Decision on Nobel winners deserves praise

The move will not only boost children’s welfare, but also give India and Pakistan a chance for peace

Malala Yousafzai and Kailash Satyarthi have been jointly awarded the Nobel prize on Friday. AP Photo

For Malala Yousafzai and Kailash Satyarthi, sharing this year's Nobel Peace Prize is a well deserved honour. The Nobel Committee also deserves applause for bringing together these individuals who, despite having much in common in their outspoken advocacy for the rights of children, have followed very different paths to the award.

Malala hardly needs an introduction. Her indomitable courage, which led to her being shot by Taliban militants in her native Swat Valley in Pakistan two years ago, has impressed and inspired millions of people around the world. Since the incident, she has used her fame to relentlessly champion female education. In doing so, she became a symbol of enlightenment in a part of the world where an estimated 25 million school-age children – at least half of whom are girls – are missing out on an education.

Even though questions have been raised over the relevance of awarding the prize to someone as young as Malala, few will achieve in an entire lifetime what she has done by the age of 17. Importantly, she has used her story of bravery to inspire countless adults and children to help eventually defeat dark forces like the Taliban.

Mr Satyarthi, in comparison, is little known even in his home country of India, although like Malala he risked his life to champion the cause of millions of the world’s most disadvantaged young people. A former engineer, he has worked for decades to free India from the clutches of child slavery and his track record is impressive. His Save the Childhood Movement has freed more than 80,000 children from being trafficked, forced to work as bonded labourers. It’s a worthy cause in a country where an estimated 12 million children are forced to work, despite laws forbidding it. However, his vision extends beyond borders. He leads the Global March Against Child Labour, an umbrella group for about 2,000 social and union organisations across 140 countries.

The announcement of the joint Indian and Pakistani winners is significant on another plane: some are interpreting it as a highly symbolic push to end a decades-old rivalry between two countries that have been locked in a deadly standoff over their disputed border in Kashmir. The winners have invited both Indian and Pakistani prime ministers to the prizegiving ceremony in December. One can only hope this opportunity will see peace proliferate far beyond just the sphere of education.