Narges Mohammadi Becomes the Fifth Nobel Peace Laureate to Receive the Award While Confined: A Historical Overview

The chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee has issued an appeal to the Iranian authorities to liberate Narges Mohammadi, a detained Nobel Peace Prize laureate, so that she may personally attend the annual award ceremony in December.

Historically, such entreaties have generally failed to secure the release of incarcerated laureates.

Mohammadi, a distinguished Iranian human rights advocate, has joined a short but notable list of peace prize winners who were either imprisoned or under house arrest at the time of their recognition. In all prior instances, the Nobel Peace Prize did not lead to the recipient’s liberation; indeed, two remained confined until their deaths.

Below is an examination of previous Nobel laureates who were similarly constrained:

Carl Von Ossietzky

The awarding of the 1935 Nobel Peace Prize to German journalist Carl Von Ossietzky incensed Adolf Hitler to such an extent that he subsequently forbade any German citizen from accepting Nobel honors.

Ossietzky had previously been incarcerated for revealing Germany’s clandestine rearmament efforts during the 1920s. Although he was set free after a seven-month term, he was re-arrested and consigned to a concentration camp following the Nazis’ rise to power in 1933.

Despite efforts to secure his release, the German government adamantly refused. Suffering from tuberculosis, Ossietzky was monitored in a civilian hospital until his demise in 1938, becoming the first Nobel peace laureate to perish while in confinement.

Aung San Suu Kyi

Aung San Suu Kyi, the opposition leader in Myanmar, garnered considerable international support when she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991 while under house arrest. Although she was intermittently released and re-arrested until 2010, her standing deteriorated substantially when she seemed to ignore or defend military abuses, notably a 2017 campaign against Rohingya Muslims.

As of 2021, she remains detained following a military coup that ousted her democratically elected government, despite appeals for her release by the Norwegian Nobel Committee and other entities. Her prison term has reportedly been reduced, but the 78-year-old faces 27 years of the original 33-year sentence.

Liu Xiaobo

In 2010, Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo was recognized with the Nobel Peace Prize while serving an 11-year prison term for incitement to subversion. This resulted from his call for expansive political reforms and enhanced human rights in China.

World leaders, including U.S. President Barack Obama, implored the Chinese government for his release, but their requests were fruitless. The decision strained Sino-Norwegian relations and led to suspended trade talks.

None of Liu’s friends or family could accept the award on his behalf. Liu eventually succumbed to liver cancer in 2017 while still incarcerated.

Ales Bialiatski

Belarusian activist Ales Bialiatski became the fourth individual to win the prize under incarceration just last year. He founded the Human Rights Center Viasna and was imprisoned following protests against the controversial reelection of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko in 2020.

A court sentenced him to a decade of imprisonment in March. Reports indicate that he has since been transferred to a harsh prison facility in Belarus, as confirmed by his spouse.

This historical context underscores the limited efficacy of the Nobel Peace Prize in influencing governmental actions towards their confined laureates. With the case of Narges Mohammadi, the world watches once more to see if this pattern will hold.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Nobel Peace Prize laureates in captivity

More about Nobel Peace Prize laureates in captivity

• Nobel Peace Prize Official Website
• Human Rights Watch Report on Narges Mohammadi
• Historical Cases of Nobel Laureates in Captivity
• United Nations Statement on Political Prisoners
• Amnesty International on Aung San Suu Kyi
• Overview of Liu Xiaobo’s Case
• Belarusian Human Rights Center Viasna
• The Impact of Nobel Peace Prize: An Academic Study