Nobel Peace Prize 2011 – Italy nominates African women, the “backbone” of the continent / “Nobel Peace Prize for African Women” campaign
ROME, Italy, May 25, 2011/African Press Organization (APO)/ — African women are the backbone of their continent and a credible alternative for a new and more humane society. That’s why Italy is supporting their nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize, 2011. The Nobel Peace Prize for African Women (NOPPAW) campaign was presented today (25 May 2011) at the Foreign Ministry in Rome on the occasion of Africa Day.
The campaign is being taken forward by CIPSI, a non-governmental organisation, with the personal support of Minister Frattini, who signed the nomination letter filed in Oslo in February this year.
“The ‘Walking Africa’ campaign deserves the Nobel Prize”, explained CIPSI President Guido Barbera. He underscored that “today we are presenting African women who are ‘on the march’. They’re talking about positive developments and not just suffering. They’re taking forward the miracle of daily survival. They’re walking together to promote their battles”.
African women are engaged in looking after their children and old people; in making sure their families’ needs are met; in working in the fields; in keeping the wheels of the economy turning. And in spite of all this they are often subject to abuse by men: they’re under-nourished and under-educated; and they can be raped, or beaten in their homes if they refuse to enter into arranged marriages. The Nobel Prize, stated Secretary of State Stefania Craxi, would be “a symbolic gesture that recognised their daily, silent commitment and efforts”. It would also be a step forwards in the battle to defend human rights throughout the world, “one of the guidelines underpinning Italian foreign policy”.
The NOPPAW campaign also aims to raise public awareness internationally. African women, underscored Hélène Yinda, a theologian from Cameroon, “are making a committed effort to transform our societies but none of this has attracted enough attention worldwide”. She added, “we are the standard-bearers in resisting traditions, systems and practices that are an outrage to our very humanity, and we are a credible alternative for a new African society and a fairer and more humane world”.
SOURCE
Italy – Ministry of Foreign Affairs
