08/10/2021
Nobel Peace Prize awarded to journalists from the Philippines and Russia
Journalists Maria Ressa and Dmitri Muratov have been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for “their courageous fight for freedom of expression” threatened by repression, censorship, propaganda and disinformation in the Philippines and Russia.
The two laureates "are the representatives of all journalists who defend this ideal in a world where democracy and press freedom face increasingly challenging conditions,” President of the Norwegian Nobel Committee Berit Reiss –Andersen said, during the announcement, in Oslo on Friday. They were chosen out of 329 candidates.
Fifty-eight-year-old Filipina Maria Ressa, who co-founded digital media platform Rappler in 2012, shone the spotlight on “the regime's controversial and murderous anti-drug campaign of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte,” the committee noted.
Dmitri Muratov, 59, was one of the co-founders and editor-in-chief of the newspaper Novaïa Gazeta , one of the few independent voices in Russia where dissent faces fierce repression.
The daily notably highlighted “corruption, police violence, illegal arrests, electoral fraud and ‘troll farms’” and paid a heavy price, the committee said. Six of its journalists lost their life, including Anna Politkovskaïa, killed almost to the day 15 years ago.
In a world where, as the saying goes, “the first victim of war is the truth”, this is the first Nobel Peace Prize winner in 120 years of history to reward freedom of information as such.
“The Norwegian Nobel Committee is convinced that freedom of expression and freedom of information help keep the public informed. These rights are essential preconditions for democracy and for guarding against war and conflict,” Reiss-Andersen added. “Free, independent and factual journalism serves to protect against abuse of power, lies and war propaganda.”
