Kathmandu, October 8.  On Friday, the Norwegian Nobel Committee announced the “2021 Nobel Peace Prize Award” to Journalists Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov for their courageous contributions to safeguarding freedom of expression in the Philippines and Russia.

The official statement released by the Nobel Prize organization reads,

“Free, independent and fact-based journalism serves to protect against abuse of power, lies, and war propaganda … Ressa and Muratov are representatives of all journalists who stand up for this ideal in a world in which democracy and freedom of the press face increasingly adverse conditions.”

Filipino-American journalist Maria Ressa uses freedom of expression to expose abuse of power, use of violence, and growing authoritarianism in her native country, the Philippines. Ms Ressa has also documented how social media is being used to spread fake news, harass opponents and manipulate public discourse.

Russian journalist Dmitry Andreyevich Muratov has for decades defended freedom of speech in Russia under increasingly challenging conditions. In 1993, he was one of the founders of the fact-based independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta, the most powerful newspaper in Russia today.

The prize amount of 10 million Swedish kronor will be shared equally between the two Laureates.