Olof Palmes 2015 Award

2015 – Gideon Levy and Mitri Raheb

2016-01-07

“The 2015 Olof Palme Prize is awarded to the Palestinian pastor Mitri Raheb, and the Israeli journalist Gideon Levy , for their courageous and indefatigable fight against occupation and violence, and for a future Middle East characterized by peaceful coexistence and equality for all. By their work they both give a ray of hope to a conflict that has plagued and continues to plague millions of people and to endanger world peace.As preacher and pastor in the Lutheran church, Mitri Raheb sends a clear message to the young generation of Palestinians: ”We want you to live, not die, for Palestine.” In a Bethlehem confined on three sides by the walls of the occupying Israeli power, and with Dar al-Kalima University College of Arts and Culture that he founded and his innovative artistic education in film, art, and drama, Raheb has made it possible for young people to investigate their Palestinian identity, to nurture beauty, and to invest in a culture of life as tools for a creative resistance against suffocating confinement and nation building.Gideon Levy is working for peace and reconciliation by means of a passionate search for truth and a fearless faith in the victory of reason in a region infested by prejudice and violence, propaganda and disinformation. With parents who were forced to emigrate from Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia, and as a true patriot, he has made reconciliation with the Palestinian people the mission of his life.”http://www.palmefonden.se/2015-gideon-levy-and-mitri-raheb/

2015 Nobel Prize in Literature – Svetlana Alexievich (from the Wall Street Journal)

http://www.wsj.com/articles/nobel-prize-for-literature-awarded-to-svetlana-alexievich-1444304784

Copyright Reuters

“It never ceases to amaze me how interesting ordinary, everyday life is. There are an endless number of human truths … History is only interested in facts; emotions are excluded from its realm of interest. It’s considered improper to admit them into history. I look at the world as a writer, not strictly an historian. I am fascinated by people.”

Today’s video with Ms. Alexievich:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vm1GLOklTyA

Another excellent article about Ms. Alexievich can be found in The Guardian. http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/oct/08/svetlana-alexievich-wins-2015-nobel-prize-in-literature

Congratulations to …

Congratulations to Lena for the first anniversary of her excellent photo blog! She posts from Sweden, a country so well represented at wordpress, with so many wonderful bloggers. Lena’s work can be seen at the link below. Many thanks to Lena and to all of you! (PS: Lena, I love the photo of the tail fin car!)

https://folcke.wordpress.com/2015/07/07/one-year-anniversary-thank-you/

Alice Munro, In Her Own Words: 2013 Nobel Prize in Literature