The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided to award the Nobel Peace Prize 2021 to Maria Ressa, journalist from Philippines and Dmitry Andreyevich Muratov, journalist from Russia for their efforts to protect the freedom of expression, the precondition of democracy and lasting peace.
Maria Ressa is the 18th woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize.
- The Nobel Peace Prize 2021 was announced by Berit Reiss-Andersen, Chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee.
- The prize carries a gold medal and a cash prize of 10 million Swedish krona (~Rs 8.5 crore) which will be shared equally between the 2 laureates.
Note:
Maria Ressa fights against the abuse of power, use of violence and growing authoritarianism in the Philippines and Dmitry Muratov has been defending the freedom of speech in Russia against various challenges.
About the Laureates:
Maria Ressa was born on 2nd October 1963 in Manila, Philippines.
- In 2012 she co-founded Rappler, a news website which focuses on Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s nationwide killing campaign against drug dealers.
Dmitry Andreyevich Muratov was born in 1961 in Kuybyshev (now Samara), Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) (Present day Russia).
- He is one the founders of Novaya Gazeta, the independent Russian newspaper.
About Nobel Peace Prize:
i.The Nobel Peace Prize is decided by the committee of 5 people elected by the Norwegian Parliament. The prize committee is located in Oslo, Norway.
ii.The Nobel Peace Prize will be presented on 10th December, the death anniversary of Alfred Nobel, the founder of Nobel Prize.
Facts of Nobel Peace Prize:
i.The Nobel peace prize was not awarded on 19 Occasions 1914-1916, 1918, 1923, 1924, 1928, 1932, 1939-1943, 1948, 1955-1956, 1966-1967 and 1972.
ii.In 1994 and 2011 the prize was shared among 3 laureates.
iii.Between 1901 and 2021, the nobel peace prize has been awarded to 137 laureates, of which 109 has been awarded to individuals and 28 has been awarded to organisations.
iv.The Comité International de la Croix Rouge (International Committee of the Red Cross- ICRC) has won the award 3 times and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has won the award 2 times.
v.Malala Yousafzai (17 years) of Pakistan won the peace prize 2014 and became the youngest Nobel Peace Prize laureate.
