Barack Obama wins 2009 Nobel Peace Prize

[iinfi]

Barack Obama wins 2009 Nobel Peace Prize

US President Barack Obama [ Images ] was on Friday named the surprise winner of 2009 Nobel Peace Prize for his 'extraordinary' efforts to strengthen international diplomacy, hardly less than a year after coming to power.

Obama has as President created a new climate in international politics, a statement released by the Norwegian Nobel Committee said, lauding his vision of a world without nuclear weapons.

It was because of Obama's effort that multi-lateral diplomacy has regained a central position, with emphasis on the role that the United Nations and other international institutions can play, the statement said.

Forty eight-year-old Obama is the fourth US President to win the Nobel Peace Prize.

The prize committee said the US President's vision of a world free from nuclear arms has powerfully stimulated disarmament and arms control negotiations.

Obama was honoured 'for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples', it said.

'Thanks to Obama's initiative, the USA is now playing a more constructive role in meeting the great climatic challenges the world is confronting. Democracy and human rights are to be strengthened,' it said.

'Only very rarely has a person to the same extent as Obama captured the world's attention and given its people hope for a better future,' it said, adding, 'His diplomacy is founded in the concept that those who are to lead the world must do so on the basis of values and attitudes that are shared by the majority of the world's population.'

The Committee said it endorsed Obama's appeal that 'Now is the time for all of us to take our share of responsibility for a global response to global challenges.'

Former Finnish president Martti Ahtisaari won the award in 2008.

BULL SHI T

[rhitwick]

Originally Posted by iinfi

BULL SHI T

+1...

I just don't understand what did he do to get Nobel Peace Prize???!!!

My room-mate told, its because he did not attack any country for last one year

[Ramakrishnan]

WOW. This shows the prejudiced mind of the selectors, whoever they might be. As if there is no other deserving candidate!!!

Nonsense pure and simple

[ico]

Meh....

[Krow]

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp...-WmL1ExLmHUEgA

Obama's shock Nobel win divides world press


HONG KONG — The world's media was divided Saturday after the shock award of the Nobel Peace Prize to President Barack Obama, with some calling it a victory for ideals and others condemning it as deeply politicised.
The prize-giving committee in Oslo named Obama the winner of the prestigious prize on Friday, hailing his "extraordinary" efforts in international diplomacy and hastening nuclear disarmament.
But the announcement proved as controversial as it was surprising.Related article: Statement from Nobel committee
The Washington Post's Dan Balz said there was amazement all around that the award had gone to "a president still in his first year in office with no major accomplishments internationally".
"The breadth of reaction, from exuberant gratification in some quarters to scorn and dismissal in others, underscored the political divisions over the direction of Obama's policies and the sharply polarised impressions of his leadership -- to say nothing of how politicised the prize itself has become," wrote Balz.
The New York Times called it a "mixed blessing" for Obama that highlighted "the gap between the ambitious promise of his words and his accomplishments".
It said the award further demonstrated that Obama was still celebrated as the "anti-Bush" while in fact he had not shifted as much as he once implied he would from the previous administration?s national security policies.
And the conservative Wall Street Journal said its reaction to the news was one of "bemusement".
London's Daily Telegraph said it was "one of the biggest shocks Nobel judges have ever sprung" and would also be seen as one of the most political, with nominations closing just 12 days after Obama took office.
The announcement made headlines in nearly all India's newspapers. The Tribune declared "Obama is Nobel peacemaker", while the Times of India hailed it as a "Lifetime award for debutant Obama".
Meanwhile the Asian Age in India wrote an editorial headlined: "A prize for giving hope to the world."
It said: "Mr Obama has moved forward, slowly, in all crucial areas: ending strife between the West and Islam, peace in West Asia, creation of a nuclear-arms free world and reversing climate change."
In China the unofficial Beijing News called it "an award of encouragement".
The paper said the Nobel jury's decision was more "symbolic" than anything else, and that it was "very clear that Obama's 'feats' are still purely verbal and it will be very difficult to implement them".
"It's so early for Obama to win the Nobel Prize," it said, speculating that the honour might put "great pressure" on him to deliver.
And Taiwan's United Daily News labelled it a victory for populism and "empty language", adding that it is "perhaps the biggest controversy since the Nobel Prize was established in 1901".
Japanese media said the award would increase global expectations of the Obama administration, with the mass-circulation Yomiuri Shimbun saying it was "an important task for him to achieve fruitful results from now on".
The Asahi Shimbun said: "Tough issues are mounting. It is still unknown if (he) can show achievement.... Complicated conflicts of interest in the international community would not be resolved only with his winning of the Nobel peace prize."
But parts of the Muslim world welcomed the award. The Jakarta Globe in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslin nation, called the US leader an "extraordinary person".
"He leads by projecting values and attitudes that are shared by decent people in every corner of the world," it said.
"We hope the Nobel Peace Prize will encourage him to continue to work for peace, no matter how difficult the road ahead."
And the Daily Star in Bangladesh described the award as "a testament to the sheer sense of excitement and idealism (Obama) had brought to politics".
It added: "The man who has promised change deserves our congratulations. We give them to him freely," it said, adding the victory was "richly deserved".
The Sydney Morning Herald described the move as a "shock choice".

I'm winning the next one guys.

[rhitwick]

We have already one thread up for this...
But the first thread is in wrong section
And ur thread is in right section but late

Barack Obama wins 2009 Nobel Peace Prize

[Krow]

Ah.. Mods merge the two please... I didn't check the technology news section as I thought that this news is non tech.

Thanks for pointing out mate.

[Krow]

Politics! Friggin naabs did not even think of giving M.K.Gandhi the nobel when he was alive and now this!

[Liverpool_fan]

Obama would have been shocked.

But indeed if it inspires him to actually act along and actually achieve something in the future then I'm all for it.

Originally Posted by rediff.com

why_cant_sweedish_commitee_announce_nobel_prize_fo r_osama_bin_laden_

he_will_come_out_to_receive_the_award_and_then_ob ama_can_catch_him_

Obama_awarded_for_catching_osama_in_his_wet_dreams _

if_somehow_we_prove_that_obama_is_frm_indian_origi n_
we_can_have_one_more_noble_prize_in_our_list_

lolerz! ico was right! rediff.com comments are AWESOME.

[Techn0crat]

There were 205 candidates and all they got is Obama.I like him but he is president only for few months.All other candidates must have devoted major time of their lives trying to establish peace.

And please move it to random news.

[Aspire]

This guy at rediff wants that Mahatma Gandhi should get the Noble but doesnt know the spelling of gandhi

may be or may not be Obama deserves \'\'Nobel Peace Prize\'\'...But our Mahathma Gnadhi is more eligable than him...why they dont give a such award to Gandhi.

Congratulations, Mr.Obama!! You deserve it 100%..Some of our Indian leaders were also nominated for Nobel by reasons known only to them, by an organization known to none.. what a joke... nepotistic individual playing foul of our democracy for Nobel??
my jhoota!!

[rhitwick]

Ummm, Gandhi deserves but Nobel is not given to anyone posthumously...

COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE

Myth:The awards committee announces a shortlist of candidates.
Fact: The committee does not release the names of any candidates and keeps records sealed for 50 years.

Myth: A campaign for a particular candidate can sway the awards committee.
Fact: A campaign could have the exact opposite effect on the fiercely independent committee, which does not want to appear influenced by public pressure.

Myth: Candidates can be nominated until the last minute.
Fact: The nomination deadline is eight months before the announcement, with a strictly enforced deadline of Feb. 1.

Myth: Anyone can nominate a person or group for the Peace Prize.
Fact: No, although Nobel statutes on who can nominate were slightly broadened in 2003. They now include former laureates; current and former members of the committee and their staff; members of national governments and legislatures; university professors of law, theology, social sciences, history and philosophy; leaders of peace research and foreign affairs institutes; and members of international courts of law.

Myth: The prize can be revoked if a laureate does not live up to the standards of the peace prize.
Fact: There are no provisions for revoking the prize.

Myth: The prize can be awarded posthumously.
Fact: The prize was awarded posthumously only once – in 1961, to former UN Secretary-General Dag Hammerskjold, after he was killed in a plane crash in Africa. The rules were amended in 1974 to prohibit posthumous prizes.

Myth: The prize is awarded to recognise efforts for peace, human rights and democracy only after they have proven successful.
Fact: More often, the prize is awarded to encourage those who receive it to see the effort through, sometimes at critical moments.

SOURCE: MUMBAI MIRROR (10102009)

[azaad_shri75]

biggest joke of the millennium

[comp@ddict]

^^

i second that

[Stuge]

[Josan]

why these american's get every prize

[Sandeep V]

I think he deserves Nobel Peace Prize .He really got all people's attention to strenghten diplomacy and international unity. I think you guys got from the view of beign a peace struggler for the past one year , but he has made people's mind together by making peace compared to his predecessor . So I think he deserves the Nobel Peace Prize ,

[shaw-T]

In my opinion obama didn't do much to deserve the nobel peace prize .

[JojoTheDragon]

BULL **** *100

[Faun]

Originally Posted by Techalomaniac

Politics! Friggin naabs did not even think of giving M.K.Gandhi the nobel when he was alive and now this!

Colonial undertones

[Faun]

Originally Posted by Josan

why these american's get every prize

Expect MMS to get Nobel peace price soon after he signs CTBT.

[iinfi]

i had two windows random and tech news open... and posted this in the wrong window ... apologies ...

[nix]

the day it was awarded to yasser arafat, the award lost its significance.

[soumya]

Nobel Peace Prize award is like Obama's left ass, it's neither fair nor it's right....!!!

[dreamcatcher]

Maybe hes getting it for maintaining peace in the White House. How does Obama get the time to celebrate all festivals held all over the world.Latest, hes celebrating Diwali.

[topgear]

Is it the Nobel "Peace" or "Political" prize?

The awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday to President Barack Obama, the third prominent U.S. Democrat to win recently, only seemed to reinforce an impression the prize can be as much about politics as about peace.

Some observers interpreted the Nobel less than nine months into Obama's presidency, before he had had time to pursue much peace policy, as a last dagger from Europe tossed at Obama's Republican predecessor, former President George W. Bush, who was unpopular there.

Here are some questions and answers about the prize and U.S. politics.



WHICH DEMOCRATS HAVE WON THE PRIZE RECENTLY?

Former President Jimmy Carter won in 2002 for "his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development."

In 2007, former Democratic Vice President Al Gore shared the award with the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change for highlighting the risks of global warming. In 2000, he lost one of the closest presidential elections in U.S. history to Bush.



IS THERE A POLITICAL MESSAGE TO THE AWARD?

Obama has been widely credited with improving America's global image after the eight-year presidency of Bush, who alienated friends and foes with policies that often aroused international ire like the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.

The Peace Prize committee's announcement seemed to draw a contrast. "Obama has as president created a new climate in international politics," it said. "Dialogue and negotiations are preferred as instruments for resolving even the most difficult international conflicts."



HOW DO POLITICIANS USE THE AWARD?

Democrats trumpeted the Nobel as a vindication of their party's positions.

"It validates the president's approach to tough trans-national challenges such as global warming and the spread of nuclear arms," said Howard Berman, the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. "And it celebrates his steady efforts to improve America's standing around the world."

Michael Steele, chairman of the Republican National Committee, used the award to underscore the party's contention that Obama lacks substance and trades on his charisma.

"It is unfortunate that the president's star power has outshined tireless advocates who have made real achievements working towards peace and human rights," Steele said in a statement.



DO REPUBLICANS EVER WIN THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE?

Recent winners have been Democrats, but several of the first U.S. peace prize laureates were Republican politicians, including President Theodore Roosevelt, who won the 1906 prize while in office for his role in ending the bloody 1905 war between Japan and Russia.

Elihu Root, the 1912 winner, was a former Republican secretary of state, as was the 1929 winner, Frank Billings Kellogg. A former Republican vice president, Charles Gates Dawes, shared the prize in 1925.



WILL THE PRIZE HELP OBAMA POLITICALLY?

It might or might not.

Even Obama's supporters were surprised he had won the prize so early in his presidency.

Some observers said it gave him added credibility on the world stage, but others said it would give him even more to live up to, as he wrestles with a range of problems including wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, a sputtering economy and rising unemployment, climate change and his effort to reform the U.S. healthcare system.

"The prize signals that America is definitively back in the world's good graces and the pesident deserves full credit for that," said Martin Indyk, vice president and director for foreign policy at the Brookings Institution.

"Now comes the hard part: turning goodwill into concrete results that can heal the wounds of a very troubled world. If Obama can do that, he'll deserve another Nobel."

(Editing by Peter Cooney)
Patricia Zengerle

Source : http://in.news.yahoo.com/137/2009101...r-politic.html

Personal Opinion : Political Prize

[Krow]

^+1. Politics and favouritism. Of course we should not forget this either:

Originally Posted by iinfi

BULL SHI T

[vickyadvani]

crap this is ...thr are so many other ppl in this world who have actually worked towards world peace..

I wont be suprised if they give Bush as well the nobel price for bringing peace

[GigaHeartz]

Lol.. barack for the noble peace prize?.. these guys are kidding.. Obama is like mayawati in some sense.. hez got a opportunity and power so hez buzy is spreading his glory.. the world will forget this idiot like we forgot the watergate scandal..

[iinfi]

jus as an afterthought ....

did the Nobel prize panel know that US is gona start a war by attacking Iran .... n the only way they cud put enough pressure on Obama and the US administration at large was to do something Obama or the US administration didn't expect ..... thus avoid a war for the next 7 years??

wat say??