South African jurist Navi Pillay, a former U.N. human rights chief, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday, sparking applause from human rights and international justice advocates while Israel and its supporters expressed disappointment.
The 85-year-old currently serves as an ad hoc judge at the U.N.'s International Court of Justice.
She received widespread praise for decades of work, which includes investigating crimes in Rwanda, Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories, as well as serving as a lawyer who helped defend Nelson Mandela.
Here's a look at some of the reactions to the announcement of her award:
— “Justice Pillay’s crowning as winner of the Nobel Prize allows us to celebrate the progressive contributions she has made to strengthen peace, uphold human dignity and bring hope in South Africa and to peoples globally. She has served humanity with principle and the belief that the world can and should be a better place,” said South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.
— "To say it is well-deserved is an understatement. At a time when human rights are under attack on so many fronts, including from those who wield enormous power, this award is particularly poignant. It is an award to all those who, around the world, dedicate their lives to the defense of human rights — often at great risk to their security," said U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk, one of Pillay's successors in that post.
— “She has had a profound influence in South Africa, Rwanda, the Occupied Palestinian Territory, and as leader of the U.N.’s human rights body At a time when international justice is under threat from rights-rejecting leaders, she has been a stalwart proponent of the international rule of law and impartial human rights work," said Philippe Bolopion, executive director of Human Rights Watch.
— “If there were an award for lies, hatred, and blood libels, Navi Pillay wouldn’t just be a contender. She’d be a frontrunner,” Israel’s foreign ministry said in a statement. On X, it added that the award “isn’t a recognition of justice. It’s the grotesque weaponization of an award to legitimize anti-Israel hatred and prejudice.”
— “Born into family of Indian Tamil origin under apartheid in Durban, South Africa, Pillay become a lawyer and legal pioneer confronting deep structural discrimination, segregation and exclusion," said Jørgen Watne Frydnes, chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee in announcing the award for "a person who with exceptional, courage and integrity has led the way toward a more comprehensive global legal order.”
— Iva Vukušić, an assistant professor in international history at Utrecht University, said the award for Pillay was "a symbolic sign that there are people in the world who care about international law.”
— “It’s a prize for survivors and victims of genocide and apartheid and shows they can survive and defeat illegality,” said Omar Awadallah, a deputy foreign minister in the Palestinian Authority.
— “Her achievements remind us that the pursuit of justice and the protection of human dignity are not merely ideals to be upheld, but responsibilities to be advanced through principled leadership and purposeful action,” South Africa’s University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pillay's alma mater, said in a statement.
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