Pillay surprised by Nobel news, jokes about Trump
Navanethem Pillay was surprised by news of her Nobel Peace Prize and joked about sharing it with Donald Trump, Dutch news agency ANP reported.
What has changed? · 09/10/2026, 10:54 UTC
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The UN Human Rights Office has welcomed the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to its former chief Navanethem Pillay, according to an ANP/RTR report published by Nieuws.nl on 9 October. [1]
An unnamed spokesperson described the news as fantastic and said the office hoped it would encourage more people to speak out for human rights around the world. Pillay led the office from 2008 to 2014, the report says. [1]
Update
Navanethem Pillay said she initially thought a telephone call telling her she had won the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize must be a joke, according to Dutch news agency ANP. She was at a court in Nuremberg when she heard the news and asked those present whether it was true. [2]
After thanking the audience, Pillay joked that if they applauded a little more, she might share the prize with US President Donald Trump. ANP reported that a video posted on X by the head of Amnesty International showed her receiving about 40 seconds of applause. [2]
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