From Hitler to UNRWA and Stalin: The non-peaceful nominees for the Nobel Peace Prize

The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the most coveted awards for politicians and NGOs, despite the fact that the peculiar process of choosing the candidates - and even the winners - has left considerable inconsistencies. Some nominees on the list seem like unlikely choices. This includes Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, Josef Stalin and Fidel Castro. This year, nominees include the Colombian president and former guerrilla Gustavo Petro and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), despite the report that exposd their links with Hamas and the October 7 attacks.

According to Alfred Nobel, this prize has been awarded, since 1901, "to the person who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses.” This criteria doesn’t seem to fit people like those mentioned above. To be considered, candidatures must be nominated by "national assemblies, governments, and international courts of law; university chancellors, professors of social science, history, philosophy, law and theology; leaders of peace research institutes and institutes of foreign affairs.” In theory, the nominees and deliberations are secret until 50 years after the year they were nominated, although each year several names are leaked.

Adolf Hitler

The Swedish parliamentarian Erik Gottfrid Christian Brandt proposed his name in 1939, shortly before World War II broke out. In reality, it was a way to protest the candidacy of British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain for his participation in the Munich agreements of 1938. A part of Czechoslovakia was given to Germany as an appeasement measure to avoid a war that would end up taking place regardless. Even though the nomination was withdrawn due to its controversy, Hitler continues to appear in the award's records.

Benito Mussolini

A few years earlier, in 1935, the name of the Italian president was included in the list of nominees by a group of professors from a French Institute of International Law and a group of professors from the German University of Giessen.

Joseph Stalin

The Russian communist dictator was nominated twice. The first time was shortly after the end of World War II, when Norwegian Foreign Minister Halvdan Khon considered him worthy of the award "for his efforts to end" the war. Three years later his name made the shortlist, this time promoted by Czech university professor Wladislav Rieger. Stalin did not win on either occasion and in 1949 he created the Stalin Prize for Peace between Peoples.

Fidel Castro

In 2001, the year of the centenary of the awards, the Cuban guerrilla and dictator was nominated by Norwegian deputy Hallgeir Langeland, who justified it because "despite being a small, poor country boycotted by the United States, Cuba had managed to help dozens of developing countries.”

Gustavo Petro

The current president of Colombia and well-known former guerrilla was nominated in 2024 by Rasmus Hansson, a Norwegian deputy. According to the European politician, giving the award to Petro would mean recognizing that "in practice, dialogue with armed actors can be an effective means to resolve conflicts and reduce violence."

UNRWA

In the midst of the controversy over the Israeli report claiming that many of the organization’s employees have links to terrorist groups such as Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, including the direct participation of at least a dozen of them in the October 7 massacre, the Norwegian Labor MP Asmund Aukrust nominated the U.N. agency. To justify his provocative proposal, the Nordic politician claimed that he did so to recognize the agency's "long-term work to provide vital support to Palestine and the region in general."

Other controversial nominations

The nominations and even final choices have caused other notable controversies. Henry Kissinger and the Vietnamese Le Duc Tho are two of the best examples. They were given the award for their contribution to ending the Vietnam War. In addition to accusations against Kissinger for prolonging the conflict, his Vietnamese counterpart turned down the award. Barack Obama was also a surprising choice. He was given the award just a few months after taking office. He even acknowledged that he neither expected nor was worthy of such an honor. Each of the times that his successor, Donald Trump, has been nominated - the last time being this year - for his work in bringing peace to the Middle East, with achievements such as the Abraham Accords, he has been strongly criticized.

Unusual candidates

Not all candidates must be politicians, NGOs or activists. Celebrities such as Michael Jackson or the Spanish chef José Andres have been nominated.

Gandhi, the great forgotten

People globally accepted as non-violent leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi have never been given the award.