Nobel Peace Prize Goes to Three African Women
Monday, October 10th, 2011The Nobel Peace Prize for 2011 has been awarded jointly to three women: Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf; Liberian peace activist Leymah Gbowee; and Yemeni pro-democracy activist Tawakyl Karman. The Peace Prize is given for “the most effective work in the interest of international peace.” The Nobel committee honored the three women’s individual work toward “the safety of women and for women’s rights to full participation in peace-building work.”
Johnson Sirleaf is Africa’s first freely elected female leader. She was honored for her efforts to bring peace, stability, and development to Liberia. Her 2005 election followed 14 years of civil war. The fighting left hundreds of thousands of people dead and financially destroyed the nation. Johnson Sirleaf persuaded other nations to cancel billions of dollars that Liberia owed them, She also pledged to battle corruption. She remains a somewhat controversial figure in Liberia, however, and faces strong opposition in this year’s elections.
Liberian activist Leymah Gbowee was awarded the prize for her efforts in uniting the nation’s Christian and Muslim women to work together politically. As the head of the Women for Peace movement, Gbowee encouraged women’s participation in elections. She is also known for leading a 2003 march protesting violence against women by soldiers, a major problem in Africa. Gbowee called the prize “a victory for women’s rights everywhere in the world.”
Tawakyl Karman is the leader of the human rights advocacy group Women Journalists Without Chains. Karman, the first Arab woman to win the prize, has been jailed several times because of her opposition to the regime of President Ali Abdullah Saleh. Her organizing efforts contributed to the widespread protests against Saleh that began in January of 2011. Fellow protesters have referred to her as “The Mother of Revolution.”
This year’s award brings to 15 the total number of women who have been award the Nobel Peace Prize. The last woman to be awarded the prize was Kenyan environmentalist Wangari Muta Maathai, in 2004. Maathai, who died in September 2011, was the first African woman to win.
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