Pakistani education activist Malala Yousafzai and Indian child rights campaigner Kailash Satyarthi have received the Nobel Peace Prize awards.
The Nobel committee described both laureates as "champions of peace".Ms Yousafzai said she was there to stand up for the rights of forgotten and frightened children, and raise their voice rather than pity them.
Mr Satyarthi said receiving the prize was "a great opportunity" to further his work against child slavery.
Ms Yousafzai and Mr Satyarthi received their awards from the chairman of the Norwegian Nobel committee, in the presence of King Harald V of Norway.
They delivered their Nobel lectures during the award ceremony.
'I am many' In her speech, Ms Yousafzai said the award was not just for her: "It is for those forgotten children who want education. It is for those frightened children who want peace. It is for those voiceless children who want change.
"I am here to stand up for their rights, raise their voice. It is not time to pity them. It is time to take action so it becomes the last time that we see a child deprived of education."
It was a moment when the best of musical traditions from East and West filled the elegant Oslo Town Hall - a stirring Raga for Peace, South Asian Qawwali, a haunting rendition of Oh Holy Night.
But the voices which resonated most loudly were those of the Nobel Laureates.
Kailash Satyarthi ended his Nobel lecture with "Let us March!" and Malala Yousafzai declared 'Let us begin today!" Both see one of the world's most distinguished honours as a weapon in their fight for every child's right to be educated, and not to work in childhood.
Nobel organisers say there have never been such standing ovations or so many accredited journalists. But will this prize do even more to achieve the goals it has honoured - to champion children's rights?
more info
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-30411049
No comments:
Post a Comment