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WikiLeaks nominated for Nobel Peace Prize

The whistleblowing website is one of 241 nominees for the annual award.

By Duncan Robinson Published 01 March 2011 17:46

The whistleblowing website WikiLeaks has today been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

The nomination comes after a stellar year for the anti-secrecy site, which became a household name after releasing the Afghanistan and Iraq war logs and, more recently, more than 250,000 US diplomatic cables.

In recent months, however, an increasing number of allegations against the website's founder, Julian Assange, have overshadowed the site's achievements.

Today's announcement comes just days after Assange lost his fight against extradition to Sweden, to face allegations of rape and sexual molestation. New allegations also appeared today in Private Eye, which claims that Assange blames his plight on three journalists – Alan Rusbridger, David Leigh and the former editor of the New Statesman John Kampfner – all of whom, Assange claimed falsely, "were Jewish".

The other nominees for the prize include the Afghan rights advocate Sima Samar, the European Union, the former German chancellor Helmut Kohl, the Cuban dissident Oswaldo Paya Sardinas, and the Russian rights group Memorial as well as its founder, Svetlana Gannushkina.

Tags: Julian Assange wikileaks

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12 comments

Wed, 2011-03-02 13:00 — grinningjohnson (not verified)

@GTGALE Were you shouting while you were typing or did you just leave caps lock on? Ask yourself this: What's more wrong - Covering up the deaths of 200,000 Iraqis (as the Peace prize winning Barack Obama did) or telling the world that 200,000 Iraqis were killed?

Tue, 2011-03-29 04:56 — john d. herring (not verified)

hello there, I am the inventor that invented the Earthquake Early Warning System that just saved 1,000`s of life`s in Japan. And now I havew invented e.l.s.a. a simple device that make`s ENERGY from GRAVITY that the average teenager can build fow a few hundred dollar`s and all store bought part`s. - If Japan ever needed help ! They nee e.l.s.a. as soon as possible. And I will nbe giving e.l.s.a. to them. - emagin if you can Energy from Gravity No fuel of any kind Free Energy for all, for life. This Is Not a Joke e.l.s.a. uses a liquid like water work`s just fine, e.l.s.a. has been running in my back-yard for month`s now and it`s still runing just fine.
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Wed, 2011-03-02 13:21 — jie4v7i14

Wikileaks has certainly shaken up the western based world establishment.

There could be a case for the peace prize for them, if anyone would care to tell us in the media what positive effects has come from their actions. Or has the media been gagged?

Tue, 2011-03-01 18:08 — swatantra

Shouldn't that be in the 'Literature' category and not 'Peace'?
My money's on Kohl, as the only safe uncontroversial and anodyne choice, after a host of previous controversial recipients.

Tue, 2011-03-08 15:43 — Axmed

Viva Julian Assange

Tue, 2011-03-01 20:04 — Hans Castorp (not verified)

Kissinger got one, so why not?

By any higher standard, this is stupid.

Wed, 2011-03-02 01:35 — Paul Lynch (not verified)

I read with scepticism that this has been the week of today's announcement of the Wikileaks Nobel peace Prize nomination.

This was announced some weeks ago by the nominating person, a Norwegian politician. Whether there have been more than one nominations ... that's an interestin idea. I assume that what happened today was the first announcement of all nominations at the close of the nominating period.

Amusigly, the politician's announcement was mentioned by the American magazine Foreign Policy, which always has a clear and fearless eye on the planet, and described him as a Swedish politician.

How to nominate Wikileaks for Pulitzers?

Wed, 2011-03-02 06:03 — Woggy (not verified)

Well he certainly believes in make love not whore, whilst he is being served! The only way you can really get these creeps is to have a terminally ill marine take them out and put the boot on the other foot when he insists that he acted alone and left comes running after him for their pound of flesh.

Wed, 2011-03-02 23:58 — jie4v7i14

Above pic, somehow reminds me of friends.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJs3-ULCRNI

Wed, 2011-03-02 08:34 — GTGALE (not verified)

ISN'T WHAT HE DID ILLEGAL? DIDN'T HE PUBLISH ARTICLES THAT WERE TOP SECRET? IF THAT IS THE CASE HE SHOULD GET JAIL TIME NOT A NOBELS PRIZE..IS THE WHOLE WORLD GOING CRAZY ???? DO YOU REWARD EVIL ACTS OF ESPIONAGE AND HONOR IT? IN MY BOOK HE IS GUILTY OF TREASON. IT IS THE ACT OF A DISPICABLE. AND AN ACT OF A VERY IRRATIONAL PERSON..WE DONT NEED TO HONOR THESE TYPES OF PEOPLE. THEY NEED TO BE PUNISHED AND TAUGHT A LESSON THAT WE DONT STEAL AND CHEAT AND EXPECT REWARDS...

Thu, 2011-03-03 00:04 — jie4v7i14

More ahem, wikileaks, on some highway,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJPC7smGaIQ

Thu, 2011-03-17 21:05 — Brian Harry

GT Gale. Have you been reading too much of R Murdoch's media, and watching FOX? Assange cannot be accused of Treason as he hasn't broken any major Australian laws. Wikileaks is shining light on some most unsavoury behaviour by the "Rich and Powerful" as well as, American war criminals, and they don't like it.It's making them very uncomfortable because it shows their real behaviour, as opposed to the "spin' they try to dazzle us with. WL want everyone to know the truth. That can't be bad, can it? Don't shoot the messenger, deal with reality,and get some help with your aggression problem.