Peace Prize 2025 Through My Lens
Prof. P K Sharma
Has the Nobel Peace Prize -2025 not lost its sheen, shine and semantics?On its part, the Norwegian Nobel Committee in Oslo may have done justice by picking an industrial engineer and central figure in Venezuela’s opposition movement for more than a decade Maria Corina Machado but her choice for this coveted award yearned for none other than by US President Donald Trump publically too, ironically raises many questions so far as the spirit, fairness and objectivity while Peace Panel’s nodding Machado for this honour is concerned.
Here, it is quite pertinent to recall the will of Swedish Inventor and Chemist Alfred Bernhard Nobel. The will stipulates that Nobel Peace Prize is awarded to “the person who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for holding and promotion of peace congresses.” Unlike the other prizes, the Peace Prize may be awarded to an institution.
Now in verbatim what the Norwegian Nobel Committee while announcing the decision in Oslo on October,10 said that Machado was honoured” for her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy.”
Quite candidly, the will of Dynamite Inventor Nobel and the citation of the Norwegian Nobel Committee do not at all appear to be in consonance with one and another. His will makes it crystal clear that Peace Prize be awarded “to the person…… best work for fraternity between nations for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for holding and promotion of peace congresses.” What has Machado done for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for holding and promotion of peace congresses? Does her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy really imply best work for fraternity between nations…… holding and promotion of peace congresses.
The decoration of Machado with Nobel Peace Prize title in fact dispirits the very essence of Alfred Nobel’s wish for a number of justified reasons, clear deviation from it. Is it really the best work for fraternity between nations for the abolition or reduction of standing armies……. of peace congresses.
How fine and fair it would have been had it been conferred upon some institution or more than one individual ! At best it also could have been reserved for the year 2026 since the nomination does not meet the set criteria. That way, Mr. Rahul Gandhi the leader of opposition in Lok Sabha too would have duly fitted the bill deserving this honor too as he also has been grappling with the same problem of taking cudgels against authoritarianism- dictatorship in India in one go for over a decade inviting the ire of the ruling group as well. Had the peace panel bracketed Rahul with Machado for this prize then it could have claimed nations not just one country Venezuela alone. A just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to-democracy in Venezuela does not justify the Norwegian Nobel Committee’s choice of Maria Corina Machado.
A bird eye view of 143(112 individuals,31 institutions)awarded Nobel Peace Prize awarded 106 times from 1901 to 2025 reflects that a galaxy of celebrated figures and institutions did find themselves bestowed with this glorious Nobel Peace Prize. Following a deep and thorough glance, I did deem the Nobel Peace Laureates including institutions and personalities making interesting a study indeed !
Worthwhile here indeed to cite selected instances for a comparative look at citations since 1901 of Nobel Peace Prize which bears testimony to this fact that there is a considerable decline in adhering to the will of Alfred Nobel and criteria laid down for the same so far as offering 2025 Nobel Peace honor to Machado is concerned. How can the selection be deemed fair when the dance of death, devastation, displacement, hunger, sorrow and sufferings had been the order of day- be it Russia-Ukraine, Hamas-Israel, Indo-Pak (Operation Sindoor) Conflict, Iran-America Tug of War so on and so forth?
Some of the select band of institutions and eminent personalities deserve a special mention pertaining to fairness and objectivity observed by Norwegian Nobel Committee from time to time in doing justice to the task undertaken by it, but not at all in 2025.
The year 1944 saw International Committee of the Red Cross winning laurels for its work during the World War II. In 1947 Quaker Organizations- American Friends Service Committee(U.S.) and Friends Service Council(Britain) shared the honors for their pioneering work in international peace movement and compassionate effort to relieve human suffering, thereby promoting the fraternity between nations. In1954,the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees got recognition for its work helping European refugees after World War II.
The prize was actually presented in 1955 because Panel decided in 1954 that no nomination met the criteria, so they reserved the prize for the following year.
Then 1963 decorated International Committee of the Red Cross and League of Red Cross Societies for promoting the principles of Geneva Convention and cooperation with the UN and their work during and after World War II.1964 Nobel Peace Prize went to the credit of Martin Luther King Jr. of USA for his non-violent struggle for civil rights for the Afro-American population. The 1979 dawned as a year of glory for India’s Mother Teresa for dedicating her life for sick and hungry. Desmond Tutu donned these colours for his role as a unifying leader figure in the non-violent campaign to resolve the problem of apartheid in South Africa. The years 1985 and 1988 brought in to the Nobel lime light two organizations- International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War for highlighting medical consequences of nuclear war and United Nations Peacekeeping Forces for preventing armed clashes creating conditions of negotiations.
Dalai Lama(1989) got this honour for advocating peaceful solutions based on tolerance and mutual respect. The Doctors Without Borders(1999)won kudos for its pioneering humanitarian work on several continents. Mr. Kofi Annan in 2001 had his last laugh with the distinctive citation:”No one has done more than Kofi Annan to revitalize the UN.” Mr. Barack Abama in 2009 was patted up “for his extra -ordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation among peoples.” In 2017 and 2020-The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons and United Nations World Food Programe reaped the honours. The International Campaign body for its work to draw attention to catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons and for its ground breaking efforts to achieve a treaty based prohibition of such weapons and World Food Programme institution “for its efforts to combat hunger for its contribution to bettering conditions for peace in conflict- affected areas and for acting as a driving force in efforts to prevent the use of hunger as a weapon of war and conflict.”
All in all, in the light of afore-mentioned citations and facts, one really fails to comprehend why the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize has been narrowed down and confined only to the boundaries of Venezuela when warring nations Russia-Ukraine,Gaza-Israel,Indo-Pak and America-Iran’s mankind in large numbers had been bleeding all along all these years?
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Contributed by :Prof PK Sharma Freelance Journalist & Associate Professor of English(Retired),
Pom Anm Nest, BARNALA( Punjab) e-mail : [email protected] Mobile: 94170-02504
1 comment
Kudos Prof PK Sharma for your efforts scanning the historical honors to this Noble Peace Prize. Certainly, an individual’s leadership in peace initiatives succeeds when the organizations support him. Institutional nomination and honor for this coveted position must always be the first choice of the selection committee. Unfortunately, individuals honored in the past too have been mired in controversies of unhuman deeds like wars, social conflicts incited by them and also, they having become pawns to the MNCs of dubious designs in this global economic hooliganism and hegemony by such powers. Behind the scenes schematics for the peace prize nomination is never known to us. Geo-politics and economic ends in views must have gone in play too selecting a lesser known María Corina Machado for this year’s choice ultimately.
For me also , sure as you rightly said the peace prize must have gone to those individuals and groups who would have ended Russia-Ukraine, Gaza-Israel and latest then of Indo-Pak war* ( *Notwithstanding Trump claiming having ended) and also of systematic ruining of Afghanistan and other smaller nations in the vicinity. Till then it must be kept in abeyance.
In my view, an individual with mass appeal or influence on the world stage is yet to be born who could end the strife in the world in a charismatic way. The fragmented world sure needs to strengthen civil society everywhere which deserves ultimately the Peace Prize if it saves lives in the wars or a group if it serves humanity to feed their bellies.
Brij B. Goyal