For his decisive efforts to resolve conflict and achieve peace with neighboring countries, the Ethiopian prime minister has won the 2019 Nobel peace Prize. Abiy Ahmed’s clear resolve to end border conflict by international cooperation was a highlight in his prizing.
Last year, Ahmed secured a deal with the Eritrea President Isaias Afwerki bringing a stop to a twenty-year stalemate between the two nations branded, “no peace, no war.” During its announcement on Friday, The Norwegian Nobel committee said that the Nobel peace prize also recognized all the individual stakeholders in the peace negotiations in the East and Northeast regions of Africa.
The border disputes have claimed at least 70,000 lives according to the Time Magazine. These disputes began in 1998, five years after Ethiopia gave back independence to the Eritreans. Ethiopia’s internal affairs to this day affect the young nation bringing a divide that is evident on the border for 20 years now. Although both nations have freed thousands of political prisoners since the prime minister assumed office in April 2018, the Eritrean economy is still dependent on Ethiopia’s affairs.
Acknowledging Ahmed’s tremendous efforts towards making the country stable, the Nobel committee still emphasized the importance of continuing the remaining work. Ahmed’s initiatives have already given many people hope for better standards of living. With the unstable African nation facing elections next year, the award strengthens trust between the two sides.
New Zealand Prime Minister Ardern Jacinda and teenage activist Greta Thunberg were among the predicted frontrunners for the coveted award. We can, however, not confirm the list for another fifty years. Congolese doctor Denis Mukwege and Nadia Murad, a Kurdish activist, were Last year’s winners of the prestigious award. They were presented with the award for their efforts in ending sexual violence as a weapon for armed conflict. American President Donald Trump was among those nominated to receive the 2019 prize. The Republican congressional members nominated him for his efforts in the denuclearization of North Korea.
The award has not, however, gone without criticism over the years. Among winners that came under criticism include the former U.S. President Barack Obama. Obama had won the luxurious award in 2009 after less than a year in office. His “amazing” efforts in strengthening cooperation between the people of the world and international diplomacy were the prime reason behind his award. A Majority of critics, however, interpreted the award as a repudiation of George. W Bush’s presidency.
Dil Bole Oberoi
