October 9, 2009

President Barack Obama

The International Nobel Peace Committee has honored President Barack Obama with the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize for "his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and co-operation between peoples." The award comes as President Obama has launched an ambitious agenda both domestically and on the international front.The Muslim Public Affairs Council congratulates President Obama and the country on this very prestigious occasion.

It is our hope that the award will propel the forces of peace and reconciliation around the world and give the President much needed momentum to further a vision of diplomacy and respect between the peoples of the world, said Salam Al-Marayati, MPAC Executive Director.

The Nobel Committee described their decision to award the President this year's prize in a statement, which read: "His diplomacy is founded in the concept that those who are to lead the world must do so on the basis of values and attitudes that are shared by the majority of the world's population." The President's approach to engaging the global community has had a three-pronged approach:

1. Government-to-Government.

2. Government-to-People.

3. People-to-People.

The President's speech in Cairo, which signaled a commitment to increasing dialogue between American citizens and Muslims worldwide and his stated support for civil society in various parts of the world has opened a window of hope. It has also renewed an opportunity for discussion among people and between governments and people. Citizens with an unwavering commitment to justice and peace must seize this window of opportunity. The current challenge is to see if government-to-government engagement will progress and whether the willingness and ability of those who formulate policies around the world will coincide with the aspirations of the world's citizens.

"In less than a year in office, he has transformed the way we look at ourselves and the world we live in and rekindled hope for a world at peace with itself," fellow Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Mohamed ElBaradei, who heads of the International Atomic Energy Association, said today. ElBaradei also received MPAC's Human Security Award in 2006. Fellow Nobel Peace Prize winner Shirin Ebadi, a trailblazing Iranian human rights activist, will receive MPAC's 3rd Human Security Award next week in Washington, DC. MPAC is committed to the call for peace and justice and will continue to work with the citizens of our country and those around the world to realize a more hopeful, peaceful and just world.