Nobel peace prize 2022 winners announced: Jailed Belarusian human rights activist among winners

Belarusian human rights activist Ales Byalyatski, the Russian human rights organization Memorial and the Ukrainian human rights organization Center for Civil Liberties have won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2022.

Berit Reiss-Andersen, chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, said the judges wanted to honor “three outstanding champions of human rights, democracy and peaceful coexistence in neighboring Belarus, Russia and Ukraine.”

Through their consistent efforts in favor of human values ​​and anti-militarism and principles of justice, this year’s laureates have revived and honored Alfred Nobel’s vision of peace and brotherhood among nations, a vision most needed today. in the world,” she told reporters in Oslo.

She also called on Belarus to release Byalyatski from prison, which is being held for tax evasion. “Our message is an urgent appeal to the authorities in Belarus to release Mr Bialiatski and we hope that this will be done and that he can come to Oslo and receive the honors bestowed on him,” Andersen told reporters. .

Commenting on the news, Belarusian opposition politician Pavel Latushko said Byalyatski’s prize is one for all political prisoners in Belarus.

“It’s not just for him, but for all the political prisoners we have in Belarus now,” Latushko said. “It motivates us all to fight and we are sure that we will win with the dictatorship of (Alexander) Lukashenko.”

Belarusian security police raided offices and homes of lawyers and human rights activists last July and arrested Byalyatski and others in another crackdown on opponents of Lukashenko.

Authorities had shut down non-state media and human rights groups after mass protests in August last year against a presidential election that the opposition said had been rigged.

The prizes include a cash prize of 10 million Swedish kronor (nearly $900,000) and will be awarded on December 10. The money comes from a bequest left by the creator of the prize, Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel, in 1895.

The award has historically spotlighted groups and activists who seek to prevent conflict, alleviate hardship and protect human rights.

Last year’s winners have struggled since they received the award. Journalists Dmitry Muratov of Russia and Maria Ressa of the Philippines have fought for the survival of their news organizations, defying the government’s attempts to silence them.

They were honored last year for ‘their efforts to ensure freedom of expression, a precondition for democracy and lasting peace’.

The announcement comes amid Vladimir Putin’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, which was launched on February 24 and has resulted in the deaths of thousands of civilians and the displacement of millions.

Since the invasion began, the Kremlin has cracked down on domestic dissent and has been accused of committing several war crimes in Ukraine — including the indiscriminate bombing of civilian sites.

The award will be seen by many as a condemnation of Putin, who is celebrating his 70th birthday on Friday, and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, making it one of the most politically controversial in decades.

However, the prize was not an anti-Putin prize, Reiss-Andersen said.

“We always give the award to something and to something and not to anyone,” she told reporters.

The Nobel Committee also called on Putin to stop oppressing human rights activists.

Berit Reiss-Andersen (picture speaking Friday), chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, said the judges wanted to honor “three outstanding champions of human rights, democracy and peaceful coexistence in neighboring Belarus, Russia and Ukraine.”

A week of Nobel Prize announcements began Monday with Swedish scientist Svante Paabo receiving the prize in medicine for unlocking secrets of Neanderthal DNA that provided important insights into our immune system.

Three scientists together won the prize in physics on Tuesday.

The Frenchman Alain Aspect, the American John F. Clauser and the Austrian Anton Zeilinger had shown that small particles can maintain a connection with each other even when separated, a phenomenon known as quantum entanglement, which can be used for specialized computers and to encode information.

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded on Wednesday to Americans Carolyn R. Bertozzi and K. Barry Sharpless, and Danish scientist Morten Meldal for developing a way to “click molecules together” that can be used to study cells, DNA map and design drugs that target diseases such as cancer more accurately.

French writer Annie Ernaux won the Nobel Prize in Literature on Thursday.

The panel praised her for combining fiction and autobiography in books that fearlessly deepen her experiences as a working-class woman to explore life in France since the 1940s.

The 2022 Nobel Prize in Economics will be announced on Monday.