IN THE WORLD TODAY

Journalists win Nobel Peace Prize

TWO journalists have won the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize as a result of their fight for the right of freedom of expression in various countries persecuting journalists and media outlets.

According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, 17 media workers have been killed in the Philippines in the last decade and 23 in Russia.

The Nobel Committee said the battles of Maria Ressa, from the Philippines, and Dmitry Muratov, from Russia, have been vital acts in the promotion of peace in both countries and on a wider, global scale.

“Free, independent and factbased journalism serves to protect against abuse of power, lies and war propaganda,” said committee chair Berit Reiss-Andersen.

Ressa co-founded Rappler in 2012, a news website that has focused “critical attention on [president Rodrigo] Duterte regime’s controversial, murderous anti-drug campaign”, the Nobel committee said.

Reacting to the Nobel news,

Ressa said “I’m a little shocked. It’s really emotional”. She added: “But I am happy on behalf of my team and would like to thank the Nobel committee for recognising what we are going through.”

Muratov was one of the founders of the independent Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta in 1993.

“Novaya Gazeta is the most independent newspaper in Russia today, with a fundamentally critical attitude towards power,” the committee said.

“The newspaper’s fact-based journalism and integrity have made it an important source of information on censurable aspects of Russian society rarely mentioned by other media.”

Muratov said he would use his win to help independent journalists facing growing pressure from the Russian authorities.