Wateler Peace Prize

Award

Wateler Peace Prize

Carnegie Wateler Peace Prize. The building on the image is the Peace Palace in The Hague. Translation from Latin of “Pacis Palmae Digniores Quam Tropaea Belli”: The Palms of Peace are More Honorable than the Trophies of War.

The Carnegie Wateler Peace Prize is a biennial award presented by the Carnegie Foundation to individuals or institutions that have made an outstanding contribution to the promotion of peace through words, actions, or writings.[1] The Wateler Peace Prize has been awarded at the Peace Palace since 1931 and is the second oldest permanent peace prize after the Nobel Peace Prize.[2]

## History

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On 16 November 1916, during the horrors of World War I, Johan Gerard Daniel Wateler, a banker from The Hague, decided to dedicate his fortune to the cause of peace. In his will, he stipulated that his wealth should be used to create a peace prize. Inspired by Alfred Nobel, he envisioned a recurring award to promote peace. Wateler initially wanted the Dutch government to present the prize, but the De Geer I Cabinet at the time found this inappropriate. Wateler had already taken this possibility into account in his will: if the State declined the inheritance, the funds would be transferred to the Carnegie Foundation.[2]

After Wateler’s death in 1927, his estate went to the Carnegie Foundation who was assigned to regularly award the peace prize with the interest of the legate. The Wateler Peace Prize was first awarded in 1931 as an annual award with an interruption during and shortly after World War II. In the early years, the prizes were sent by mail without any formal ceremony. It was not until the 1970s that the award took its current form—a certificate bearing the motto "Pacis palmae digniores quam tropaea belli" ("The Palms of Peace are More Honorable than the Trophies of War").[2]

## Award ceremonies

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Since 2004, the Carnegie Wateler Peace Prize has been awarded every two years under the name Carnegie Wateler Peace Prize. The Carnegie Wateler Peace Prize alternates every two years between a Dutch and an international laureate. One edition honors a person or organization from the Netherlands, while the next recognizes an international recipient for their contributions to peace.[2]The Carnegie Wateler Peace Prize is awarded biannually in the Peace Palace and can also be watched live via a live stream available on the website of the Peace Palace. Currently, is the prize money for the Carnegie Wateler Peace Prize €35,000.[3]

## Youth Carnegie Peace Prize

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Since 2018, the Carnegie Foundation, in cooperation with the Youth Peace Initiative, also awards the Carnegie Youth Peace Prize to recognize inspiring peace building initiatives by young individuals in (post-)conflict scenarios.[4]

## Provisions

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Johan Wateler had stipulated in his will, that his estate should be used for the prize of the award:

> The property as such of the capital ... as well as the remainder of my possessions ... I dote to the State of the Netherlands under the condition that ... the yearly revenue in round figures will be spent for the award of a prize to him or her, who in whatever way, through word, deed or example, literature, sculpture or painting, in the country or abroad, has been most meritorious in the furthering of the peace ideal, or in contributing to finding means to render the horror of war more and more impossible in the long run.[2]

## Carnegie Wateler Peace Prize

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The history of the Wateler Peace Prize and its recipients reflects how the concepts of peace building and conflict prevention have evolved over the past 85 years. Many distinguished figures and organizations have received the award, including Sir Eric Drummond (1931), the first Secretary-General of the League of Nations; Sir Baden-Powell (1934), founder of the Scouting movement; Jean Monnet (1953), one of the architects of the European Union; Coretta Scott King (1969), peace activist and widow of Martin Luther King Jr.; and War Child (2012). In 2014, Lakhdar Brahimi was honoured for his role as a mediator in conflict zones and his contributions to peacekeeping. Sigrid Kaag received the Carnegie Wateler Peace Prize in 2016, while Rudi Vranckx was awarded the 2018 prize for his courageous reporting from conflict areas. The Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue won the 2022 prize for its efforts in conflict resolution.[1]

Most recently, on 26 November 2024, the Netherlands Armed Forces were awarded the Carnegie Wateler Peace Prize in recognition of their participation in more than 80 peacekeeping missions worldwide. [5]

## Laureates

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Year[6] | Winner

|

1931 | Eric Drummond, Secretary-General of the League of Nations and the Union Internationale des Associations pour la Société des Nations, Brussels
1932 | Association for League of Nations and Peace, The Hague
1933 | Arthur Henderson, president of the Conference on Disarmament of the League of Nations, Geneva
1934 | Dutch branch of the World Alliance for International Friendship through the Churches
1935 | Radio Broadcasting Service of the League of Nations, Geneva
1936 | Hague Academy of International Law, The Hague
1937 | Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell
1938 | The Dutch Youth Hostel Association and the Ecumenical Association in the Netherlands
1939 | American Friends' Service Committee, Philadelphia; Friends' Service Council, London
1947 | Henri van der Mandere, writer and peace activist, co-founder Association for League of Nations and Peace
1948 | World Council of Churches, Geneva
1949 | The Hague Academy of International Law, The Hague
1950 | Institut des Hautes Etudes Internationales à Genève
1951 | Dirk Stikker, former foreign minister, co-founder of NATO and the European Communities
1952 | Jean Monnet, Paris
1953 | Dutch Council of European Movement, The Hague
1954 | Anthony Eden, London
1955 | G.J. van Heuven Goedhart
1956 | UNICEF (United Nations Children's Fund)
1957 | A. Pelt
1958 | Count Moens de Fernig, Brussels
1959 | Youth Hostels Development Fund Foundation
1960 | Marguérite Nobs, Genève, founder of World Union of Women for International Concord (UMFCI)
1961 | Willem Visser 't Hooft
1962 | Dag Hammarskjøld Minnesfond, Stockholm
1963 | Youth Volunteer Programme
1964 | World Federation of United Nations Associations (WFUNA), Geneva
1965 | Eduard van Beinum Stichting, Breukelen
1966 | Taizé Community, France
1967 | Inter-church Consultation in Radio Affairs (I.K.O.R.), the Committee for Wild Geese Broadcasting
1968 | Coretta Scott King, U.S.A.
1969 | Dutch Association for International Law, Utrecht
1970 | International Social Service, Headquarters, Geneva
1971 | Bert Röling, Groningen
1972 | Alva Myrdal, Stockholm, Swedish representative at UN Disarmament Conference, treaty against nuclear proliferation
1973 | A.H. Boerma, UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), initiator of world campaign to combat hunger.
1974 | Henry Kissinger, Washington, peace agreement negotiator for the Vietnam War
1975 | M. Kohnstamm, Rome, co-founder of the European Communities
1976 | Manfred Lachs, Former President and Judge of the International Court of Justice, The Hague
1977 | Leger des Heils, The Netherlands
1981 | Danny Kaye, first Goodwill Ambassador of the UN Children's Rights Organisation (UNICEF)
1982 | Cornelis Brouwer, Representative of the High Commissioner for Refugees, The Hague
1983 | H. Gmeiner, SOS Children's Villages International, Austria
1984 | J.H. van Roijen, former foreign minister and ambassador of the Netherlands
1985 | International Commission of Jurists, Geneva
1986 | UNIFIL, UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon
1986 | Verghese Kurien, Chairman of National Dairy, India, known as the "Father of the White Revolution"
1987 | Dutch Disability Council Foundation, Utrecht
1988 | Brian Urquhart, former under-secretary-general U.N.O.
1989 | Doctors Without Borders, Netherlands (MSF the Netherlands/Médécins sans frontières Pays-Bas)
1990 | Jiří Hájek, Czech and Slovak Federal Republic
1991 | Municipality of Leiden, City of Refugees initiative
1992 | Wilhelm Huber, SOS - Kinderdorpen International
1993 | Mr. Krijn, Mrs. Krijn-van Goudoever and their child (posthumously)
1994 | The Jewish Cultural and Humanitarian Society “La Benevolencia Sarajevo”
1995 | Max van der Stoel, Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) High Commissioner for Minorities
1996 | Rolf Ekéus, Chairman of the UN Special Committee on Iraq (UNSCOM)
1997 | J. Ramaker, Permanent Dutch representative at UN Disarmament Conference
1998 | Permanent Court of Arbitration
2000 | Het Liliane Fonds
2001 | Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
2004 | Theo van Boven, Special Rapporteur of the UN Human Rights Commission
2006 | Javier Solana, former secretary-general of NATO
2008 | Patrick Cammaert, former commander of UN peacekeeping missions
2010 | Peace One Day and its founder Jeremy Gilley[7]
2012 | War Child
2014 | Lakhdar Brahimi, special envoy for peacekeeping missions
2016 | Sigrid Kaag, UN, special envoy to the Middle East
2018 | Rudi Vranckx, war correspondent
2022 | Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue (HD)
2024 | Netherlands Armed Forces

## See also

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* Carnegie Foundation (Netherlands)
* Peace Palace
* List of peace prizes

## References

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1. ^ a b "Een Haagse bankier en vredesfilantroop: Johan Wateler (1857-1927)". Peace Palace (in Dutch). Retrieved 2025-04-01.
2. ^ a b c d e van Harten, Marten. De Carnegie Wateler vredesprijs: het testament van de Haagse bankier en vredesfilantroop Johan Gerard Daniël Wateler, 16 november 1916 (in Dutch). The Hague: Uitgeverij De Nieuwe Haagse. ISBN 9789460100635.
3. ^ "Carnegie Wateler Peace Prize". Peace Palace. Retrieved 2025-04-01.
4. ^ "Youth Carnegie Peace Prize". Peace Palace. Retrieved 2025-04-01.
5. ^ Jansen, Claudia (2024-11-26). "Carnegie Wateler Peace Prize Awarded to the Netherlands Armed Forces". Peace Palace. Retrieved 2025-04-01.
6. ^ Laureates-Carnegie-Wateler-Peace-Prize.pdf
7. ^ "Carnegie Wateler Peace Prize 2010 | Peace Palace". 20 September 2010.

## External links

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* Youth Carnegie Peace Prize