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Thorbjørn Jagland, the chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, approaches the podium. “All those with empathy for children and women who are ill-treated and killed, all those who believe in a future free from violence and war, will acclaim you today out of respect for the will to act that you represent.” He continues, “You give concrete meaning to the Chinese proverb which says women hold up half the sky. That was why, when giving its reasons for this year’s award, the Nobel Committee stated that ‘We cannot achieve democracy and lasting peace in the world unless women acquire the same opportunities as men to influence developments at all levels of society.’ We thank you for the hope you awaken in us all. Luckily women are not only victims. Some take action. Three of them are today receiving the Nobel Peace Prize for 2011.
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K. Riva Levinson (Choosing the Hero: My Improbable Journey and the Rise of Africa's First Woman President)