South African jurist Navanethem ‘Navi’ Pillay has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize this year, beating US President Donald Trump, who had repeatedly claimed he ‘earned’ the award.
Pillay’s career and recognition
Pillay, 85, has been praised for promoting peace and international law, from defending Nelson Mandela to serving as a judge in key international court cases. Jørgen Watne Frydnes said Navi has ‘significantly enlarged the scope and impact of international law’ through her work as a judge on the International Court and as former U.N. human rights chief. The committee also said Navi has a ‘firm moral compass’.
Trump’s campaign for the prize
The award was given to Navi after immense pressure from President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly said he ‘earned’ the award. The US president has made no secret of the fact that he is itching to be handed the world’s most prestigious award. He claimed to have ‘ended seven un-endable wars’ since his second term during his speech at the UN in September last year.
Last year’s winner and the prize details
Last year, Maria Corina Machado won this year’s Nobel Peace Prize for promoting the democratic rights of the people of Venezuela. Machado has received threats from the government and has been forced to live in hiding, but has chosen to remain in the country, which has ‘inspired millions’. She gave her Nobel medal to President Trump as a gesture, but the Nobel Committee said the honour cannot be transferred.
The Nobel Peace Prize is one of five Nobel Prizes established by wealthy industrialist Alfred Nobel in his will. The criteria for winning the prize are vague: the deserving individual or group should have ‘done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies, and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses’. Recipients are handed an 18-carat gold medal, a diploma, and a cheque for 11 million Swedish crowns (£860,000). The decision makers are a five-member committee, made up mostly of retired politicians, appointed directly by the Norwegian Parliament. Nominations close in January of the year the prize is awarded, with the winner announced in October.
