The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided that the Nobel Peace
Prize for 2014 is to be awarded to
Kailash Satyarthi and Malala
Yousafzay
for their struggle against
the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children
to education.
The press release issued by the Norwegian
Nobel Committee read as follows:
--> Children must go to school and not
be financially exploited. In the poor
countries of the world, 60% of the present population is under 25 years of
age. It is a prerequisite for peaceful
global development that the rights of children and young people be
respected. In conflict-ridden areas in
particular, the violation of children leads to the continuation of violence
from generation to generation.
--> Showing great personal courage,
Kailash Satyarthi, maintaining Gandhi’s tradition, has headed various forms of
protests and demonstrations, all peaceful, focusing on the grave exploitation
of children for financial gain. He has
also contributed to the development of important international conventions on
children’s rights.
--> Despite her youth, Malala Yousafzay
has already fought for several years for the right of girls to education, and
has shown by example that children and young people, too, can contribute to
improving their own situations. This she
has done under the most dangerous circumstances. Through her heroic struggle she has become a
leading spokesperson for girls’ rights to education.
--> The Nobel Committee regards it as an
important point for a Hindu and a Muslim, an Indian and a Pakistani, to join in
a common struggle for education and against extremism. Many other individuals and institutions in
the international community have also contributed. It has been calculated that there are 168
million child labourers around the world today.
In 2000 the figure was 78 million higher. The world has come closer to the goal of
eliminating child labour.
--> The struggle against suppression and
for the rights of children and adolescents contributes to the realization of
the “fraternity between nations” that Alfred Nobel mentions in his will as one
of the criteria for the Nobel Peace Prize.
