The Appeal of Conscience Foundation on Friday announced to felicitate Prime Minister Manmohan Singh with its prestigious World Statesman Award for the year 2010. The award would be presented to the Prime Minister in September, said John Negroponte, the former Deputy Secretary of State, at a reception hosted at the residence of Indian Ambassador to the US Meera Shankar in Washington yesterday.

Shankar said the Prime Minister has graciously accepted the award.

Among the past recipients of this prestigious award include British Prime Minister Gordon Brown (2009), French President Nicolas Sarkozy (2008), German Chancellor Angela Merkel (2007) and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (2006).

Rabbi Arthur Schneier founded the Appeal of Conscience Foundation in 1965. It has worked on behalf of religious freedom and human rights throughout the world.

This interfaith coalition of business, religious and foreign policy leaders promotes peace, tolerance and ethnic conflict resolution.

It also provides a voice of conscience to protect minorities at a time of increasing ethnic conflict in many regions of the world.