Heffermehl’s View (Holger Terp, Denmark)

China: Liu Xiaobo Wins Nobel Peace Prize; Heffermehl’s View (Holger Terp, Denmark)

Posted on October 8th, 2010 JE No comments

Holger Terp writes:

I received this opinion piece from Norwegian jurist and writer Fredrik S. Heffermehl on the Nobel Peace Prize. I’d like to share it with WAISers:

It is clear that human rights work is work for peace, but it was to support disarmament efforts that Nobel established his prize for “the champions of peace.” With all due respect to Liu Xiaobo, this is yet another example that this is no longer Nobel’s prize, it is the peace prize of the Norwegian Parliament. The best the committee could do for human rights, democracy, poverty alleviation, environmental protection would be to wholeheartedly defend the work that the Nobel would support, for deep change of international relations and abolition of national military forces.

The Nobel committee has not received prize money for free use, but was entrusted with money to give to the pivotal element in creating peace, breaking the vicious circle of arms races and military power games. From this point of view the 2010 Nobel is again an illegitimate price awarded by an illegitimate committee.

JE comments: Fredrik Heffermehl (per Wikipedia) has denounced the Nobel Committee for awarding the Peace Prize to anyone other than those who work for (international) peace and disarmament. Thus (unpopularly, I presume) he even criticized the recognition of Mother Teresa. To my mind, it all depends on how you define “peace.” Who said that without justice there can be no peace?

Interestingly, Heffermehl claims that Liu’s award was a Norwegian parliamentary decision. The Chinese, as I understand it, believe the same thing. Norway’s government claims the decision was the work of the independent Nobel Committee.