Atatürk International Peace Prize
Turkish award
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The Atatürk International Peace Prize (Turkish: Atatürk Uluslararası Barış Ödülü) is an award delivered since 1986 to award people and organizations who have made memorable contributions to world peace in accordance with Kemal Atatürk's quotation, "Peace at Home, Peace in the World".[1] It was created during the presidency of coup leader Kenan Evren,[2] by the Atatürk Association for Culture, Language and History.[3] The award is given to candidates nominated by members of non-governmental organizations, the Senate of Turkish universities and also the secretaries general of the United Nations and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. The president of Turkey as well as the speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey can also present candidates.[1] After the prize was not awarded for 13 years after 2000, in 2013 it was decided to award it only every five years.[4] An award was to be given in 2015,[4][5] but was no ceremony is documented. The next award was planned to be given in 2020, but again was not awarded after all.[1][6] It is now next planned for 2025.[6]
Laureates
| Year | Laureate | Position | Comments | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 |  |
Joseph Luns | Secretary General of NATO | |
| 1987 |  |
Richard von Weizsäcker | President of Germany | |
| 1989 |  |
Takahito Mikasa | Japanese prince and academic | At the award ceremony, he stated that world peace can only be achieved after poverty is eliminated.[7] |
| 1990 | .png) |
Kenan Evren | President of Turkey | The fact that Kenan Evren was awarded with the prize is seen by some as the reason for why Nelson Mandela has not accepted the prize.[4] |
| 1992 |  |
Nelson Mandela | President of South Africa | Nelson Mandela created an uproar in Turkish society when he did not accept the prize. Following this decision, the newspaper Hürriyet published an issue with the headline "Ugly African" (Turkish: Çirkin Afrikalı).[8] Mandela changed his mind and accepted the award in 1999.[9] |
| 1995 |  |
Turkish Red Crescent | Turkish NGO | |
| 1996 |  |
UNICEF | Children emergency fund of the United Nations | |
| 1997 |  |
Stabilisation Force in Bosnia and Herzegovina | peacekeeping force of NATO | For their achievements in maintaining peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina. |
| 1999 | .jpg) |
Heydar Aliyev | President of Azerbaijan | Several of his policies were inspired by Atatürk.[10] |
| 2000 |  |
Rauf Denktaş | President of the Turkish Republic of Cyprus | |
| 2025 |  |
António Guterres | Secretary-General of the United Nations | |