Three things you must know this week…

1) On the12th of October, the Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded the European Union the 2012 Nobel Peace Prize for six decades of work in advancing peace in Europe. The committee said that the bloc has helped transform Europe from a continent of war to one of peace. Nobel Committee President, Thorbjoren Jagland, also spoke about the EU’s current financial problems and social unrest but he said that the committee wanted to concentrate on the EU’s advances in peace, reconciliation, democracy and human rights. President Jagland highlighted the EU’s role in sealing the reconciliation between France and Germany post World War II, its incorporation of Spain, Portugal and Greece after the collapse of their respective authoritarian regimes in the 1970s, and its current efforts to welcome the Balkan countries into the union. The last organization to have been awarded the prize was Medecins Sans Frontieres in 1999.

2) On the 9th of October, 14 year old Pakistani schoolgirl Malala Yousafzai, was shot in the head by a member of the Taliban. Yousafzai was singled out by the terrorist organization in retaliation for her work in promoting women’s education and children’s rights in the northwestern Swat Valley, near the Afghan Border. After her school was shut down, Malala was profiled in a 2009 documentary titled Class Dismissed and has written articles for prominent newspapers about how the Taliban forces want to stop educating girls in her region. The bullet was moved from her head in a Pakistani hospital before Malala was flown to the United Kingdom, earlier this week, to receive medical treatment in Birmingham. Doctors reported on Thursday that Malala’s condition has improved, and that she is now moving her limbs.

3) On the 16th of October, Home Secretary Theresa May halted the extradition of British computer hacker Gary McKinnon to the United States. This case has been a sensitive topic between the two countries since the September 11 attacks. McKinnon, a Scottish computer hacker, is wanted in the United States to face charges of intruding into Pentagon and NASA computer networks in 2002, while he was looking for UFOs. In a statement to the House of Commons, Secretary May told MPs she had based the decision on human rights grounds because medical reports warned that McKinnon, who suffers from Asperger’s Syndrome and depressive illness, would commit suicide if sent to trial in the United States. McKinnon could have faced a prison sentence of up to 70 years under United States law. The State Department said that they were disappointed by the denial of McKinnon’s extradition to face justice in the United States, and that they are examining the details of the decision. The British Director of Public Prosecutions will decide whether McKinnon shall now face trial in the United Kingdom.

Image ©‘The Times Asia’