H. M. Farah Pahlavi Congratulates
Nobel Peace Prize Winner Mrs. Shirin Ebadi
Hear the Empress Radio Interview in Persian with KRSI
Friday October 10, 2003
Extracts from the Radio Statement by HM Shahbanou Farah Pahlavi, October 10, 2003,
on the Occasion of the Award of the 2003 Nobel Peace Prize to Shirin Ebadi
"This is a great honor for all Iranians. The non-violent struggle of Shirin Ebadi for the promotion of human rights in Iran, especially her fight for the realization of meaningful and legal equality for the rights of women and children, her support for students seeking freedom and democracy and for political prisoners, are all indicative of the truth that sincere and tireless efforts of human beings to achieve freedom will ultimately yields results. I have no doubt that all freedom loving Iranian men and women are proud of this unique achievement.
Shirin Ebadi is a perfect example and symbol for all of us. I again extend my felicitations to her, and I am sure the voices of all Iranians supporting freedom and human rights, wherever they may be, and especially in Iran, will be better heard and have deeper resonance."
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Iranian Lawyer Is Awarded Peace Prize for Human Rights Work
OSLO (Reuters) Excerpts - Iranian lawyer Shirin Ebadi became the first Muslim woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for a fearless defense of human rights in an award designed to spur wider democracy in the Islamic world.The Norwegian Nobel Committee praised Ebadi, Iran's first female judge before women were deemed too emotional to rule in courts after the 1979 revolution, for fighting for the rights of women and children.
Ebadi, 56, won from a record field of 165 candidates including Pope John Paul and ex-Czech President Vaclav Havel. Many hailed the award but former Polish President Lech Walesa, the 1983 Nobel winner, said the Polish pope should have won.
The five-member committee said Ebadi, jailed several times during her career and once branded a threat to the Islamic system, was a ``sound professional'' and a ``courageous person'' who had ``never heeded threats to her own safety. ``We hope that the prize will be an inspiration for all those who struggle for human rights and democracy in her country, in the Muslim world, and in all countries where the fight for human rights needs inspiration and support,'' the committee said.``I'm shocked, because I didn't imagine that I would win,'' Ebadi told Norway's NRK public television from Paris. ``It's very good for me, very good for human rights in Iran, good for democracy in Iran and especially children's rights in Iran.
Ebadi, a part-time teacher at Tehran University, later gave a news conference in Paris without the headscarf required under Islamic law. She said she would go to Oslo to receive the $1.3 million prize at the traditional December 10 ceremony. ``This prize gives me the energy to continue my fight,'' she declared.
Ebadi is the 11th woman to win since the Nobel prize was founded in 1901, the first Muslim woman laureate and the third Muslim winner -- after Palestinian President Yasser Arafat in 1994 and Egyptian President Anwar Sadat in 1978.
French President Jacques Chirac, on a visit to Morocco, said it was ``a good choice, an exceptional choice'' that rewarded ``a life entirely dedicated to the defense of democracy.'' European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana said Ebadi was ``an inspiration for her region more than ever and for the rest of the world.''