The Belarusian Ales Bialiatski and the Russian organizations Memorial and the Ukrainian Center for Civil Liberties will receive the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize “for criticizing power” and “denounce crimes against humanity”, The Norwegian Nobel Committee, based in Oslo, announced this Friday.
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The Norwegian Nobel Committee “wishes honor three outstanding champions of human rights, democracy and peaceful coexistence in neighboring Belarus, Russia and Ukraine,” communicated when announcing the names of the winners.
Bialiatski “was one of the initiators of the democratic movement that arose in Belarus in the mid-1980s. He has dedicated his life to promoting democracy and peaceful development in his home country,” the committee noted.
BREAKING NEWS:
The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided to award the 2022 #NobelPeacePrize to human rights advocate Ales Bialiatski from Belarus, the Russian human rights organization Memorial and the Ukrainian human rights organization Center for Civil Liberties. #NobelPrize pic.twitter.com/9YBdkJpDLU— The Nobel Prize (@NobelPrize) October 7, 2022
Byaliatsky created Viasna (Spring) “In response to constitutional reforms that gave authoritarian powers to the president, he is currently detained without trial,” recalled Berit Reiss-Andersen, chair of the committee, announcing the shared award.
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As for the Russian NGO Memorial, the committee recalls that collected and verified information on abuses and war crimes perpetrated against the population by the Russian and pro-Russian forces. “In 2009, the head of the Memorial branch in Chechnya, Natalia Estemirova, was killed because of this work.”
Memorial is based on the notion that confronting past crimes is essential to preventing new ones. The organization has also been at the forefront of efforts to combat militarism and promote human rights and a government based on the rule of law, the organization explained.
Memorial was created in 1987 by human rights activists in the former Soviet Union They wanted to make sure that the victims of the oppression of the communist regime were never forgotten.
As for the Center for Civil Liberties, was founded with the purpose of promoting human rights and democracy in Ukraine. “He has taken a position to strengthen Ukrainian civil society and put pressure on the authorities to make Ukraine a full-fledged democracy,” the committee notes.+
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The Ukrainian center “has become an important source for documenting war crimes by Russia and plays a “pioneering role” in holding the guilty to account”.
“With its constant efforts in favor of humanist values, anti-militarism and principles of law, this year’s winners have revitalized and honored the vision of peace and brotherhood among nations of Alfred Nobel, a much-needed vision in today’s world,” he adds.
The Peace Award is the fifth of the awards announced so far, after those of Medicine, Physics, Chemistry and Literature, and succeeds awarded in 2021 to two journalists, the Filipino María Ressa and the Russian Dmitry Muratov.
