Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says he would not accept Nobel Prize if awarded one day. Adding that Turkey would not participate in the Nobel Prize Ceremony in protest to award the Austrian author Peter Handke, who is accused of disregarding the Bosnian genocide and supported Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic during Yugoslavia war in 1990.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan says the Nobel academy is rewarding human rights violations by awarding the prize for literature to #PeterHandke, who has been criticized for backing Serbian war criminal Slobodan Milosevic. pic.twitter.com/MxPzrON9Hz
— ANews (@anews) December 11, 2019
The sore Erdogan asserted that awarding such a ‘killer’ amounts to complicity in the oppression. As per the reports, the ambassadors of Turkey, Albania, Kosovo, and Bosnia boycotted the ceremony. Peter Handke,76, is disgraced for being a pawn in building a narrative denying the Bosnian genocide.
Erdogan expressed his refusal in response to a question from a journalist that what he will do if he was given the Nobel Prize. He said he would decline the award since the Nobel Committee has stooped itself to a political and ideological organization.
Read more: Tayyib Erdogan: A New Turkish Sultan and A Caliph in Making
President Erdogan ferociously slammed the awarding of Nobel Prize in Literature to Peter Handke. In his statement on International Human Rights Day, President Erdogan said: “Awarding Nobel Prize in Literature to a racist individual will not mean anything other than awarding human rights violations.”
Peter Handke’s controversial role
Peter Handke, being an admirer of Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic, penned down the narrative that denied the genocide of Bosnian Muslims. Instead, Handke claimed Muslims Bosniaks in Sarajevo killed themselves, adding that he cannot believe Bosnians committed genocide.
He even wrote: “Stand up if you support the Serbs,” during the 1989-1990 Kosovo War. He also testified in favor of Milosevic, who died in 2006 while facing trial for war crimes and genocide in The Hague. He came to meet Milosevic in prison once.
President @RTErdogan:"The fact that a racist, who denies the genocide committed in Bosnia and defends war criminals, was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature will have no meaning other than rewarding the human rights violations on the Human Rights Day."https://t.co/6Y6hRfuu7g pic.twitter.com/lBYXR7sOOx
— Republic of Türkiye Directorate of Communications (@Communications) December 10, 2019
Handke will be given a cash prize of 9 million Swedish Kronor, a medal, and a diploma after winning the Nobel Prize.
Not only Turkey lambasted Nobel Prize committee but foreign correspondents of international news outlets and reprized news reports of atrocities by Serbian forces against Bosnian Muslims on social media. Reporters of BBC and New York Times shamed the organization for awarding Peter Handke claiming that they have been the witnesses to the monstrous war crimes by the forces in Kosovo and Bosnia.
Read more: Peter Handke’s Nobel Prize encourages Islam’s enemies: Turkey
Protests have erupted in Sweden following the ceremony, as Handke was welcomed by the condemnation posters when he reached to receive his award. Swedish King awarded Handke the Nobel Prize.
Human rights communities in Sweden and across the world are demanding to revoke Nobel Prize for Peter Handke.
" Awarding Nobel To Peter Handke Encourages Islam's Enemies "
The Türkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Says Awarding Austrian Writer With Nobel Prize Is ‘ Shame , Disgrace ’
By Jeyhun Aliyev & Sibel Morrow@jeyhunaliyev , @Sybelss pic.twitter.com/o5e2rTLgWN
— Dost Khan (@Dmkt1) December 11, 2019
Turkey’s support for Human Rights
In the past recent months, Turkey has emerged as the foremost advocate of human rights. It stood beside Pakistan in calling out India over heinous human rights violations in Indian Occupied Kashmir.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also called out the world’s silence on the destruction and grave loss of human lives in Syria following the war. He also added that a severe leadership crisis exists in Europe. Erdogan also slammed the rising cultural racism, intolerance citing the attack on Mosque in New Zealand and synagogue this year.
Previous, Turkey, a leading Muslim country has joined hands with Malaysia and Pakistan to introduce a global TV channel to tackle Islamophobia and radicalization of Islam.