Dharamshala — His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the former Nobel Peace Prize laureate, has written to Narges Mohammadi, winner of the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize, to congratulate her on being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of her courageous campaign for human rights, freedom and equality.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee announced on October 6, 2023, that Narges Mohammadi had won the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize "for her fight against the oppression of women in Iran and her fight to promote human rights and freedom for all". His Holiness the Dalai Lama, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989, congratulated the winner of the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize, on October 7, 2023. Narges Mohammadi, an Iranian human rights activist, is serving a 12-year prison sentence in Iran for campaigning for women's rights and human rights in Iran.
His Holiness the Dalai Lama wrote," Today, the values of democracy, transparency, respect for human rights, and equality are increasingly recognized on every side as universal values, which can only benefit us all. I have met and held discussions with previous Nobel Laureates, including your sometime colleague, Mrs Shirin Ebadi. I admire their efforts to overcome discrimination against women and improve society in a peaceful way. I believe that the award of this Nobel Peace Prize is also in recognition of the vital role women play in the lives of us all from the very day we are born".
"There is a growing desire for change in the world, change that will see conflicts resolved peaceably, through dialogue and non-violence. The foundation of such change will be kindness, compassion and human responsibility. I believe that this goal can be achieved through education based on a deeper appreciation of the oneness of humanity. Because we are so interconnected, this is a question of the well-being of us all," His Holiness mentioned.
His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama ended his letter offering his prayers and good wishes.
According to reports, Narges Mohammadi is an Iranian human rights activist. She is vice-president of the Human Rights Defenders Centre (DHRC), headed by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi. Mohammadi is a fervent supporter of mass feminist civil disobedience against the hijab in Iran and a vocal critic of the 2023 programme on hijab and chastity. In May 2016, she was sentenced in Tehran to 16 years in prison for creating and leading "a human rights movement that campaigns for the abolition of the death penalty". In total, she was arrested 13 times, convicted five times and sentenced to a total of 31 years in prison and 154 lashes.
