Your Questions about the Nobel Peace Prize

---

Question: Do you believe that this year's award could be understood as a rebuke to Russia's foreign policy? Remember that this year's winner proposed the independence of Kosovo, which is rejected by Russia and Serbia.

Answer: The Norwegian Nobel Committee always tries to stress the positive side. We honour the accomplishments of the laureate, and try to keep criticism of others to a minimum.

---

 

Question: Why is there so much controversy surrounding the Nobel Prize, with critics always questioning the selection process and choice of winners? Is there no way to resolve this issue once and for all?

Answer: We can all have strong opinions about peace and also about literature. Very few of us have strong opinions about medicine, physics and chemistry. That is why there will almost always be more controversy surrounding peace and literature. Many of our most successful prizes have been very controversial indeed. On the other hand, controversy certainly does not guarantee success.

---

 

Question: We've heard a lot about Chinese activist Hu Jia may receive the peace prize from almost all famous medias. I think their reports were based some hints from the committee but finally he didn't win. I want to know if you have received the pressure from Chinese government as the committee is formed by the Norwegian parliament?

Answer: The Norwegian Nobel Committee does not give out hints about who the laureate will be. The Committee has not been afraid to criticize Chinese authorities, as should be obvious in the choice of the Dalai Lama in 1989.

---

 

Question: Does Politics and Politcal Pressure play a role in the decision of the Nobel Prize and more importantly Nobel Peace Prize? If so, how? and by how much? Do lobbyists play a role in this? Thanks.

Answer: There is some lobbying for the Nobel Peace Prize, but almost all of it is in rather innocent form. Thus, it has become popular to collect as many signatures of support as possible both from persons with the right to make a nomination (the record here is 2.500 such signatures) or from just anyone (the record here is 750.000). None of these record-holders have received the Nobel Peace Prize.

---

 

Question: What should be the most successful strategy to eliminate the main cause of local and global military or ethnic conflicts in XXI century?

Answer: The person who can answer this question in a satisfactory way would be a serious candidate for the Nobel Peace Prize.

---

 

Question: Why do you think the ideas promoted by The High Commissioner Fridtjof Nansen, who was an originator of "Nansen passports" (for refugees), are still very actual in our increasingly global and so unstable World in 2008?

Answer: Unfortunately the number of refugees in the world is still very high. Through the Nansen passport Nansen came up with a very creative solution to one aspect of the refugee question. As you will know, he received the Nobel Peace Prize for 1922.

---

 

Question: Do you believe that the Committee decided this year to follow Nobel´s will more strictly by giving the award to a mediator? Do you believe this is a reaction to last year´s criticism regarding Al Gore?

Answer: The Norwegian Nobel Committee always tries to follow Alfred Nobel's will, but it has to be admitted that the three criteria mentioned in his will provide somewhat limited guidance in today's world. The Committee has always believed that there are many roads to peace. Most likely, it will continue to do so also in the future.

---

 

Question: Dear Sir, i am a Banhgladeshi student in Finland. I would like to ask you, what are the qualifications a person needs to have in order to be awarded a nobel peace prize?
Regards, Lutful Karim Gufran

Answer: No formal qualifications are needed to become a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, but I think the characteristics most of them have in common are vision, courage and determination.

---

 

Interview with Geir Lundestad from the 2008 Nobel Peace Prize Announcement

Why a Norwegian Nobel Committee?

Other articles about the Nobel Peace Prize

Search in the 1901-1955 Nomination Database!