Nobel Peace Prize

BY honouring jailed Iranian activist Narges Mohammadi with the Nobel Peace Prize for her fight against oppression of women and her relentless crusade for human rights and freedom for all in Iran at a tremendous personal cost, the Norwegian Nobel Committee has underscored how gender discrimination continues to be the lived reality of millions of women across the globe. The bias is more pronounced in Islamic countries, even though antiquated patriarchal conventions relegating women to the background are present across social strata and societies worldwide.

While bestowing this prestigious award on Narges will go a long way in highlighting the atrocities and injustice that women are facing in Iran, it is equally essential that the world, especially the Global North, pushes for gender equality everywhere and not take a stand motivated by vested interests. The double standards are evident in some of these nations justifying the wearing of hijab by women in the name of personal liberty or choice.

Hopefully, the award will motivate women to stand up more forcefully for their rights. Interestingly, Narges was inspired by her compatriot and human rights activist Shirin Ebadi, who won the peace Nobel in 2003. However, Iran has pooh-poohed the 2023 choice as reeking of ‘the interventionist and anti-Iran policies of some European countries’. The Iranian regime has awarded Narges 31 years in prison; she has been arrested 13 times and convicted in five cases. In the latest fight that led to her incarceration in 2022, she had led a nationwide protest by defiant women against the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police custody; not surprisingly, the authorities had brutally suppressed the agitation.

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