Prominent pro-choice doctor Isabel Stabile has become the first Maltese recipient of an annual human rights award handed out by the Netherlands. 

The gynaecologist and activist received the award for "tirelessly working to ensure access to education, contraceptives, healthcare, and to proper support systems" for women. 

Stabile is a co-founder of Doctors for Choice, which campaigns for the decriminalisation of abortion in Malta, where the practice is illegal except for when a woman's life is at risk. 

The award was presented to her by Dutch Ambassador Djoeke Adimi-Koekkoek during a ceremony at the Phoenicia Hotel on Wednesday.

Since 2008, the Human Rights Tulip has been handed out annually by the Dutch government in its embassies to support human rights defenders in their work advancing and protecting human rights around the world.

The recipient receives a €5,000 financial grant to support and amplify their work.

Doctors for Choice also advocates for comprehensive sexual and reproductive education and freely accessible contraception.

The Dutch embassy noted that Profs Stabile has faced threats and even physical assault for her work. In 2022, she was shoved and verbally abused by a woman while holding a roadside placard advocating for abortion rights in Malta.

The ceremony also featured former Dutch minister Lilianne Ploumen, initiator of the SheDecides movement. Earlier in the week, Ploumen participated in a student debate on sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) at the University of Malta, organised in collaboration with KSU and the Dutch Embassy.

Although not enforced in recent times, Maltese law stipulates that a woman convicted of having had an abortion can face up to three years in prison. Doctors who assist in performing abortions outside limited exceptions risk a maximum sentence of four years in jail and the permanent revocation of their medical licence.