The Norwegian Nobel Committee has awarded the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize to South African jurist Navanethem “Navi” Pillay, citing her efforts to promote peace and international law.
The committee said it wished to remind the world that the rule of law, both national and international, underpins the system set up to resolve conflicts without violence. “Peace requires justice,” it said.
Ms Pillay was born in Durban, South Africa, into a family of Indian Tamil origin under apartheid. She became a lawyer and, in the committee’s words, a legal pioneer who confronted deep structural discrimination, segregation and exclusion.
Career
She has served as a judge on the High Court in South Africa, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and the International Criminal Court. She was also the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and until recently chaired the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
Ms Pillay is also a judge on the International Court of Justice in the case in which Myanmar stands accused of genocide.
Last year’s Peace Prize went to Venezuela’s María Corina Machado.
The winners receive 12 million Swedish kronor, about $1.2 million. The prizes are presented on 10 December, the anniversary of the death of Alfred Nobel, who founded them through his will. The Economic Sciences prize will be announced on 12 October.
