2 journalists win Nobel Peace Prize'

The Philippines’ Maria Ressa and Russia’s Dmitry Muratov cited for their ‘courageous fight for freedom of expression’

OSLO • Ms Maria Ressa and Mr Dmitry Muratov, journalists whose work has angered the leaders of the Philippines and Russia, were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize yesterday, an award the committee said was an endorsement of free speech rights under threat worldwide.

The two were awarded “for their courageous fight for freedom of expression” in their countries, chairman Berit Reiss-Andersen of the Norwegian Nobel Committee told a news conference.

“At the same time, they are representatives of all journalists who stand up for this ideal in a world in which democracy and freedom of the press face increasingly adverse conditions,” she added. “Free, independent and fact-based journalism serves to protect against abuse of power, lies and war propaganda.”

Mr Muratov dedicated his award to six contributors to his Novaya Gazeta newspaper who had been murdered for their work exposing human rights violations and corruption.

“We will leverage this prize in the interests of Russian journalism which (the authorities) are now trying to repress,” Mr Muratov told Podyom, a journalism website. “We will try to help people who have been recognised as agents, who are now being treated like dirt and being exiled from the country.”

Ms Ressa, who has faced years of legal cases in the Philippines over the work of her Rappler website, said the prize would help her organ isation’s mission. “We’re going through a dark time, a difficult time, but I think that we hold the line,” she said. “We realise that what we do today is going to determine what our tomorrow is going to be.”