Belarusian Activist Ales Bialiatski (Photo: Anders Wiklund/EPA, via Shutterstock)
Eko Hot Blog reports that detained activist Ales Bialiatski from Belarus, Russian human rights organisation, Memorial, and Ukrainian group, the Center for Civil Liberties, were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday.
In its announcement message, Norwegian Nobel Committee said it chose to jointly award the trio because they “represent civil society in their home countries.”
“They have for many years promoted the right to criticise power and protect the fundamental rights of citizens,” the committee said on Twitter.
They have made an outstanding effort to document war crimes, human right abuses and the abuse of power. Together they demonstrate the significance of civil society for peace and democracy.”
“They document war crimes, human rights abuses and the abuse of power,” the body added on its website.
Bialiatski is the founder of Viasna (Spring), a human rights organisation that has documented and protested the authorities’ use of torture against political prisoners.
He was “one of the initiators of the democracy movement that emerged in Belarus in the mid-1980s. He has devoted his life to promoting democracy and peaceful development in his home country,” the committee said on Twitter.
Government authorities have long sought to silence him. He has been detained without trial since 2020.
The committee added that the activist “has not yielded an inch in his fight for human rights and democracy in Belarus” despite “tremendous personal hardship.”
The Center for Civil Liberties was founded for the purpose of advancing human rights and democracy in Ukraine.
“It has taken a stand to strengthen Ukrainian civil society and pressure the authorities to make Ukraine a full-fledged democracy,” the Nobel Prize committee said.
“After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the center has engaged in efforts to identify and document Russian war crimes against the Ukrainian population. The center is playing a pioneering role in holding guilty parties accountable for their crimes.”
The Memorial was established in 1987 by human rights activists in the former Soviet Union who wanted to ensure that the victims of the communist regime’s oppression would never be forgotten, the Norwegian Nobel Committee said on Twitter.
“Memorial is based on the notion that confronting past crimes is essential in preventing new ones. The organisation has also been standing at the forefront of efforts to combat militarism and promote human rights and government based on rule of law,” it tweeted.
FURTHER READING
“During the Chechen wars, Memorial, @EnMemorial, gathered and verified information on abuses and war crimes perpetrated on the population by Russian and pro-Russian forces. In 2009, the head of Memorial’s branch in Chechnya, Natalia Estemirova, was killed because of this work.”
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