HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS CONGRATULATES NOBEL PEACE PRIZE WINNER

8 October 2004


United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour extended warm congratulations today to Wangari Maathai, the Kenyan environmentalist and human rights campaigner who has just been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

The High Commissioner underlined that in reaching its decision, the Nobel Prize Committee specifically rewarded Wangari Maathai’s “holistic approach to sustainable development that embraces democracy, human rights and women's rights in particular”.

“Wangari Maathai’s work, and the recognition she has so rightly received in the form of the Nobel Prize, sends a clear message of empowerment and support for people around the world struggling for more just, equitable and sustainable societies”, Mrs. Arbour said.