In Oslo, the Norwegian Nobel Committee announced that Navanethem "Navi" Pillay, an 85‑year‑old South African jurist, had been named the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize laureate—a first for her.
Pillay's career began in 1967 when she opened South Africa's first black woman‑run law firm in Durban’s Natal Province; she later became the country's first non‑white woman on the High Court, a milestone that shook the apartheid judiciary.
She served as UN Human Rights Chief and presided over the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda for four years, leading investigations that held perpetrators accountable for genocide.
Jorgen Watne Frydnes, chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, praised Pillay as having "significantly enlarged the scope and impact of international law" and called her work "a source of hope and inspiration for those seeking a more peaceful world."
In Durban, a 12‑year‑old girl named Thandi Bhekulu, whose grandmother was a former political prisoner, said Pillay's legacy gives her family hope that justice can still be served.
Pillay will deliver her acceptance speech on 10 December 2026, addressing an audience that includes world leaders and activists, before returning to the International Court of Justice to oversee the Myanmar genocide case.