2010 Nobel Peace Prize

The 2010 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to imprisoned Chinese human rights activist Liu Xiaobo "for his long and non-violent struggle for fundamental human rights in China". The laureate, a little-known figure inside China due to official censorship,[1][2] is a veteran of the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, and co-author of the Charter 08 manifesto for which he was sentenced to 11 years in prison by Chinese authorities on 25 December 2009.[3] Liu was chosen over a record number of nominations – more than 200 – to receive the award.[3]
Intellectuals and politicians from the international community praised the decision, although the Chinese government bitterly attacked the decision. Heavy official censorship was applied on the Internet, on television and in the print media inside China following the announcement. The Chinese government denounced the award as "blasphemy", and summoned the Norwegian ambassador in Beijing "to officially share their opinion, their disagreement and their protest." Chinese citizens who attempted to celebrate were arrested.[4] Liu's wife was put under house arrest before the Nobel Committee's decision was announced. In November, the Chinese Embassy in Oslo circulated a note verbale to all other foreign diplomatic missions in Oslo requesting that their countries do not attend the award ceremony on 10 December.[5]
Liu is the first Chinese person (excluding the 14th Dalai Lama, a refugee) to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize,[6][7][8] and the first to be awarded a Nobel Prize of any kind while residing in China, though several Chinese scientists have previously received Nobel Prizes for work done outside the country, and Chinese-born French national Gao Xingjian was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2000.[9] Liu is also the third person to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize while in prison or detention, after Germany's Carl von Ossietzky (1935) and Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi (1991).

Nomination and announcement

On 7 October 2010, Norwegian television networks reported that Liu Xiaobo was the front-running candidate for the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize.[10] The Nobel Committee disclosed that there were a record number of nominations in 2010. A total of 237 names were submitted, of which 38 were organizations.[11]


Crowd gathers outside Liu Xiaobo's residence prior to announcement
Liu was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by International PEN, the worldwide association of writers.[7] On 18 January 2010, Václav Havel and others, including the 14th Dalai Lama, André Glucksmann, Vartan Gregorian, Mike Moore, Karel Schwarzenberg, Desmond Tutu and Grigory Yavlinsky wrote to lobby on his behalf.[3][12] However, 14 exiled dissidents had written to lobby the Nobel Committee against Liu's nomination, arguing that Liu had abandoned the Falun Gong spiritual movement and was 'soft' on China’s leaders.[13] The Chinese foreign ministry warned the Nobel Committee that giving Liu the prize would be against Nobel principles.[14] However, the Nobel Committee secretary stated the award would not be influenced by Beijing's opposition.[15] The monetary prize is 10M Swedish kronor ($1.5M; 10M yuan).[16]
AFP reported that the Nobel Institute director and secretary of the Nobel Committee, Geir Lundestad, was warned about giving the prize to Liu Xiaobo by Vice Foreign Minister Fu Ying at a meeting convened by the Chinese embassy in Oslo in June. Lundestad was told it would be seen as an "unfriendly gesture".Cite error: Closing missing for tag; see the help page
Irish bookmaker Paddy Power paid out two days before the announcement after experiencing a noticeable increase in bets.[3] Shortly before the announcement, Liu's wife, Liu Xia, refused to be interviewed by telephone, saying there were police at her home. Her telephone went unanswered once the announcement was made.[8] Nobel Committee chairman Thorbjørn Jagland made the announcement early on 8 October 2010 in Oslo.[17] He said the choice of Liu had become clear early in the process.[14] {{cquote|"The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided to award the Nobel Peace Prize for 2010 to Liu Xiaobo for his long and non-violent struggle for fundamental human rights in China. The Norwegian Nobel Committee has long believed that there is a close connection between human rights and peace. Such rights are a prerequisite for the "fraternity between nations" of which Alfred Nobel wrote in his will.... The campaign to establish universal human rights also in China is being waged by many Chinese, both in China itself and abroad. Through the severe punishment meted out to him, Liu has become the foremost symbol of this wide-ranging struggle for human rights in China. |20px|20px|Norwegian Nobel Committee, 8 October 2010Cite error: Closing missing for tag; see the help page Meetings and gatherings to celebrate were prevented or were abruptly broken up by Beijing police.[18]
[edit]Initial reactions

[edit]Chinese media reporting
In contrast with the earlier announcements of Nobel Prize winners, which were given top coverage, China Central Television's primeAccording to a well-informed Twitter user, the Information Office of the State Council issued a directive immediately after the announcement that microblog services across the country were to set 'Liu Xiaobo' and 'Peace Prize' as prohibited keywords; forums, blogs and other interactive media were forbidden from releasing any information.[1]Cite error: Closing missing for tag; see the help page The Chinese government ordered the deletion of all print and broadcast stories on the topic.[19] The Global Times said the act was "nothing more than another expression of this prejudice, and behind it lies an extraordinary terror of China’s rise and the Chinese model".[20] It also headlined an article as "The endless ideological wars against China." In the article, it said the award is "part of a concerto supplemented by various NGOs, economic entities and international organisations orchestrated by the developed countries. They hope to harass China's growth and press China to surrender more economic interests. They even hope that China will one day collapse under the West's ideological crusade."[21]
Foreign broadcast coverage, such as from the BBC and CNN, was blacked out whenever Liu was mentioned.[7][22][23] In Guangdong, signal carriers for Hong Kong TVB were blocked for approximately eight minutes during the 6 pm evening news broadcast, removing any mention of the Nobel Peace Prize.[24]
After a week of denunciations in China's English-language media, with most journals silent about the award except for perfunctory quotes from the foreign ministry, the country's Chinese-language media launched a concerted assault on Liu and the award, accompanied by renewed attacks in the English-language media. Xinhua argued on 17 October that the Communist Party had made "unremitting efforts to promote and safeguard human rights", and questioned in what ways Liu's actions had contributed to human rights progress for China's people.[25] The agency cited a journal from Saudi Arabia and one from Russia that had denounced the award, and quoted the Pakistani Foreign Office as saying, “The politicization of the Nobel Peace Prize for the purposes of interference in the domestic affairs of states is not only contrary to the recognized principles of inter-State conduct but also a negation of the underlying spirit conceived by the founder of the Prize.”[26] On 18 October, the Global Times published the results of a telephone poll of 866 Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou residents, which the journal said was chosen at random, in which 58.6 percent of respondents said the Committee should take back the prize and apologise to the Chinese people, and more than half said Liu should be detained until his parole date. At the same time, the journal said there was a low recognition of Liu among the public in China, as more than 75 percent of respondents had no idea who the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize was.[27]
[edit]Chinese authorities' reactions
Following the announcement on 8 October 2010, Xinhua relayed the Russian news agency denunciation of the prize.[28] China summoned the Norwegian ambassador in Beijing to make a formal protest.[29] The Foreign Ministry spokesman condemned politicians from some countries for using the award as an opportunity to attack China: "This is not only disrespect for China's judicial system but also puts a big question mark on their true intention."[30] The foreign ministry statement, labelling the decision "a blasphemy", was carried on Chinese state television.[23]
“ The Nobel Peace Prize should be awarded to people who contribute to national harmony, country-to-country friendship, advancing disarmament, and convening and propagandizing peace conferences. Liu was a criminal sentenced by the Chinese judicial authorities for violating Chinese law... The Nobel committee's decision to award such a person the peace prize runs contrary to and desecrates the prize. ”
—Ma Zhaoxu, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman, 8 October 2010[8][31]
China protested to Norway, saying that China – Norway relations had been damaged.[7][22][23][32] A planned meeting in Beijing between Norwegian Fisheries Minister Lisbeth Berg-Hansen and Chinese food control authorities was cancelled at the last minute, ostensibly because their counterparts had "other engagements"; a meeting scheduled for the same day between Berg-Hansen and China's vice-minister for fisheries had previously been cancelled in reaction to the award, according to Norwegian officials. Elsewhere, performances of a Norwegian musical scheduled for the following month starring Alexander Rybak, winner of the Eurovision Song Contest 2009, were cancelled as a political sanction, according to the musical's composer.[33] In early December, Norway said China indefinitely postponed bilateral talks for a landmark trade deal. Norway's negotiator said Beijing did not openly link the postponement to the award to Liu, but the director of international relations at the BI Norwegian School of Management observed that the Chinese "would never hold a high-level meeting with Norway shortly before or after the ceremony."[34]
Since the announcement, Liu Xia has been under house-arrest except for a trip to visit her husband in prison. She reports that she has been denied visitors, her telephones have been repeatedly cut off, and that even her elderly mother has not been able to get through. Visitors, including Norwegian diplomats who attempted to see her on 12 October, were turned back at the entrance to her residential compound. Her only contact with the outside world is by Twitter.[35] Chinese police cordoned off Liu's house and prevented his wife from giving interviews.[7][36] They kept journalists and well-wishers at bay for several hours until she was whisked away to visit her husband. "They are forcing me to leave Beijing", Reuters quoted her as saying.[2][7]
Dissident groups reported on 18 October that numerous supporters or associates of Liu may have been detained by police: Tiananmen Mother, Ding Zilin and her husband Jiang Peikun have not been seen or heard from for four days; their phones have been cut off. Writer Jiang Qisheng went missing just days after the Nobel announcement.[37]
As exiled prominent activists and former activists were reportedly preparing to attend the award ceremony, some prominent individuals and activists inside China experienced travel problems. Economist Mao Yushi, who signed Charter08, Ai Weiwei and rights lawyer Liu Xiaoyuan were all prevented by police at Beijing's airport from outbound travel, ostensibly because their departure from China could "endanger state security".[38] Liu's lawyer, Mo Shaoping, and Peking University law professor He Weifang were prevented from boarding a flight bound for London in November. There were media reports that even the spouses or children of some outspoken intellectuals had been stopped from leaving the country.[38] Speaking of the prohibition, Ai, who was about to board a flight for Korea, said "I think there’s a direct connection with next week's Nobel Peace Prize awardtheir efforts to bar prominent members of Chinese civil society from travelling internationally as the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony approaches."[34] In all, the BBC cites the UN saying it had information that China detained at least 20 activists ahead of the ceremony, and reported sources saying there were a further 120 cases of house arrest, travel restriction, forced relocation and other acts of intimidation of dissidents ahead of the ceremony.[39]
[edit]Liu Xia and Liu Xiaobo
Liu Xia expressed her gratitude to the Nobel Committee, Liu's proposers, and those who have been supporting him since 1989, including the mothers of those who were killed or had disappeared in the military crackdown. She said, "The prize should belong to all who signed Charter 08 and were jailed due to their support".[40]
“ The award is first and foremost for the Tiananmen martyrs. ”
— Liu Xiaobo, 9 October 2010[41]
Liu Xia would inform the laureate of his award during a visit to Jinzhou Prison on 9 October 2010, one day after the official announcement.[19] She reported that Liu wept and dedicated the award to those who suffered as a result of the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989.[42] After Ms. Liu returned home, she was put under house arrest and was watched by armed guards.[41][42] She expressed the desire to attend the prize-giving in Norway in December, but was sceptical of her chances of being allowed to do so.[43] Liu Xia wrote an open letter to 143 prominent figures, encouraging them to attend the award ceremony in Oslo.[44]
[edit]Intellectuals
We're calling upon Chinese authorities to respond to the peace prize with rationality and realism, and to take stock of warm responses from home and abroad to gain clear understanding of the world's opinion and where people have placed their hearts
open letter urging Beijing government to release Liu Xiaobo[45]
John Pomfret of The Washington Post said a wide spectrum of Chinese and foreigners believed that Liu's award "could actually resonate more deeply within China than any similar act in years".[6] In an open letter signed by about 200 mainland intellectuals and activists and posted in Chinese, English, French and Japanese on websites hosted outside China, Liu was described as "a splendid choice", because the prize recognised his beliefs in advancing human rights causes and the peaceful fight against social injustice.[45] Artist and critic Ai Weiwei said the regime should be most ashamed, but also many intellectuals who had drifted away from their public responsibilities ought to feel shame for betraying the values for which they once strove. Ai said that the Prize was a message from the international community, urging that the Chinese government respect mankind's universal values, notwithstanding its economic performance.[46] Writer Liao Yiwu, a close friend of Liu, described it as "a big moment in Chinese history".[22] Another writer, Yu Jie, said he spent the night awake with tears streaming down his face – "Twenty years ago Liu Xiaobo said that China needed someone with moral clarity about what China needs. Now he has become just that person, that he himself was looking for", he said.[47] Former Chinese diplomat Yang Hengjun described it as a strong signal to the Chinese government to speed up political reform "or you will have a lot of enemies around you and within you."[8]
Exiled 1989 student leader Wang Dan said he was 'ecstatic'.[2] Human rights lawyer Li Heping called the award "huge encouragement for the Chinese people ... an affirmation that there are people around the world who really care about human rights and the legal system in China, that the world hasn’t forgotten us." He added that others, such as Gao Zhisheng, Chen Guangcheng, and Hu Jia, also deserved the prize.[19] The Globe and Mail said that while many activists agreed he was worthy of the award, some radical reformers within Chinese democracy movement,[7] such as Wei Jingsheng,[48] see the moderate Liu as the "wrong choice" for his advocacy of a gradual path to constitutional democracy in China.[7][13]
Renmin University professor Zhang Ming doubted the award would have much direct impact. However, economist Mao Yushi said that giving the prize to Liu would have an impact not only on China's current leaders but their successors. He said the Peace Prize represented the impetus from the international community, and was but one of several forces working towards what form this should take.[46]
[edit]Chinese public
"Liu Xiaobo" or "Nobel Peace Prize" became the most searched terms among internet users in China.[7] However, some time after the release of the official response from the Chinese Foreign Ministry, government censors screened the news item, and there were reports of searches in China using Chinese search engines returning error pages.[23] Web searches using Chinese search engines for "Liu Xiaobo" in Chinese without attaching the words "Peace Prize," gave information about Liu. Yet most sites found "Liu" plus "Peace Prize" yield only the official foreign ministry response.[49] There were reports that any mentions of "Nobel Prize" on microblogging sites were removed by authorities.[23] One netizen claimed that his SIM card had been deactivated after texting a relative about the Nobel Peace Prize.[23] Accustomed to circumventing Chinese Internet censorship, bloggers and forum-users used variants of Liu's name[50] and posted subtle or cryptic messages to express their elation about the award or sarcasm towards the state. However, even the carefully crafted blog post on the subject, by Han Han, the world's most widely read blogger, has been removed by censors.[2]
Other meetings to commemorate the award were prevented by authorities; prominent intellectuals and other dissidents were detained, harassed or put under surveillance.[1]
[edit]Hong Kong
Many political groups, including the Democratic Party and the Hong Kong Journalists Association, welcomed the decision and congratulated Liu.[51] The Journalists Association expressed its gratitude and encouragement for Liu's award, and hoped for the early unconditional release of the political prisoner.[52] Hong Kong's Chief Executive, Donald Tsang, other government ministers Leung Chun-ying, Gregory So all declined to comment to the press.[53]
The South China Morning Post said that Liu's courage to stand up for the rights of all people – for the fourth time since the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests – made him worthy of joining the company of other similarly persecuted peace prize winners such as Nelson Mandela. It said: "Liu is just one of a long line of like-minded Chinese citizens to be silenced. The award will be seen in many quarters as acknowledging their sacrifice for the values it upholds."[54] Hong Kong-based Phoenix Television, which transmits throughout China by satellite, limited its report to the foreign ministry's statement denouncing the honour.[2]
About 20 activists held a celebration in front of the central government liaison office. Their celebration was broken up and the activists were arrested for assault after a guard was accidentally sprayed with champagne. Human Rights Monitor, and a Democratic Party legislator, denounced the heavy-handed actions of the police.[11][55] The loyalist President of LegCo turned down an adjournment motion on 15 October submitted by Leung Kwok-hung calling for the release of Liu on grounds that such debate "lacked urgency and would not produce irreversible consequences."[56] On 17 October, thirty supporters of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements in China, organisers of the annual commemoration of the 1989 Tiananmen protests, held a march to the central government liaison office, calling on the central government to release Liu and allow him to attend the prize-giving in December.[57]
[edit]Taiwan
One day after the award announcement, the Presidential Office said Chinese dissidents should be treated with more tolerance, and president Ma Ying-jeou publicly urged Beijing to release Liu and to "solve major human rights incidents with honesty and confidence."[58][59] Forty-eight non-governmental organisations issued a two-page statement expressing optimism for political change in China, praised Liu's non-violent struggle for human rights and democracy in China, and called on the Chinese government for his release.[58]
The Taipei Times said that the award was an indication of strong support for China’s democracy movement, and that change was unavoidable. "The CCP needs to decide whether to attempt to obstruct democracy or facilitate its development. If it chooses the former then history will pass it by, just as it did the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. If, however, the CCP decides to embrace change then it could... remain a political force" like the Kuomintang in Taiwan.[60]
[edit]Norway
In advance of an official Chinese response to the Nobel committee's decision, Norwegian foreign minister Jonas Gahr Støre said that a Chinese complaint to the Norwegian government would be in vain, as the committee was independent from the Norwegian government although it was appointed by the Parliament of Norway.[61] After the announcement, Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg said the decision "directs a spotlight on the human rights situation in China, and underscores the links between development, democracy and universal human rights."[19] The wishes of Alfred Nobel, acknowledged the work of Liu.[62][63] Norway summoned the Chinese ambassador to Norway to express its regret at China's reaction, to urge for the release of Liu and to remove restrictions on his wife.[25] Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten revealed that foreign minister Støre had had a pre-emptive meeting with Nobel Committee chairman Thorbjørn Jagland, about Liu as the expected recipient two weeks prior to the announcement. According to anonymous sources within both the Foreign Ministry and the Nobel Committee itself, Støre is said to have raised certain "concerns". Press quoted Jagland saying that this enquiry was of such a peculiar kind that he would have to present the Nobel Committee with minutes of the meeting.[64] Former Nobel Committee chairman Ole Danbolt Mjøs and a number of Norwegian researchers, politicians criticised Støre for breach of protocol and meddling in the work of the committee.[65]
[edit]International political reactions
While the Cuban and Venezuelan governments were notably critical, leading politicians in the Western world welcomed the news, and called for the release of Liu; non-aligned and developing countries such as Brazil and Russia were conspicuously silent.[66] UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon recognised China's remarkable economic advances that have lifted millions out of poverty, and said he hoped that "any differences on this decision will not detract from advancement of the human rights agenda globally or the high prestige and inspirational power of the award".[67] The United States called for the immediate release of Liu; President Obama called him "eloquent and courageous".[68][69]
The European Union and member governments praised the decision;[70] France, Germany, the UK joined in, calling on China to release Liu.[17] European Commission President José Manuel Barroso stated that "the decision of the Nobel Peace Prize Committee is a strong message of support to all those around the world who, sometimes with great personal sacrifice, are struggling for freedom and human rights."[71] The Polish foreign ministry said it was appreciative of the decision to award Liu.[72] Japan greeted the award, stressing the importance of respecting human rights, but did not specifically call for Liu's release; Premier Naoto Kan told a parliamentary committee it would be "desirable for him to be released", without explicitly demanding Liu's release.[73] The Australian prime minister, Julia Gillard, said Australia had made representations on his behalf to the Chinese government and "we welcome the fact that his work has been recognised internationally now with the Nobel Peace Prize",[74] while the Greens leader Bob Brown described the decision as "inspiring". However, Brown criticised the "sheer ignorance and gutlessness of most of Australia's politicians on the plight of campaigning democrats in China".[75] The Canadian prime minister, Stephen Harper, expressed his delight, and said he hoped the award "would cause our friends in the , Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez took sides with China that the award should be given to those who "have done the most for fraternity between nations, the abolition or reduction of standing armies and promotion of peace congresses".[76] Pakistan[77] and Cuba denounced the choice, saying Liu was exactly "the type of 'dissident' that the United States has been designing for decades to use ... as fifth columns in those countries that they disagree with because those countries dissent from [American] hegemony,"[78] The United Arab Emirates expressed regret at the award being given to Liu and considered it to be politicallly motivated, "running against the UAE's fundamental belief in respecting other nations' sovereignty and non-interference."[79]
The Dalai Lama said he had been moved and encouraged by the efforts of Liu and others calling for democracy and freedom in China. He praised the award as "the international community's recognition of the increasing voices among the Chinese people in pushing China towards political, legal and constitutional reforms."[80] Former Polish president Lech Wałęsa said he was "very satisfied", describing the award as "a challenge for China and the entire world, [which] must declare whether it is ready to help China enter a zone where there is respect for the principles and values".[72] Mario Vargas Llosa, awarded the 2010 Nobel Prize in Literature, said it was a timely reminder that China was still a dictatorship and quite monolithic regarding politics, and that the award was "a tribute to all Chinese dissidents and all Chinese who want, not just economic, but also political growth and progress in China."[81]
Human Rights Watch said the 2010 award "honors all those in China who struggle daily to make the government more accountable"[82] and "shatter[s] the myth where the Communist Party presents itself as the voice of the Chinese people"[83] Canadian academic Professor Josephine Chiu-Duke said she suspected many inside the Communist Party of China would be elated: “They are just like us, hoping that China can be free, democratic and civilized”, and that the award will "encourag[e] more Chinese to speak up."[19] Former British diplomat Kerry Brown lamented that, economically powerful though China is, its sole Nobel prize winner languishes in prison.[19]
On 8 December, the House of Representatives voted by 402-1 to congratulate Liu and honour his “promotion of democratic reform in China, and the courage with which he has borne repeated imprisonment... and [call] on the government of China to cease censoring media and internet reporting of the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to Liu Xiaobo and to cease its campaign of defamation against Liu Xiaobo.”[84] The Chinese Foreign Ministry responded by accusing US lawmakers of possessing an "arrogant and unreasonable attitude" and lacking respect for China's judicial sovereignty."[85] Ahead of the award ceremony, Barack Obama said:
“ "Mr Liu Xiaobo is far more deserving of this award than I was... [He] reminds us that human dignity also depends upon the advance of democracy, open society, and the rule of law... The values he espouses are universal, his struggle is peaceful, and he should be released as soon as possible ”
—Barack Obama, December 2010[86]
On the 8th December, 2010. India snubbed the negative reaction of China against Liu Xiaboa being given the Nobel Peace Prize. It even called this issue to not be considered bilateral and it should not affect Sino-Indian relations[87].
[edit]International media
RIA Novosti, the Russian state-owned news service, immediately denounced the prize as a "political tool". This denunciation was swiftly picked up by Xinhua and relayed inside China.[28]
In an editorial, The Guardian said "to many western ears, the clamour of China's markets is louder than the pleas of its dissidents. The Nobel committee is one of few institutions with sufficient status to be heard around the world. Its most coveted prize can now amplify Mr Liu's voice."[88] The Telegraph said that the award was justified not only by Mr Liu’s own courage, it is "also a rebuke to Western governments, so hypnotised by China’s riches and cowed by self-interest that they have shut their eyes and ears to the regime’s abuses of human rights."[89]
The New York Times applauded the award: "Beijing is used to throwing its weight around these days – on currency, trade, the South China Sea and many other issues. Too many governments, and companies, are afraid to push back. Maybe someone in China’s leadership will now figure out that bullying is not a strategy for an aspiring world power."[90]
The left-leaning French daily, Libération, referred to Liu as 'the Chinese Havel', saying "the Chinese government wanted to show the world that nothing would stop it from silencing its critics. However, China is today a part of the international community, and must respect the norms it accepted when it signed up for UN membership. The pressure it exerted upon the Nobel prize committee not to award Liu is unacceptable.[91]
[edit]Confucius Peace Prize
Reuters has reported on the establishment of a Chinese alternative to the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize, the "Confucius Peace Prize".[92] The award, along with $15,000 prize money, was won by former Taiwanese vice-president Lien Chan. Reuters reports that, "It was meant to be China's answer to the Nobel Peace Prize, a timely riposte to the honoring of jailed dissident Liu Xiaobo."[92]
However, Lien Chan failed to appear at the ceremony and the award was instead collected by a young girl in front of an audience of over 100 journalists. Officials from the Taiwanese government are reported to find the award of the Confucius Peace Prize to Lien Chan "amusing".[92]
The organiser of the award, Mr Tan Changliu, has denied any involvement by the Chinese government with the award.[92]
The Economist notes the irony of organizing a substitute award by the Chinese, who have shown themselves very sensitive to comparisons made between the current situation and von Ossietzky in Nazi Germany; Adolf Hitler created the German National Prize for Art and Science in 1937 as a replacement award after prohibiting Germans from accepting the Nobel Prize.[93]
In the period leading up to the award ceremony, the Chinese authorities commenced a campaign through state media to criticise both Liu and the prize, and their foreign service, both in Beijing and abroad targeted Western government officials urging that they stay away from the award ceremony in Oslo on 10 December as well as refrain from issuing any statements of support for Liu. At least two European embassies in Norway had been sent letters by their Chinese counterparts, denouncing the prize for being an interference in China's internal affairs, and reaffirming their stance that Liu had committed crimes in China. One diplomat said his embassy's letter from the Chinese embassy requested obliquely that they "refrain from attending any activity directed against China." The Norwegian Nobel Committee said its invitation to the Chinese ambassador to attend the prize-giving was returned unopened.[94]
[edit]Cyber warfare attacks

Less than three weeks after the announcement of Liu as this year's recipient, the Nobel Peace Prize website came under cyber attack originating in Taiwan. This exposed visitors to the site to the risk of infection by a Trojan horse which could take control over the victim's computer. The last IP address used in the attack was backtraced to the National Chiao Tung University in Hsinchu, although that may not have been the real originating address of that particular attack[95][44]
On 3 November the computer of the secretary of the Nobel Committee, Geir Lundestad, was attempted broken into via an email from a named executive of one of the IT companies associated with the institute. In the forged email, Lundestad was given a link to a page where he was requested to surrender his username and password. Instead he notified the National Security Authority and this incident is being investigated by the police. This attack was believed to have the same perpetrator as the previous attack in that it originated from the same dynamic DNS server.[96]
In yet another incident an unknown number of individuals have received an email containing malware which on the surface is an invitation to the award ceremony from the Oslo Freedom Forum. This email is presenting a PDF file which looks very professionally made. This attacker has also been traced to the same server as the previous attacks.[97]
[edit]The award ceremony



A large number of countries turned down an invitation to attend the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize ceremony. Blue means the country attended, while red signifies the country did not.[98][99]
In December, the Chinese foreign ministry continued to denounce the award as "interference by a few clowns". It said "more than 100 countries and international organisations [had] expressed explicit support of China’s position opposing this year’s peace prize."[100][101] However, according to the Nobel Committee, only the 65 countries with diplomatic missions were invited; acceptances had been received from 46 countries,[100] including the previously committal India,[102] while China and 19 others – Afghanistan, Algeria, Argentina, Cuba, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Morocco, Nepal,[103] Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tunisia, Venezuela and Vietnam – declined invitations to the award ceremony "for various reasons".[100][104] Colombia, Serbia,[105], the Philippines and Ukraine initially announced they would not attend but later accepted the invitation.[106][107] The Philippines ended up not sending a representative. The government denied a boycott of the ceremony, citing scheduling issues as the reason for not attending. [108]
The award ceremony, held as planned in Oslo City Hall in the afternoon of 10 December, was attended by approximately 1,000 VIPs, diplomats and guests, among whom were King Harald V and Queen Sonja, Norwegian politicians and officials, 48 foreign state representatives, US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and 46 Chinese guests. The latter grouping included Yang Jianli and former Tiananmen student leaders Chai Ling , Wu'erkaixi, Feng Congde, Fang Zheng , a former student whose legs were crushed by a tank as he fled Tiananmen Square in 1989, and astrophysicist Professor Fang Lizhi; the Hong Kong delegation consisted of Albert Ho, Emily Lau and Lee Cheuk-yan[109] There was a demonstration outside the hall by pro-democracy and human rights activists,[110] and approximately 50 China supporters demonstrated outside the Norwegian Parliament.[109]


A light vigil held at Hong Kong's Chater Garden
During the ceremony, the Nobel committee chairman Thorbjorn Jagland credited China's economic transformation which has lifted millions of people out of poverty, calling it an "extraordinary achievement", but said the Chinese leadership "must regard criticism as positive" considering China's new status as a world power.[39][110] Liu is the third person to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize while in prison or detention, after Germany's Carl von Ossietzky (1935) and Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi (1991), and the only one other than Ossietzky not to be present or represented by close family at the awards ceremony.[110][39] The Nobel diploma and the prize was symbolically placed by Jagland on an empty chair meant for the absent laureate. Norwegian actress Liv Ullmann then took to the podium and read I Have No Enemies, an essay by Liu written for his trial in December 2009.[39][110]
“ I, filled with optimism, look forward to the advent of a future, free China. For there is no force that can put an end to the human quest for freedom, and China will in the end become a nation ruled by law, where human rights reign supreme. ”
—Liu Xiaobo, I Have No Enemies, 23 December 2009[110]
The proceedings were televised by international media, but broadcast signals on CNN and BBC inside China were reportedly blocked.[39] After the ceremony, Xinhua, the official Chinese news agency continued the rhetoric against the award:
“ There are always some who cling to the Cold-War or even colonial mentality, even in this 21st century. They regard themselves as the judge, the teacher, even though they have never been selected by the people of developing countries. They have never experienced the real life in developing countries, but they tend to act like the Savior wherever they go. They assume that they can forever distort the fact and block the truth by using political maneuvers. ”