If you have not already heard, President Obama has been chosen as this years recipient for renowned Nobel Peace Prize. The news became official on Friday Oct 9th and the media blitz that ensued has only recently begun to subside.
As the announcement circled the globe faster than Usain Bolt around a track, political figures from both at home and abroad weighed in on the decision made by the five-member committee with mixed reactions.
Those critical of Obama’s win – which includes a host from within the Unites States - were quick to call the president undeserving of such a highly esteemed merit, citing the lack of his accomplishments and the GOP – for its part – even attempted to use the award to its benefit by mocking the committee’s decision within a fundraising letter. In fact, most recently a poll running on CNN from Oct 16th-Oct 18th questioned 1,038 adult Americans as to whether or not they believed president Obama deserved the prize; among those who participated, 56% disapproved of his win compared to only 42% who believed he should have received it.
In addition to backlash experienced within the states, the committees decision – which has traditionally been a cause for celebration – has generated some unfavorable reactions from around the world. Pundits, including Ali Akbar Javanfekr – a close advisor to President Ahmadinejad – and Soli Ozel – a professor teaching in Istanbul – exercised cautious skepticism when considering the win as both voiced their support for Obama’s visions and aspirations, but also noted that he has yet to achieve any substantial progress relating to peace on a global scale. Gabriela Ramirez – the leading human rights official within Venezuela – was not as cordial in her response to the news as she claimed that bestowing the award to Obama was a “mockery of human rights”. Furthermore, in what was perhaps the strongest rhetoric, Erling Borgen – a Norwegian journalist and champion of human rights – argued that by wining the prize, Obama has devalued the luster that had once accompanied the prestigious award.
While it is clear that many consider the award to be a farce, not everyone is against the decision made by the committee. Two prior recipients and a handful of other world leaders have shown support for Obama’s win. Al Gore and former President Jimmy Carter – both of which have previously won the prize – as well as World leaders including Nicolas Sarkozy, Shimon Peres and Nelson Mandela have all praised Obama’s win.
Yet, although he has received some note-worthy support from a handful of influential individuals, a question endures in the minds of critics: what has president Obama actually accomplished to deserve such a prestigious award…? Before continuing, I feel that it is important to examine the true definition of the Nobel Peace Prize. An excerpt taken from the will of Alfred Nobel states that the award should be granted, “To the person who shall have done the most or do the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses”.
Clearly, this definition is open to a broad range of interpretations but has Obama accomplished anything to fit the description left to us by the late Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Committee stated that Obama was awarded the prize due to his “Extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples”. And yet, submissions for the prize had to be postmarked no later than February 1st at which time Obama had only been in office for 12 days! I understand that he is talented, but what the president could have possibly accomplished within a mere 12 days to warrant such an award is beyond me, however, the committee has defended its decision saying, “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”. Moreover, the “Oslo five” – as they have come to be known – have also responded to the popular contention that the award was given prematurely. In a released statement, the committee justified their actions and explained that they wanted to promote the young President in his endeavors as they had previously done in the case of Mikhail Gorbachev as he fought to end the Cold War.
Okay…I can follow the logic behind Gorbachev but bestowing an award on the grounds of peace to the Commander-in-chief of a nation that is currently at war in both Iraq and Afghanistan seems a bit contradictory. Yes, I know that we are moving towards an eventual troop withdrawal in Iraq but at the same time, more troops will soon be deployed to Afghanistan. Therefore, we cannot wholeheartedly say that he has succeeded in reducing the overall amount of our standing armies at war.
On the other hand – even though it was not within the Prize’s submission date – President Obama has gained some ground with respect to the promotion of fraternity between nations and the holding/promoting of peace congresses. And despite the fact that they have yet to yield much progress, as previously mentioned, President Obama has been working to revive US relations around the world and primarily within the Middle East where our foreign policy is viewed as extremely unilateral. Steps taken in the right direction have included: measures to shut down the highly controversial prison at Guantanamo Bay, the renewal of talks between Israel and Palestine and bringing Iran back to table to talk about their nuclear ambitions. In addition, Obama also met with Russian president Dmitry Medvedev in July and both parties agreed to work on reducing the number of vehicles capable of delivering a nuclear warhead as well as reducing the total amount of nuclear warheads that each country stores. While it remains be seen when both parties will begin the actual reduction of arms, proposals of this nature could be viewed as a early indication that president Obama is committed towards two major goals in the name of peace – nuclear non-proliferation and the revitalization of US relations around the world.
While one cannot ignore the potential of these initiatives, I agree with critics that awarding President Obama with the Nobel Peace Prize was a bit premature. I will not go as far as to say it was completely ludicrous, I just feel as though his goals have yet to come to fruition and the committee should have waited for things to pan out. I can understand that the committee wanted to encourage the young President to continue with the steps he has taken towards peace on a global context, I just feel that we are still very early in his tenure as President and that he was awarded for his ideas and visions rather than his actual accomplishments and merits.
In any case, it seems as though time will undoubtedly be the deciding factor in regarding the justification of President Obama’s win; only once years have passed will we truly be able to reflect upon the President’s tenure, and his contributions towards the promotion of peace.
Lastly, while I may agree with critics that the award was given prematurely, I sincerely hope that being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize will inspire President Obama to continue with the measures he has taken thus far towards renewing the relations of United States with that of the rest of the world. Regardless of what transpires, Obama has already been added to a list filled with highly acclaimed individuals; all that remains, is to see is how he compares with his peers.
