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Show no mercy! You'll get a nobel peace prize for doing that!
Dec 11, 2009
Obama gets his Nobel Peace Prize
He justifies need for war even as he receives honour in lavish ceremony
US President Barack Obama showing his diploma and gold medal during the Nobel ceremony, during which he said that war is sometimes needed. -- PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
OSLO: United States President Barack Obama said war is sometimes necessary and justified, even as he accepted the Nobel Peace Prize and diploma in a lavish ceremony in the Norwegian capital yesterday.
'Make no mistake: Evil does exist in the world,' he said. 'A non-violent movement could not have halted Hitler's armies. Negotiations cannot convince Al-Qaeda's leaders to lay down their arms.
'To say that force is sometimes necessary is not a call to cynicism - it is a recognition of history, the imperfections of man and the limits of reason.'
Mr Obama accepted the prize just nine days after ordering 30,000 more US troops to Afghanistan to break the momentum of the Taleban, and took responsibility for that decision in his speech.
'Some will kill. Some will be killed,' he said. 'And so I come here with an acute sense of the cost of armed conflict - filled with difficult questions about the relationship between war and peace, and our effort to replace one with the other.'
But Mr Obama reaffirmed: 'America's commitment to global security will never waver.'
He went on to say that lasting peace requires human rights and economic opportunity for individuals, and sanctions against regimes that violate international rules such as Iran and North Korea.
'Those who seek peace cannot stand idly by as nations arm themselves for nuclear war,' he said.
The same applies to countries such as Darfur and Myanmar when they abuse their citizens, Mr Obama said.
Governments must grant basic human rights and provide economic security and opportunity to their people, he said, noting that true peace is not just freedom from fear, but freedom from want.
At a press conference prior to his speech, Mr Obama acknowledged criticism that his Nobel Peace Prize might be premature, but said he hoped it would subside if he succeeded in his goals, including cutting nuclear weapons and tackling climate change.
The award put Mr Obama, 48, who has been president for less than 11 months, alongside the likes of Mr Nelson Mandela, Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King.
Compared to some of the giants of history who have received the prize, he admitted in his speech that 'my accomplishments are slight'.
In October, the Norwegian Nobel Committee chose Mr Obama as this year's Peace Prize laureate for 'his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples' and his 'work for a world without nuclear weapons'.
Prize committee chairman Thorbjoern Jagland said at the ceremony: 'Many have argued that the prize comes too early. But history can tell us a great deal about lost opportunities.
'It is now, today, that we have the opportunity to support President Obama's ideas. This year's prize is indeed a call to action for all of us.'
The prize includes an 18-carat gold medal, a diploma and a cheque for 10 million Swedish crowns (S$1.96 million), which Mr Obama said he would donate to charity.
Norway laid on a day of pageantry for Mr Obama, including a torch-lit parade - protected by barricades, helicopters and up to 2,500 police - in the country's most elaborate security operation.
Mr Obama is the third sitting US president, after Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson, to win the prize. Mr Jimmy Carter was honoured two decades after he left office.
Some polls show that while many Americans are proud that their President received the award, the majority feel it is undeserved.
Dec 11, 2009
Obama gets his Nobel Peace Prize
He justifies need for war even as he receives honour in lavish ceremony
US President Barack Obama showing his diploma and gold medal during the Nobel ceremony, during which he said that war is sometimes needed. -- PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
OSLO: United States President Barack Obama said war is sometimes necessary and justified, even as he accepted the Nobel Peace Prize and diploma in a lavish ceremony in the Norwegian capital yesterday.
'Make no mistake: Evil does exist in the world,' he said. 'A non-violent movement could not have halted Hitler's armies. Negotiations cannot convince Al-Qaeda's leaders to lay down their arms.
'To say that force is sometimes necessary is not a call to cynicism - it is a recognition of history, the imperfections of man and the limits of reason.'
Mr Obama accepted the prize just nine days after ordering 30,000 more US troops to Afghanistan to break the momentum of the Taleban, and took responsibility for that decision in his speech.
'Some will kill. Some will be killed,' he said. 'And so I come here with an acute sense of the cost of armed conflict - filled with difficult questions about the relationship between war and peace, and our effort to replace one with the other.'
But Mr Obama reaffirmed: 'America's commitment to global security will never waver.'
He went on to say that lasting peace requires human rights and economic opportunity for individuals, and sanctions against regimes that violate international rules such as Iran and North Korea.
'Those who seek peace cannot stand idly by as nations arm themselves for nuclear war,' he said.
The same applies to countries such as Darfur and Myanmar when they abuse their citizens, Mr Obama said.
Governments must grant basic human rights and provide economic security and opportunity to their people, he said, noting that true peace is not just freedom from fear, but freedom from want.
At a press conference prior to his speech, Mr Obama acknowledged criticism that his Nobel Peace Prize might be premature, but said he hoped it would subside if he succeeded in his goals, including cutting nuclear weapons and tackling climate change.
The award put Mr Obama, 48, who has been president for less than 11 months, alongside the likes of Mr Nelson Mandela, Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King.
Compared to some of the giants of history who have received the prize, he admitted in his speech that 'my accomplishments are slight'.
In October, the Norwegian Nobel Committee chose Mr Obama as this year's Peace Prize laureate for 'his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples' and his 'work for a world without nuclear weapons'.
Prize committee chairman Thorbjoern Jagland said at the ceremony: 'Many have argued that the prize comes too early. But history can tell us a great deal about lost opportunities.
'It is now, today, that we have the opportunity to support President Obama's ideas. This year's prize is indeed a call to action for all of us.'
The prize includes an 18-carat gold medal, a diploma and a cheque for 10 million Swedish crowns (S$1.96 million), which Mr Obama said he would donate to charity.
Norway laid on a day of pageantry for Mr Obama, including a torch-lit parade - protected by barricades, helicopters and up to 2,500 police - in the country's most elaborate security operation.
Mr Obama is the third sitting US president, after Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson, to win the prize. Mr Jimmy Carter was honoured two decades after he left office.
Some polls show that while many Americans are proud that their President received the award, the majority feel it is undeserved.
