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The Obama peace prize

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Anchor Katy Clark speaks with Helge Pharo, an advisor to the Nobel Peace Prize Committee, about the committee’s thinking in awarding this year’s prize to President Obama.

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KATY CLARK: Helge Pharo is an advisor to the Nobel Peace Prize Committee, and Professor Pharo, we just heard the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency say that he thinks the Peace Prize is not just for achievements, but for people who are quote “on the right track”.  Is that the way the Committee sees the prize?

HELGE PHARO: I would think so.  The Committee has been known for the last at least 30, maybe 40 years for its increasing activism in promoting ongoing processes, encouraging processes they see as leading to peace.  But it is not just that.  It’s also clearly linked in Nobel world with the promotional rapport between nations, and reduction of [SOUNDS LIKE] the rule on their prior records, which is related to the cause and the world seeing reduction of standing armies.

CLARK: Do you think then …  It sounds as if you would think that the decision to award the Peace Prize to President Obama is a way to send a political message here to the U.S. about this country’s role in international affairs.

PHARO: I think they see President Obama as having brought a voice likely to work a major  change in the way the United States interacts with other nations.  Yes, and I think that’s a major point.

CLARK: If you could just elaborate.  I mean, what is the message that they are trying to send here?  Is it a message directed specifically towards the United States?

PHARO: Well, this would be guess work on my part because I don’t know what the Committee has actually discussed among themselves, but I would think that since its approach is very different from its predecessor goals alone that he shows willingness to negotiate, to talk on fairly equal terms regardless, and to go in and try to solve outstanding problems in cooperation with others, I think is for the committee must be very significant.

CLARK: This year there’s a lot of surprise at the choice of President Barack Obama as the recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, people saying that he just hasn’t accomplished enough yet to deserve this prize.  To what extent does the committee care about the reaction to its choice here?

PHARO: I think it’s fair to say that the Nobel Committee always has to work within fairly great influence in what they can do and not to antagonize Norwegian public opinion, not to antagonize or to see themselves as making internationally seen as difficult decisions or unpopular decisions, and that they should look at previous awards.  They have veered, so to speak, between realist awards and … How can I say, [INDISCERNIBLE] awards. It is a difficult balancing act between the realist approach in making peace, and the support of good intentions and good peace.  I think they must be aware that this will be a controversial award in the sense that there is still a war going on in Afghanistan.  We don’t know what’s happening there, but they must have taken that into consideration.

CLARK: Helge Pharo is a professor at the University of Oslo in Norway.  He’s also an advisor to the Nobel Peace Prize Committee.  Thank you for your time.

PHARO: Thank you.

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