Watch CBS News Videos Online
Last Friday, when the Prize was announced, the gravity of the affair was such that everyone had something to say about it, be it positive or negative. It was the incumbent president of USA, Barack Obama, winning the Nobel Peace Prize. The news had either pleased the listener’s ear or left a sour taste.
Iran was dubious about its response to the win. However, it approved the award by saying – The Nobel Peace Prize should prompt US President Obama to start working towards ending injustice in the world. “We hope that this gives him the incentive to walk in the path of bringing justice in the world order,” said President Mahmoud Ahmednijad.
But the Taliban was not ecstatic about his victory and neither were the representatives of Palestine. Both staunchly criticised the announcement. The Taliban leader noted that they had not seen any change in the strategy of his government that could be called outstandingly pro-peace. Another Taliban leader added that it was disappointing, in fact, that he couldn’t manage to do anything for the people of Afghanistan.
Obama himself was overwhelmed by the announcement. He admitted in many forums that he probably did not deserve the great recognition and that he had not done enough to be on par with many of the transformative figures who had won the Peace Nobel in the past. He said, “I am surprised and deeply humbled by the decision of the Nobel Committee. Let me be clear: I do not view it as recognition of my personal accomplishments, but rather as an affirmation of American leadership on behalf of aspirations held by people in all nations.” He said that he viewed the Nobel Price as symbolic of “a call for action.”
The Norwegian Nobel Committee had lauded Obama for creating “a new climate in international politics”, singling out his “vision of the work for a world without nuclear weapons.” He promised that he would close down the Guantanamo Bay and called for a “new beginning” between the US and Muslims in Cairo. He leads the nuclear D-armament talks at the UN General Assembly. The President also wants to encourage talks between Israel and Palestine and calls for peace in West Asia. His policies are also designed so that US is in the forefront in climate change summits.
However, it is ironic that the President’s first task after winning the Nobel Prize would be to decide on US Commander General’s request for up to 40,000 more troops in Afghanistan. The flip side to the event is the flak it drew from many people, residents of USA and not. The Palestinians have rejected the Nobel Prize itself on various forums on the internet. The power of opinion sharing was yet again revealed when so many blogs had, without any censorship, let people voice their opinion on the subject.
Many internet users used the medium to voice their opinions. Twitter had broken the news almost in parallel with the other news channels. Many were shocked that Obama, who had hardly been in power for nine months, was being awarded the Nobel Prize. Some of them felt that he had done nothing except talk big and that a person should not be awarded something of this scale, when none of his promises have yet translated into action. He has not withdrawn troops from Afghanistan, does not intend to remove US’s military presence in Iraq till at least 2012, and it is deeply ironical how he is in the fore-front for nuclear disarmament when his own nation is the biggest store-house of nuclear weapons on earth.
One person compared Obama’s feat to winning a beauty pageant, where tall claims are made, but hardly ever realized. Many links with humorous and satirical elements were being shared globally in the virtual world. Many others expressed that ‘not being George W Bush is not reason enough to win a Nobel Prize’. The fact that Obama’s nomination was filed at a point when he had just entered the office of the President and had done nothing at all substantial shows that the Nobel Committee was carried away by the potential they saw in this man. If that is not the case, then the legitimacy of their intention is instantly put at stake. A Palestinian leader said that the Nobel Prize was just political tool now and does nothing to recognise true contributions.
Anyway, whatever be one’s reaction, let’s all hope that Obama is motivated enough by the award and does more in his capacity as the President of the United States to fulfill the promises he has made.
