What Nobel really wanted
Is the Nobel Peace Prize still contributing to world peace in the way Alfred Nobel envisioned?
Arrests and condemnations are following the decision to award the Nobel Peace Prize to Liu Xiaobo, a Chinese activist who is serving 11 years in prison for subversion.
Chinese authorities are reported to have detained supporters of Liu Xiaobo in different Chinese cities.
The Nobel committee said it gave him the Peace Prize for using non-violence to demand fundamental human rights.
But the Chinese government has been enraged with the choice, summoning the Norwegian ambassador in protest.
With raising tensions between China and the West, is the Nobel Peace Prize still contributing to world peace in the way Alfred Nobel envisioned? Is the prize making bold moves to support surpressed voices? Or is it straying out of its mission statement?
Joining the programme are Fredrik Heffermehl, the author of the book Nobel Peace Prize: What Nobel Really Wanted, and Andrew Leung, an independent China specialist.
This episode of Inside Story aired from Saturday, October 9, 2010.