Ales Bialiatski awarded the Nobel Peace Prize 2022

The 2022 Nobel Peace Prize is awarded to human rights advocate Ales Bialiatski from Belarus, the Russian human rights organization Memorial and the Ukrainian human rights organization Center for Civil Liberties.

Bialiatski was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for the sixth time this year. He became the fourth person to receive the prize while in prison or in detention.

“The Peace Prize laureates represent civil society in their home countries. They have for many years promoted the right to criticise power and protect the fundamental rights of citizens. They have made an outstanding effort to document war crimes, human right abuses and the abuse of power. Together they demonstrate the significance of civil society for peace and democracy.” said the Nobel Prize committee.

The committee also noted that Bialiatski was one of the initiators of the democracy movement that emerged in Belarus in the mid-1980s. He has devoted his life to promoting democracy and peaceful development in his home country. 

Chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee Berit Reiss-Andersen noted:

“Through their consistent efforts in favour of humanist values, anti-militarism and principles of law, this year’s laureates have revitalised and honoured Alfred Nobel’s vision of peace and fraternity between nations – a vision most needed in the world today.”

She has also called on the Belarusian authorities to release Ales Bialiatski from prison so that he could come to Oslo and accept the award in person. The committee expressed the hope that the award would boost the morale of the human rights defender.

Ales Bialiatski is the founder and chairman of the Human Rights Center Viasna and former vice president of the International Federation for Human Rights (2007-2016).

Over 25 years of activity, Bialiatski has received numerous prizes in the field of human rights: in 2006 - the Swedish Peer Anger Prize, the Andrei Sakharov Freedom Award, the Homo Homini Award (awarded by Václav Havel); in 2011 - Human Rights Defender of the Year Award, Norwegian Writers' Union Award for Freedom of Speech; in 2012 - the U.S. State Department's Award, Lech Wałęsa Award, Petra Kelly Award; in 2013 - PACE's Václav Havel Human Rights Prize; in 2020 - the Right Livelihood Award. He has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize five times. Ales is the author of several books.

Ales Bialiatski was arrested on July 14, 2021, in a series of criminal investigations targeting the organization's leaders and regular members for their human rights activities and assistance to people in defending their rights and public interests known as Viasna case.