*Nobel Peace Prize To European Union Is A Political Award*
*By Mairead Corrigan Maguire*
13 October, 2012
*Countercurrents.org*
Alfred Nobel was a visionary who believed in a demilitarized peaceful
world. In his Will he left his Nobel peace prize to those who would work
for ‘fraternity among nations’,’abolition or reduction of standing armies’,
and ‘holding and promotion of peace congresses’.
In Nobel’s will the award for Peace was to go to Champions of peace, those
working to replace militarism with international order based on law and the
abolition of national military forces. Nobel’s vision and dream was to
replace the power of militarism and war, with the power of law. I believe
the Awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to the European Union, does not meet
the criteria of Alfred Nobel vision and spirit, and his vision of a
demilitarized peaceful world.
In many ways the European Union has done much in the past sixty years for
Peace and reconciliation amongst nations, but it has sadly done little for
the demilitarization of Europe. Whilst the EU imposes severe Austerity
measures upon many EU countries it simultaneously supports the growing
militarisation of Europe by its support for US/NATO (guilty of war crimes
against Iraq, Afghanistan, etc., ) It continues to support the policies of
USA Nuclear weapons, held in six EU States. It supports arms sales from
European States (UK, Germany, etc.,) to countries all around the world. The
EU instead of upholding human rights for countries such as Palestine, has
rewarded Israel by giving them special trading status and huge grants (EU
tax payers money) for its Military Research and weapons thus enabling it to
continue it illegal policies of occupation and Apartheid of Palestine.
I cannot support this decision to give the peace prize to EU and appeal to
the Swedish Foundation Authority to hold the Nobel Committee accountable
for giving, yet again, a political award instead of supporting People
taking courageous, and often dangerous stands to help move the human family
away from military international Relations to one based on peaceful
resolution of conflict.
I believe that the reform of the nobel peace Committee is now necessary. As
is the case of all other nobel prize committees which are made-up of
experts in their particular field, perhaps it is time too for the NPP
Committee to be comprised of people experienced in the field of Peacemaking
and International Law.
*Mairead Maguire* is a Northern Irish peace activist, and winner of 1976
Nobel Peace Prize. (*www.peacepeople.com* <
http://www.peacepeople.com/>)
Received on Tue Oct 16 2012 - 15:13:45 EDT
