South Azerbaijani human rights defender awarded Nobel Peace Prize

14:06 06 October 2023 Read: 796

Narges Mohammadi, a human rights defender from South Azerbaijan, was awarded the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize, the Norwegian Nobel Committee said, AzVision.az reports.

Narges Mohammadi was awarded for her “fight against the oppression of women” in Iran,

The Norwegian Nobel Committee also honored Mohammadi for “her fight to promote human rights and freedom for all,” it said.

Mohammadi, 51, "is a woman, a human rights advocate, and a freedom fighter," the committee said. "In awarding her this year’s Nobel Peace Prize, the Norwegian Nobel Committee wishes to honor her courageous fight for human rights, freedom, and democracy in Iran."

“Her brave struggle has come with tremendous personal costs. Altogether, the regime has arrested her 13 times, convicted her five times, and sentenced her to a total of 31 years in prison and 154 lashes,” the committee said, adding: “Ms Mohammadi is still in prison.”

"This year’s Peace Prize also recognises the hundreds of thousands of people who, in the preceding year, have demonstrated against the theocratic regime’s policies of discrimination and oppression targeting women," said the committee, citing the wave of nationwide protests following the September 2022 death in police custody of Mahsa Amini, 22, a young Iranian woman.

This year, there were 351 candidates for the prize, the second-highest number of candidates ever. The current record of 376 candidates was reached in 2016.

For 2023, there were 259 individual candidates and 92 organizations.

Neither the names of nominators nor of nominees for the Nobel Peace Prize may be revealed until 50 years have elapsed.

The Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded by the Norwegian Nobel Committee since 1901, while the other four prizes are handled by Swedish committees. The Norwegian Nobel Committee is made up of five members appointed by the Norwegian Parliament, according to the organizer's website.

Last year, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to rights advocate Ales Bialiatski from Belarus and two human rights organizations from Russia and Ukraine.

The previous year, the Nobel Peace Prize went to journalists Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov for their "courageous fight for freedom of expression" in the Philippines and Russia.

Former winners of the award include former US presidents Jimmy Carter (2002) and Barack Obama (2009), as well as Pakistani activist Malala Yousafzai (2014), the European Union (2012), and the UN and its then secretary-general, the late Kofi Annan (2001).

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