Oslo, Norway: 2011 Nobel Peace Prize Winners Announced

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For the First Time in 7 Years

Women Won the Nobel Peace Prize

Three women share the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize

No women have won the Nobel Peace Prize for seven years. This year Thorbjørn Jagland, Chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, announced that the award would be split equally between three women.

Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, Leymah Gbowee and Tawakul Karman share the Nobel Peace Prize. (EPA, Associated Press, Reuters)

Sharing the prize are Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, Africa’s first democratically elected female head of state; her countrywoman Leymah Gbowee, a peace activist who challenged warlords; and Tawakul Karman, a Yemeni human rights leader seeking to overthrow an autocratic regime as part of the region-wide “Arab Spring” movement.

The three women from Africa and the Middle East were awarded the prize because they symbolize nonviolent struggles to improve their nations and advance the role of women’s rights.

Citing the Nobel Committee, Jagland said, We cannot achieve democracy and lasting peace in the world unless women obtain the same opportunities as men to influence developments at all levels of society. The Norwegian panel said it hoped the award would help end the suppression of women that still occurs in many countries, and to realize the great potential for democracy and peace that women can represent

The trio joined an exclusive group of only a dozen females in the history of the Nobel Peace laureates among scores of men.

Gbowee’s associates call her a “warrior” for peace. Karman and Johnson-Sirleaf (who faces reelection vote on Tuesday) are each nicknamed the “Iron Lady” in their countries.

Johnson-Sirleaf said that she was humbled by the prize, but said the credit went to the people of Liberia. Elva Richardson, Johnson-Sirleaf’s personal administrative assistant, said in a phone interview, We were really happy because it was a real surprise for us. We are conveying to [Liberian women] that this is a celebration, a prize for all Liberian women. They’re ecstatic.

When she assumed her presidency as the first head of state in Africa, she helped secure peace in Liberia, promoted economic and social development and Johnson-Sirleaf strengthened the position of women. She won previous international plaudits for her governance: The Economist said she was arguably the best president Liberia had ever had: Newsweeknamed her one of the 10 best leaders in the world in 2010.

Her opponents reacted angrily, seeing her award as interference in Liberia’s domestic affairs. Winston Tubman, her opponent, described her as a warmonger who didn’t deserve the prize. I did more to stop the war than she did, he told the BBC, referring to the Liberian 14-year civil war, which began in 1989.

She faces criticism in Liberia for reneging on a promise not to seek a second term and for her initial support of Charles Taylor when the Liberian civil war broke out against the autocratic rule of Samuel Doe, who jailed her. Once she took office, Johnson-Sirleaf requested Taylor’s extradition from Nigeria so he could face trial for war crimes in Sierra Leone.

Gbowee, 39, was reportedly close to tears when she learned of the award while in New York. She told Reuters:

I’m numb, I’m fuzzy, I’m overwhelmed. All I keep hearing in my head is the song of praise to God. My work is for survival for myself and for other women. With or without a Nobel, I will still do what I do because I am a symbol of hope in my community on the continent, in a place where there is little to be hopeful for

She works for Accra, a Ghana-based Women Peace and Security Network in Africa. She played a key role in ending the Liberian war by forming an interfaith group of Christian and Muslim women who held daily protests, demanding Taylor hold serious peace talks. At one point, the women organized a “sex strike” to underscore their anger about continuing violence.

Tawakul Karman is the first Arab woman to win the Nobel Peace prize. The 32-year-old mother of three founded Women Journalists Without Chains in 2005. She is a prominent activist and advocate of human rights and freedom of expression for the last five years, and led regular protests and sit-ins calling for the release of political prisoners.

The Nobel jury specifically lauded Karman for playing, in the most trying circumstances, both before and during the Arab Spring… a leading part in the struggle for women’s rights and for democracy and peace in Yemen.

Karman, told the BBC Arabic Service:

I’m so happy with the news of this prize and I dedicate it to all the martyrs and wounded of the Arab Spring… in Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen, Libya and Syria and to all the free people who are fighting for their rights and freedoms. Actually I didn’t know I was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize until now. I only knew about it through BBC Arabic and al-Jazeera, so thank you very much.

Ms. Karman also stated to AFP News, It’s victory for all the dreams, all the struggles, a recognition by the international community of the Yemeni revolution and its inevitable victory.

WikiLeaks was among a record 241 nominations for the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize, which included 53 organizations.

Other Nobel Prize Winners for 2011

Physics: The Nobel Prize in Physics 2011 was divided, one half awarded to Saul Perlmutter, the other half jointly to Brian P. Schmidt and Adam G. Riess for the discovery of the accelerating expansion of the Universe through observations of distant supernovae.
Chemistry: Dan Shechtman for “for the discovery of quasicrystals”.

Medicine: The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2011 was divided, one half jointly to Bruce A. Beutler and Jules A. Hoffmann “for their discoveries concerning the activation of innate immunity” and the other half to Ralph M. Steinman “for his discovery of the dendritic cell and its role in adaptive immunity”.

Literature 2011: The Nobel Prize in Literature 2011 was awarded to Tomas Tranströmer because, through his condensed, translucent images, he gives us fresh access to reality.

The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2011 will be announced on 10.10.11 at 1:00 p.m. CET (5:00 a.m. EDT) at the earliest.

Mad Mike’s America thanks Nobel Prize.org, Reuters, BBC, and the Los Angeles Times for source material on the Nobel Peace Prize.