Leo Bokeria, head of the Science Center for Cardio-Vascular Surgery of Bakulev, has received the Commonwealth Star Award for 2011, ITAR-TASS reports.
Mehriban Aliyeva, President of the Heydar Aliyev Fund and Kyrgyz Minister for Culture and Sports Ibragim Junusov received the award too. Seit Kaskabasov, Director of the Kazakh Institute for Literature and Art received it for science and education achievements.
Razmik Davoyan, a poet and public figure of Armenia, Anatoly Yarmolenko, the art director of the Syabry Ensemble, and Tajik actor and director Muhammad-Ali Mahmadov received the award for literature and art.
The Commonwealth Star was set by the Council for Humanitarian Cooperation of CIS States and the International Fund for Humanitarian Cooperation of CIS States. It consists of an honorary symbol, a diploma and 2 million rubles.
The awards will be given at the House of Pashkov of the Russian State Library on April 13.
Leo Bokeria was born in Ochamchir in Abkhazia on December 22, 1939. He graduated at the MMA of Sechenov in 1965 and post-graduate studies in 1968.
He has been working at the Institute of Cardio-Vascular Surgery of A.N. Bakulev since 1965. He protected his doctorate in 1973. He was the executive since September 1994 and then the director of the institute since November 1994. He joined the RAMS as a cardio surgeon in 1994. He joined the RAS for physiology and fundamental medicine in 2011.
Leo Bokeria also has the Premium of Lenin, State Premium of the USSR, Award for Merit of the 2nd, 3rd and 4th ranks.
Mehriban Aliyeva, President of the Heydar Aliyev Fund and first lady of Azerbaijan, was awarded for humanitarian and cultural achievements, such as construction and reconstruction of schools and boarding schools, building libraries at cultural centers. The Heydar Aliyev Fund realized projects in Azerbaijan, Georgia, Pakistan, Russia, France and other countries. It reconstructed the girl’s school in Muzaffarabad in Pakistan, it finances reconstruction of the cathedral in Strasburg and some buildings in Versailles. The fund assisted in publishing a book called “Azerbaijan”, which consists of thousands of photographs and illustrations of national traditions and culture. The Baku Museum of Modern Art has an exhibition of photos that were not put in the book.
