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He gave practical shape to Gandhian values
By Our Staff Reporter
NEW DELHI, DEC. 7. The Irish civil rights activist and Nobel laureate, Mr. John Hume, has been unanimously nominated by a jury chaired by the Prime Minister, Mr. A.B. Vajpayee, for this year's Gandhi Peace Prize.
He has been selected for his contribution to the promotion of Gandhian principles of peace, justice and reconciliation in Ireland. This was announced today by the Union Minister for Tourism and Culture, Mr. Jagmohan.
Instituted in 1995 on the occasion of Mahatma Gandhi's 125th birth anniversary, the award's previous recipients include the former President of Tanzania, Dr. Julius Nyerere, the founder-president of the Sarvodaya movement in Sri Lanka, Dr. A.T. Ariyaratne, and the former President of South Africa, Dr. Nelson Mandela.
Known for his work in the Northern Ireland peace process, Mr. Hume, winner of the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1998 along with Mr. David Trimble, has unequivocally opposed violence as a means of resolving conflict in Ireland.
``The award has been given to Mr. John Hume because his work personifies Gandhian principles and he has managed to give a practical shape to such values,'' said Mr. Jagmohan.
Mr. Hume is scheduled to visit India to deliver a lecture and collect his award from the President, Mr. K. R. Narayanan, early next year. ``In honouring Mr. Hume the nation pays tribute to an extraordinary man who by his fearlessness, selflessness and dedication to the cause of humanity upheld ideals which were dearest to Mahatma Gandhi. He reached out a hand to those who had been engaged in violence and brought them too into the political process,'' said the Minister.
For this year's award, 53 nominations were received from across the world. Of these, 21 were of Indians, 13 of foreign nationals and the rest of institutions.
Mr. Jagmohan said he had written to as many as 1,660 people, including governors, ministers, judges and eminent personalities both Indian and international, asking them to nominate an individual or an organisation for the award. The other names and organisations suggested for the award included Mr. Nanaji Deshmukh, Mr. Sunderlal Bahuguna, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan and a spiritual organisation from Japan.
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