Navanethem ‘Navi’ Pillay, who currently serves as a jurist in the International Court of Justice, has been awarded the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts to promote peace and international law, by ensuring that war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide are prosecuted.Born into a family of Indian Tamil origin in apartheid-era Durban, South Africa, Pillay became a pioneering lawyer and jurist. She served on South Africa’s high court, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, the International Criminal Court and as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. She also chaired the UN commission of inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory and is a judge at the ICJ in the case concerning allegations of genocide by those in power in Myanmar.Pillay played a significant role in landmark rulings recognising rape and sexual violence as possible acts of genocide and crimes against humanity, and in prosecuting incitement to genocide through propaganda.The Nobel Committee said her work underscores the importance of international law in resolving conflicts peacefully, holding powerful states and individuals accountable, and protecting victims. The award also serves as a warning against the weakening of international legal institutions and the growing influence of power politics over the rule of law.
Winner 2025: Maria Corina Machado
Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado won the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize for promoting democratic rights and campaigning for a peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy. The Norwegian Nobel Committee praised her as one of Latin America’s most extraordinary examples of civilian courage in recent times.Machado was elected to Venezuela’s National Assembly in 2010 but was removed from office in 2014. Ahead of the 2024 presidential election, she won the opposition primary but was barred from contesting. She backed Edmundo González Urrutia, whose supporters published voting records they said showed he had defeated President Nicolás Maduro. Maduro’s government claimed victory and intensified its crackdown on opponents.The Nobel Committee recognised Machado’s efforts to unite Venezuela’s divided opposition around free elections and representative government. She was living in hiding when she won the award, and her daughter, Ana Corina Sosa, accepted the medal and diploma on her behalf at the December 2025 ceremony in Oslo.In January 2026, Machado presented her Nobel Peace Prize medal to US President Donald Trump during a meeting at the White House, saying the gesture recognised his commitment to Venezuela’s freedom. Trump accepted the medal and called it a “wonderful gesture of mutual respect”. However, the Nobel Institute clarified that the prize itself cannot be transferred to another person.
Winner 2024: Nihon Hidankyo
Nihon Hidankyo, a Japanese grassroots organisation of atomic bomb survivors, won the 2024 Nobel Peace Prize for its efforts to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons and for demonstrating, through survivors’ testimonies, why nuclear weapons must never be used again.Founded in 1956, the organisation brought together survivors of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, known as Hibakusha, along with victims of nuclear weapons tests in the Pacific. It became Japan’s largest and most representative organisation of atomic bomb survivors.The US dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945, killing approximately 120,000 people immediately. A comparable number later died from burn and radiation injuries. Many survivors faced years of suffering while their experiences remained concealed or ignored.Nihon Hidankyo works to protect the social and economic rights of survivors, including those living outside Japan, and to prevent anyone else from experiencing a similar catastrophe. Through personal testimonies and educational campaigns, it has highlighted the devastating humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons. Its guiding motto is “No more Hibakusha”.
Winner 2023: Narges Mohammadi
Iranian human rights activist Narges Mohammadi won the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize for her fight against the oppression of women in Iran and her efforts to promote human rights and freedom.Mohammadi, who was imprisoned in Tehran’s Evin prison when the award was announced in October 2023, had spent more than two decades campaigning for women’s rights. She joined the Defenders of Human Rights Center in 2003 and later campaigned against the death penalty, while criticising the Iranian authorities’ use of torture and sexual violence.Her activism came at a personal cost. She was arrested 13 times and sentenced to a total of 31 years in prison and 154 lashes.From prison, Mohammadi supported the protests that erupted across Iran in 2022 following the death of Mahsa Jina Amini, a young Kurdish woman who died after being detained by Iran’s morality police over her head covering. The authorities cracked down on the demonstrations, with more than 500 people killed, thousands injured and at least 20,000 arrested, according to the Nobel Committee.Mohammadi said the award would strengthen her resolve, vowing to continue striving for “democracy, freedom and equality”.
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