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Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) wins the Nobel Peace Prize 2013. Photo: EPA

How they see it

Nobel Peace Prize

VARIOUS

1. Global Times

The Nobel Prize committee in Norway awarded the peace prize to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons ... The OPCW was considered a dark horse, as it saw off a better- known favourite, the Pakistani girl Malala Yousafzai, shot in the head by the Taliban and seen as a heroine in fighting for girls' right to education. Perhaps bearing in mind that the Nobel Peace Prize has drawn too much controversy in recent years, the committee eventually decided to award it to a non-controversial organisation ... However, the fact that Malala became a favourite candidate ... still throws up some questions ... Should the world encourage a child to stand at the front line of a struggle for human rights? Beijing

 

2. The Guardian

The OPCW is neither a romantic nor a spectacular choice for the Nobel peace prize ... its very initials are unwieldy and few have ever heard of its understated Turkish director general, Ahmet Uzumcu. Moreover, the agency's inspectors are tiresome sticklers for the rules and decidedly low profile. Even the Nobel committee had trouble getting hold of anyone at the Hague headquarters to tell them the news ...This year's prize is not a story of a heroic individual triumphing against the odds, but rather, a rare tale of an international institution doing what it is supposed to do, somewhat quietly and effectively, and making the world a significantly safer place in the process. London

 

3. The New York Times

It is an appropriate choice. True, the OPCW has only just started its work in Syria, and overall has not done away with many chemical weapons in 2013, but it has achieved much to keep the world free of chemical warfare since its founding in 1997. But despite the deserving nature ... a growing number of Nobel watchers say the prize is damaged. They fear recent honorees - Barack Obama in 2009, when he had been in office for only 81/2 months, and the European Union in 2012 -reflect a prestige-tarnishing politicisation ... Some propose reforming the selection process, primarily by replacing the committee, traditionally composed exclusively of Norwegian politicians, with a panel of international leaders. New York

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: How they see it
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