Nobelama

Five years ago, when Wangari Maathai was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her environmental work in Kenya, I was left scratching my head at the logic and selection process of the Nobel Committee. Sure, she deserved some kind of an award for planting trees and trying to save the planet...etc, but the peace prize?? Were there no other worthy candidates actually engaged in bringing resolution and peace into human conflict situations around the world? Yes, you can say that metaphorically she was pursuing peace with mother nature, but dear Alfred made it clear in his will that the Peace Prize should be 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 the holding and promotion of peace congresses." Just how the Norwegian committee found any parallel between that clear-cut brief and Ms. Maathai's work is beyond me.

Yet even more baffling was today's announcement that President Obama was the winner of the same prize for 2009. I am left scratching my head with both hands this time. For the record, I actually think highly of Obama and expect him to gradually make significant progress in various peace efforts around the world. He is an intelligent man with a much more open mind than his predecessor (though that is not saying much since almost anyone would have been an improvement on Bush!). Maybe in a couple of years' time, Obama would have been a worthy winner, but in his first 10 months in the White House he has not achieved any significant progress in any peace initiative anywhere in the world. So, why the rush to reward him so prematurely?

It is a slap in the face of many more worthy candidates who have taken personal risks and worked tirelessly this year for peace. Interesting to note that Alfred Nobel specifically dictated that the Peace Prize be awarded by Norway rather than Sweden. The latter was responsible for the foreign policies of the Scandinavian union in those days, so he felt that the prize might be less subject to political corruption if awarded by Norway. Suggesting that today's decision was politically motivated may be taking it a bit too far, but I can't help but feel that our Norwegian friends are still enchanted by their equally unexpected (though in this case, thoroughly deserved) winning entry at the Eurovision Song Contest - Fairytale!