A tribute to women peacebuilders
Morung Express News
September 7
Dimapur : Millions of ordinary women toil and struggle every day promoting values of peace and good will. They carry the voices of conscience and are leaders in shaping the discourse of resolution, reconciliation and reconstruction in war torn societies. In effect women represent a new paradigm in building a culture of peace. Representing the unheard voices of many unknown and unseen millions of women around the world is the 1000 women which has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize 2005 for their efforts in pursuit of peace. This political prize is in recognition of their work as valuable and exemplary contributions towards peace.
For many years contributions of women towards peace have neither been acknowledged nor recognized by the global community. Since the first Nobel Peace Prize award was first introduced in 1901, there have been only 12 women recipients; the rest being men. In recent times there has been a deliberate attempt to focus on women coming from all walks of life who have devoted themselves in building a future free of political and social violence and injustices. In order that the world becomes aware of their histories and their work, an initiative was undertaken to honor and respect the role of women in peace work.
The project “1000 Women for the Nobel Peace Prize 2005” was launched in March 2003 with the aim of bringing the world’s attention to 1000 women and their tireless, often dangerous daily commitment to peace and human security. The nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize is intended to honor the work that they and countless thousands of other women are doing. The Project 1000 Women for the Nobel Peace Prize 2005 intends to make visible these women’s efforts to counter injustice and keep peace.
During 2004, candidates for the nomination were sought from all over the world with the help of 20 coordinators. More than 2000 women from 153 countries were proposed. In October the international project team selected 1000 of these candidates using strict criteria. The official nomination letter, co-signed by Federal Councillor Micheline Calmy-Rey, has been handed over to the Nobel Prize Committee in Oslo on 27th January 2005.
Out of 1000 women who have been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, 2005, 91 are from India; six are from the Northeast. Amongst the nominees in the 1000 women for Nobel Peace Prize is Neidonuo Angami, (born 1950), one of the founding members and former president of the Naga Mothers Association (NMA). She stated that she has never known a peaceful life and realized that the fierce fighting between the Naga resistance army and the Indian security forces directly impacts the lives of mothers who lose their children to violence and resort to substance abuse in reaction to the conflict. So, she and other Naga mothers launched the Shed No More Blood campaign, which has proved to be a critical link in the Naga peace process.
A reliable source told The Morung Express that, “If the 1000 women receive the Nobel Prize, the prize money will be used for their projects. The individual women themselves will have the honor of recognition for their personal commitment,” adding that “the prize would safeguard their work and protect many of the women from vindictiveness and infringement of their rights”. It was also revealed that the “1000 Women for The Nobel Peace Prize 2005 boast a good possibility of winning and that Several big organizations are supporting the project all over the world.” If in case it wins the award, the 1000 women shall collectively receive the Nobel Peace Prize.
The Project “1000 Women for the Nobel Peace Prize 2005” is a Swiss initiative which has received worldwide support. The president of the Association “1000 Women for the Nobel Peace Prize 2005” is the project initiator Ruth-Gaby Vermot-Mangold, member of the Swiss National Council in Bern and of the European Council in Strasbourg.
