2009 Nobel Peace Prize Lecture by Barack Obama

I know mr. president the floor is yours to give your Nobel lecture your Majesties your Royal Highnesses distinguished members of the Norwegian Nobel Committee citizens of America and citizens of the world I receive this honor with deep gratitude and great humility it's an award that speaks to our highest aspirations that for all the cruelty and hardship of our world we are not mere prisoners of fate our actions matter and can bend history in the direction of justice and yet I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge the considerable controversy that your generous decision has generated in part this is because I am at the beginning and not the end of my Labor's on the world stage compared to some of the Giants of history who have received this prize Schweitzer and King Marshall and Mandela my accomplishments are slight and then there are the men and women around the world who've been jailed then beaten in the pursuit of justice those who toil in humanitarian organizations to relieve suffering the unrecognized millions who's quiet acts of courage and compassion inspire even the most hardened cynics I cannot argue with those who find these men and women some known some obscure to all but those they help to be far more deserving of this honor than but perhaps the most profound issue surrounding my receipt of this prize is the fact that I am the commander in chief of the military of the nation in the midst of two wars one of these wars is winding down the other is a conflict that America did not seek one in which we are joined by 42 other countries including Norway in an effort to defend ourselves in all nations from further attacks still we are at war and I'm responsible for the deployment of thousands of young Americans to battle in a distant land some will kill and some will be killed and so I come here with an acute sense of the costs of armed conflict filled with difficult questions about the relationship between war and peace and our effort to replace one with the other now these questions are not new war in one form or another appeared with the first man at the dawn of history since morality was not questioned it was simply a fact like drought or disease the manner in which tribes and then civilizations sought power and settled their differences and over time as codes of law sought to control violence within groups so did philosophers and clerics and statesmen seek to regulate the destructive power of war the concept of a just war emerged suggesting that war is justified only when certain conditions were met if it is waged as a last resort or in self-defense if the force used is proportional and if whenever possible civilians are spared from violence of course we know that for most this concept of just war was rarely observed the capacity of human beings to think of new ways to kill one another proved inexhaustible as did our capacity to exempt from mercy those who look different or prey to a different God wars between armies gave way to wars between nations total wars in which the distinction between combatant and civilian became blurred in the span of thirty years such carnage would twice engulf this continent and while it's hard to conceive of a cause more just than the defeat of the Third Reich and the Axis powers World War two was a conflict in which the total number of civilians who died exceeded the number of soldiers who perished in the wake of such destruction and with the advent of the nuclear age it became clear to Victor and vanquished alike that the world needed institutions to prevent another world war and so a quarter century after the United States Senate rejected the League of Nations an idea for which Woodrow Wilson received this prize America led the world in constructing an architecture to keep the peace a Marshall Plan and a United Nations mechanisms to govern the waging of war treaties to protect human rights prevent genocide restrict the most dangerous weapons in many ways these efforts succeeded yes terrible wars have been fought and atrocities committed but there has been no third world war the Cold War ended with jubilant crowds dismantling a wall commerce has stitched much of the world together billions have been lifted from poverty the ideals of liberty and self-determination equality and the rule of law have haltingly advanced we are the heirs of the fortitude and foresight of generations past and it is the legacy for which my own country is rightfully proud and yet a decade into a new century this old architecture is buckling under the weight of new threats the world may no longer shudder at the prospect of war between two nuclear superpowers but proliferation may increase the risk of catastrophe terrorism has long been a tactic but modern technology allows a few small men without size rage to murder innocents on a horrific scale moreover wars between nations have increasingly given way to wars within nations the resurgence of ethnic or sectarian conflicts the growth of secessionist movements insurgencies and failed States all these things have increasingly trapped civilians in unending chaos in today's wars many more civilians are killed than soldiers the seeds of future conflict are sown economies are wrecked civil societies torn asunder refugees amassed children scarred I do not bring with me today a definitive solution to the problems of war what I do know is that meeting these challenges will require the same vision hard work and persistence of those men and women who acted so boldly decades ago and it will require us to think in new ways about the notions of Just War and the imperatives of a just peace we must begin by acknowledging a hard truth we will not eradicate violent conflict in our lifetimes there will be times when nations acting individually or in concert will find the use of force not only necessary but morally justified I make this statement mindful of what Martin Luther King jr. said in this same ceremony years ago violence never brings permanent peace it solves no social problem that merely creates new and more complicated ones as someone who stands here as a direct consequence of dr. King's as life work I am living testimony to the moral force of non-violence I know there's nothing weak nothing passive nothing naive in the Creed and lives of Gandhi and King but as a head of state sworn to protect and defend my nation I cannot be guided by their examples alone I face the world as it is and cannot stand idle in the face of threats to the American people for make no mistake evil does exist in the world a non-violent movement could not have halted Hitler's armies negotiations cannot convince Al Qaeda's leaders to lay down their arms to say that force may sometimes be necessary is not a call to cynicism it is a recognition of history the imperfections of man and the limits of reason I raised this point I begin with this point because in many countries there is a deep ambivalence about military action today no matter what the cause and at times this is joined by a reflexive suspicion of America the world's sole military superpower yet the world must remember that it was not simply international institutions not just treaties and declarations that brought stability to a post-world War two world whatever mistakes we have made the plain fact is this the United States of America has helped underwrite global security for more than six decades with the blood of our citizens and the strength of our arms the service and sacrifice of our men and women in uniform has promoted peace and prosperity from Germany to Korea and enabled democracy to take hold in places like the Balkans we have borne this burden not because we seek to impose our will we have done so out of enlightened self-interest because we seek a better future for our children and grandchildren and we believe that their lives will be better if others children and grandchildren can live in freedom and prosperity so yes the instruments of war do have a role to play in preserving the peace and yet this truth must coexist with another that no matter how justified war promises human tragedy the soldier's courage and sacrifice is full of glory expressing devotion to country to cause to comrades in arms but war itself is never glorious and we must never trumpet it as such so part of our challenge is reconciling these two seemingly in reconcilable truths that war is sometimes necessary and war at some level is an expression of human folly concretely we must direct our effort to the task that President Kennedy called for long ago let us focus he said on a more practical more attainable peace based not on a sudden revolution in human nature but on a gradual evolution in human institutions a gradual evolution of human institutions what might this evolution look like what might these practical steps be to begin with I believe that all nations strong and weak alike must adhere to standards that govern the use of force I like any head of state reserve the right to act unilaterally if necessary to defend my nation nevertheless I am convinced that adhering to standards international standards strengthens those who do and isolates and weakens those who don't the world rallied around America after the 9/11 attacks and continues to support our efforts in Afghanistan because of the horror of those senseless attacks and the recognized principle of self-defense likewise the world recognized the need to confront Saddam Hussein when he invaded Kuwait a consensus that sent a clear message to all about the cost of aggression furthermore America in fact no nation can insist that others follow the rules of the road if we refuse to follow them ourselves for when we don't our actions appear arbitrary and undercut the legitimacy of future interventions no matter how justified and this becomes particularly important when the purpose of military action extends beyond self defense or defense of one nation against an aggressive more and more we all confront difficult questions about how to prevent the slaughter of civilians by their own government or to stop a Civil War whose violence and suffering can involve engulf an entire region I believe that force can be justified on humanitarian grounds as it was in the Balkans or in other places that have been scarred by war inaction tears at our conscience and can lead to more costly intervention later that's why all responsible nations must embrace the role that militaries with a clear mandate can play to keep the peace America's commitment to global security will never waver but in a world in which threats are more diffuse and missions more complex America cannot act alone America alone cannot secure the peace this is true in Afghanistan this is true in failed states like Somalia where terrorism and piracy is joined by famine and human suffering and sadly it will continue to be true in unstable regions for years to come the leaders and soldiers of NATO countries and other friends and allies demonstrate this truth through the capacity and courage they've shown in Afghanistan but in many countries there is a disconnect between the efforts of those who serve and the ambivalence of the broader public I understand why war is not popular but I also know this the belief that peace is desirable is rarely enough to achieve it peace requires responsibility peace entails sacrifice that's why NATO continues to be indispensable that's why we must strengthen UN and regional peacekeeping and not leave the task to a few countries that's why we honor though who returned home from peacekeeping and training abroad to Oslo and Rome to Ottawa and Sydney to Dakin Kigali we honor them not as makers of war but as of wagers but as wagers of peace let me make one final point about the use of force even as we make difficult decisions about going to war we must also think clearly about how we fight it the Nobel Committee recognized this truth in awarding its first prize for peace - Henry - not the founder of the Red Cross and a driving force behind the Geneva Conventions where force is necessary we have a moral and strategic interest in binding ourselves to certain rules of conduct and even as we confront a vicious adversary that abides by no rules I believe the United States of America must remain a standard bear in the conduct of war that is what makes us different from those whom we fight that is a source of our strength that is why I prohibited torture that is why I ordered the prison at Guantanamo Bay closed and that is why I have reaffirmed America's commitment to abide by the Geneva Conventions we lose ourselves when we compromise the very ideals that we fight to defend and we honor we honor those ideals by upholding them now what it's easy but when it is hard I've spoken at some length to the question that must weigh on our minds and our hearts as we choose to wage war but let me now turn to our effort to avoid such tragic choices and speak of three ways that we can build a just and lasting peace first in dealing with those nations that break rules and laws I believe that we must develop alternatives to violence that are tough enough to actually change behavior for if we want a lasting peace then the words of the international community must mean something those regimes that break the rules must be held accountable sanctions must exact a real price intransigence must be met with increased pressure and such pressure exists only when the world stands together as one one urgent example is the effort to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and to seek a world without them in the middle of the last century nations agree to be bound by a treaty whose bargain is clear all will have access to peaceful nuclear power those without nuclear weapons will forsake them and those with nuclear weapons will work towards disarmament I am committed to upholding this treatment it is a centerpiece of my foreign policy and I'm working with President Medvedev to reduce America and Russia's nuclear stockpiles but it's also incumbent upon all of us to insist that nations like Iran and North Korea do not gain the system those who claim to respect international law cannot avert their eyes when those laws are floated those who care for their own security cannot ignore the danger of an arms race in the Middle East or East Asia those who seek peace cannot stand idly by as nations arm themselves for nuclear war the same principle applies to those who violate international laws by brutalizing their own people when there is genocide in Darfur systematic rape in Congo repression in Burma there must be consequences yes there will be engagement yes there will be diplomacy but there must be consequences when those things fail and the closer we stand together the less likely we will be faced with the choice between the armed intervention and complicity in oppression this brings me to a second point the nature of the peace that we seek for peace is not merely the absence of visible conflict only a just peace based on the inherent rights and dignity of every individual can truly be lasting it was this insight that drove drafters of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights after the Second World War in the wake of devastation they recognized that if human rights are not protected peace is a hollow promise and yet too often these words are ignored for some countries the failure to uphold human rights is excused by the false suggestion that these are somehow Western principles foreign to Loken local cultures are stages of a nation's development and within America there's long been a tension between those who describe themselves as realists or ID lists attention that suggests a stark choice between the Nair pursuit of interests or an endless campaign to impose our values around the world I reject these choices I believe that peace is unstable where citizens are denied the right to speak freely or worship as they please choose their own leaders or assemble without fear pent up grievances fester and the suppression of tribal and religious identity can lead to violence we also know that the opposite is true only when Europe became free did it finally find peace America has never fought a war against a democracy and our closest friends our governments that protect the rights of their citizens no matter how callously defined neither America's interests nor the worlds are served by the denial of human aspirations so even as we respect the unique culture and traditions of different countries America will always be a voice for those aspirations that are universal we will bear witness to the quiet dignity of reformers like unsung kuchi to the bravery of Zimbabweans who cast their ballots in the face of beatings to the hundreds of thousands who have marched silently through the streets of Iran it is telling that the leaders of these governments fear the aspirations of their own people more than the power of any other nation and it is the responsibility of all free people and free nations to make clear that these movements these movements of hope and history they have us on their side let me also say this the promotion of human rights cannot be about exhortation alone at times it must be coupled with painstaking diplomacy I know that engagement with repressive regimes lacks the satisfying purity of indignation but I also know that sanctions without outreach condemnation without discussion can carry forward only a crippling status quo no repressive regime can move down a new path unless it has the choice of an open door in light of the cultural revolutions horrors Nixon's meeting with Mao appeared inexcusable and yet it surely helped set China on a path where millions of its citizens have been lifted from poverty and connected to open societies Pope John Paul's engagement with Poland created space not just for the Catholic Church but for labor leaders like lek Valenza Ronald Reagan's efforts on arms control and embrace of perestroika not only improved relations with the Soviet Union but empowered dissidents throughout Eastern Europe there's no simple formula here but we must try as best we can to balance isolation and engagement pressure and incentives so that human rights and dignity are advanced over time third adjust peace includes not only civil and political rights it must encompass economic security and opportunity for - true peace is not just freedom from fear but freedom from what it is undoubtedly true that development rarely takes root without security it is also true that security does not exist where human beings do not have access to enough food or clean water or the medicine and shelter they need to survive it does not exist where children can't aspire to a decent education or a job that supports a family the absence of hope can rot a society from within and that's why helping farmers feed their own people or Nations educate their children and care for the sick is not mere charity it's also why the world must come together to confront climate change there's little scientific dispute that if we do nothing we will face more droughts more famine more mass displacement all of which will fuel more conflict for decades for this reason it's not merely scientists and environmental activists who call for Swift and forceful action its military leaders in my own country and others who understand our common security hangs in the balance agreements among nations strong institutions support for human rights investments in development all these are vital ingredients in bringing about the evolution that President Kennedy spoke about and yet I do not believe that we will have the will the determination the staying power to complete this work without something more and that's the continued expansion of our moral imagination an insistence that there's something irreducible that we all share as the world grows smaller you might think it would be easier for human beings to recognize how similar we are to understand that we're all basically seeking the same things that we all hope for the chance to live out our lives with some measure of happiness and fulfillment for ourselves and our families and yet somehow given the dizzying pace of globalization the cultural leveling of modernity it perhaps comes as no surprise that people fear the loss of what they cherish in their particular identities their their race their and perhaps most powerfully their religion in some places this fear is led to conflict at times it even feels like we're moving backwards we see it in the Middle East as the conflict between Arabs and Jews seems to harden we see it in nations that are torn asunder by tribal lines and most dangerously we see it in the way that religion is used to justify the murder of innocence by those who have distorted and defiled the great religion of Islam and who attacked my country from Afghanistan these extremists are not the first to kill in the name of God the cruelties of the Crusades are amply recorded but they remind us that no holy war can ever be a just war for if you truly believe that you are carrying out divine will then there is no need for restraint no need to spare the pregnant mother or the medic or the Red Cross worker or even a person of one owns faith such a warped view of religion is not just incompatible with the concept of peace but I believe it's incompatible with the very purpose of faith for the one rule that lies at the heart of every major religion is that we do unto others as we would have them do unto us adhering to this law of love has always been the core struggle of human nature for we are fallible we make mistakes and fall victim to the temptations of Pride and power and sometimes evil even those of us with the best of intentions will at time fail to right the wrongs before us but we do not have to think that human nature is perfect for us to still believe that the human condition can be perfected we do not have to live in an idealized world to still reach for those ideals that will make it a better place the non-violence practiced by men like Gandhi and King may not have been practical or possible in every circumstance but the love that they preached their fundamental faith in human progress that must always be the North Star that guides us on our journey for if we lose that faith if we didn't dismiss it as silly or naive if we divorce it from the decisions that we make on issues of war and peace then we lose what's best about humanity we lose our sense of possibility we lose our moral compass like generations have before us we must reject that future as dr. King said at this occasion so many years ago I refuse to accept despair as the final response to the ambiguities of history I refuse to accept the idea that the isness of man's present condition makes him morally incapable of reaching up for the eternal oughtness that forever confronts him let us reach for the world that ought to be that spark of the divine that still steers within each of our souls somewhere today in the here and now in the world as it is a soldier sees he's outgunned but stands firm to keep the peace somewhere today in this world a young protester awaits the brutality of her government but has the courage to march on somewhere today a mother facing punishing poverty still takes the time to teach her child scrapes together what few coins she has to send that child to school because she believes that a cruel world still has a place for that child's dreams let us live by their example we can acknowledge the depression will always be with us and still strive for justice we can admit the intractability of deprivation and still strive for dignity clear-eyed we can understand that there will be war and still strive for peace we can do that for that is the story of human progress that's the hope of all the world and at this moment of challenge that must be our work your honor thank you very much

Channel: Nobel Prize

Views: 573,182

Keywords: Nobel Peace Prize, Barack Obama, Nobel, Prize

Id: AORo-YEXxNQ

Length: 37min 3sec (2223 seconds)

Published: Thu Dec 17 2009