PARIS: The world s media were divided Saturday after the shock award of the Nobel Peace Prize to President Barack Obama, with some calling it a victory for ideals and others condemning it as deeply politicized.
The prize-giving committee in Oslo named Obama the winner of the prestigious prize on Friday, hailing his extraordinary efforts in international diplomacy and hastening nuclear disarmament.
But the announcement proved as controversial as it was surprising.
The Washington Post s Dan Balz said there was amazement all around that the award had gone to a president still in his first year in office with no major accomplishments internationally .
The breadth of reaction, from exuberant gratification in some quarters to scorn and dismissal in others, underscored the political divisions over the direction of Obama s policies and the sharply polarized impressions of his leadership, wrote Balz.
The New York Times called it a mixed blessing for Obama that highlighted the gap between the ambitious promise of his words and his accomplishments .
It said the award further demonstrated that Obama was still celebrated as the anti-Bush while in fact he had not shifted as much as he once implied he would from the previous administration’s national security policies.
London s Daily Telegraph said it was one of the biggest shocks Nobel judges have ever sprung and would also be seen as one of the most political, with nominations closing just 12 days after Obama took office.
France s Liberation wrote that the prize was deserved because he s Obama, with his life symbolically on three continents (and) because his success has become synonymous with dignity and hope.
But, the editorial said, Could a Nobel Peace Prize laureate decide to attack Iran?
India s Tribune declared Obama is Nobel peacemaker , while the Times of India hailed a Lifetime award for debutant Obama .
In China the unofficial Beijing News called it an award of encouragement .
The paper said the Nobel jury s decision was more symbolic than anything else, and that it was very clear that Obama s feats are still purely verbal and it will be very difficult to implement them .
Japanese media said the award would increase global expectations of the Obama administration, with the mass-circulation Yomiuri Shimbun saying it was an important task for him to achieve fruitful results from now on .
Egypt s Al-Dostour daily called the award political hypocrisy.
What s he done to get this prize? the paper asked, recalling that US troops remained in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Middle East peace process was still deadlocked and Obama hasn t done anything to oblige Israel to get rid of its nuclear weapons.
In Iran, reformist daily Etemad headlined its story: Iran s share in Obama receiving peace prize.
From the start, he (Obama) emphasized holding a direct, without any pre-condition . dialogue with Iran after 30 years. He won the award for proposing direct dialogue without any pre-condition, it said.
Iraqi papers were largely silent on the award, with only some papers published on Saturday giving the news any attention.
Lebanon s Al-Akhbar daily said that the young president has only achieved one thing, making lots of promises . the Nobel committee is thus trying to tie him to his promises so that he keeps his word from the start of his mandate.
Saudi Arabia s Al-Jazira daily said the award was premature, but we will award him more than one prize if he fulfils his promise of a fair solution in the Middle East and of the founding of an independent Palestinian state.
The Jakarta Globe in Indonesia, the world s most populous Muslim nation, called the US leader an extraordinary person . He leads by projecting values and attitudes that are shared by decent people in every corner of the world, it said. -AFP
