NOBEL PEACE PRIZE AWARDED TO SOUTH AFRICAN NAVANETHEM "NAVI" PILLAY

OSLO, OCTOBER 9 /SRNA/ - The Norwegian Nobel Committee has awarded the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize to South African jurist Navanethem "Navi" Pillay for her efforts to promote peace and international law.

"The 2026 Nobel Peace Prize is awarded to a person who, with exceptional courage and integrity, has led the way towards a more comprehensive global legal order. This year's laureate has been instrumental in ensuring that war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide are prosecuted," the statement said.

The committee added that Pillay's commitment to universal legal principles and her strong moral compass had remained constant throughout her long career.

"A common thread runs from her early work defending Nelson Mandela and others who opposed apartheid to her work as a judge in some of the most important international court cases of our time," the Nobel Committee said.

The statement noted that she had helped strengthen international law institutions and that her independence, expertise and steadfastness made her one of the most respected international jurists of our time.

Pillay served as a judge of the High Court of South Africa, a judge of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and the International Criminal Court, and as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

Navi Pillay is currently a judge at the International Court of Justice in the case in which Myanmar is accused of genocide.

Born into a family of Indian Tamil origin during apartheid in Durban, South Africa, Pillay became an activist and a leading figure in the field of law while facing deep-rooted structural discrimination, segregation and exclusion.

The monetary component of the Nobel Prize amounts to approximately one million euros.