For the first time since 1936, the Nobel Peace Prize will not be handed over to the winner himself, Liu Xiaobo, or a member of his family.

Back then, it was pacifist Carl von Ossietzky living in Nazi Germany who could not attend.

In 2010, Communist China is the obstacle; an uncomfortable comparison.

But ever since the Nobel announcement, China has responded angrily by placing not only Liu Xiaobo's wife under house arrest, but human rights activists everywhere, and more than anything else, limited discussions in the country about political liberalisation have been censored.

Al Jazeera's Melissa Chan reports.