PRESIDENT Nelson Mandela’s wife, Graa Machel, received an award on Thursday from the Council of Europe’s North-South Centre in recognition of the role she has played in protecting human rights and democracy. The 1998 North-South Prize was to be handed over at a ceremony in Strasbourg, France, during the Council of Europe’s parliamentary session. Machel and Mandela arrived early on Thursday morning in the southern German town of Baden Baden where Mandela met Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and received the 1998 German Media Prize. Machel flew to Strasbourg by helicopter to attend the award ceremony while Mandela stayed behind in his hotel to rest. The Council of Europe said the award was in recognition of Machel’s devotion to furthering education in Mozambique and her work with children in the war-torn country.