Amnesty International warmly congratulates Muhammad Yunus, 2006 Nobel Peace Prize winner
Posted: December 1, 2006
Bangladeshi Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus shakes hands with school children outside his office in Dhaka, the day after receiving news of his award. FARJANA K GODHULY/AFP/Getty Images
On October 13, the Norwegian Nobel Committee decided to award the Nobel Peace Prize 2006 to Muhammad Yunus and Grameen Bank "for their efforts to create economic and social development from below".
The committee noted that “lasting peace cannot be achieved unless large population groups find ways in which to break out of poverty. Micro-credit is one such means... Loans to poor people without any financial security had appeared to be an impossible idea. From modest beginnings three decades ago, Yunus has, first and foremost through Grameen Bank, developed micro-credit into an ever more important instrument in the struggle against poverty... Across cultures and civilizations, Yunus and Grameen Bank have shown that even the poorest of the poor can work to bring about their own development.”
Speaking the day the annoucement was made, Irene Khan, Secretary General of Amnesty International, said, “Poverty is both a cause and a consequence of the failure to respect human rights: both economic, social and cultural as well as political and civil. It is driven by human rights violations and perpetuates further abuses.
“Today's announcement by the Nobel Peace Prize Committee reinforces Amnesty International's message that poverty is a major threat to human dignity and an obstacle to promoting peace and justice, but that it is not inevitable and can be overcome through the creativity and courage of individuals and the power of group mobilization,”
“Muhammad Yunus and Grameen Bank have shown that the poor and the marginalized are not victims and survivors but agents of change.
“As a former Nobel Peace Laureate and an organization that is devoted to changing the human rights scene through the power of individuals, Amnesty International believes that this Award has given hope to millions of ordinary people around the world that they have the power to bring about extraordinary change.”