| |
Pentagon Whistleblower, South American, Indian Activists Win 'Alternative Nobels'
|
|
|
Pentagon Whistleblower, South American, Indian Activists Win 'Alternative Nobels'
|
|
|
| |
STOCKHOLM, Sweden - Daniel Ellsberg, the former U.S. Defense Department official who leaked secret Pentagon documents during the Vietnam war, was among the winners of the "alternative Nobels" announced Thursday.
Ellsberg shared the 2 million kronor (€215,000; US$273,000) Right Livelihood Award with Indian women's rights activist Ruth Manorama and a p
oetry festival in Medellin, Colombia. Anti-corruption campaigner Chico Whitaker Ferreira of Brazil won the honorary award.
"They are all representatives of personal courage," said philanthropist Jakob von Uexkull, who founded the award in 1980 to recognize work he believed was ignored by the prestigious Nobel Prizes.
In giving the prize to Ellsberg, the award committee partly wanted to highlight parallels between the Vietnam war and the war in Iraq.
"It is quite clear that decisions are being taken by governments behind our back, where the argument of secrecy is being misused," von Uexkull told The Associated Press. "We are facing the same situation, I think, in Iraq. People have been lied to about the reasons for this war."
Ellsberg, 75, became famous for his release of the Pentagon Papers, which indicated the U.S. government had deceived the public about whether the Vietnam war could be won and the extent of casualties.
The award citation recognized him "for putting peace and truth first, at considerable personal risk, and dedicating his life to inspiring others to follow his example."
Manorama was honored for her work to achieve equality for dalit women in India. Dalits, or untouchables, belong to no caste and have faced centuries of discrimination.
"I think this award will hopefully inspire other young dalit women to say 'Look what we can do,'" said von Uexkull, who sold his valuable stamp collection to fund the awards.
The prize committee also cited the "The Festival Internacional de Poesia de Medellin" for promoting peace in what it called one of the most violent cities in the world.
The poetry festival was started in the early 1990s, providing a safe haven in the midst of heavy fighting between criminal groups in the city, von Uexkull said.
"There is a power there, something that unites people even while they are shooting each other," he said.
Whitaker Ferreira, a Roman Catholic activist, won the honorary award "for a lifetime's dedicated work for social justice that has strengthened democracy in Brazil and helped give birth to the World Social Forum, showing that 'another world is possible,'" the citation said.
The awards will be presented in a ceremony at the Swedish Parliament on Dec. 8, two days before the Nobel Prizes are handed out.
Copyright © 2006 Associated Press
###
|
 Printer Friendly Version
E-Mail This Article
|
|
|
