fight in spite of all the risks.”

Zhanna Nemtsova responded by saying that her father had actively attempted to ascertain who was implicated in Magnitsky’s death at the detention centre, and that it was in part thanks to him that the Magnitsky Act, intended to punish Russian officials responsible for the lawyer’s demise, was adopted in the West [Deutsche Welle reports].

#Magnitskyaward to my father for campaigning for democracy in Russia #BorisNemtsov pic.twitter.com/QJt6L6OwcP

— Zhanna Nemtsova (@ZhannaNemtsova) 16 ноября 2015

The Awards are presented in nine categories, including Outstanding Investigative Journalism, Outstanding NGO Contribution to Human Rights, Outstanding Contribution to the Global Campaign Surrounding the Magnitsky Case, and others.