Guildhall event to mark 1998 Nobel peace prize award

Former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern will join Lady Daphne Trimble at an event celebrating the 25th anniversary of the presentation of the Nobel Peace Prize to the late John Hume and Lord David Trimble.

Mr Hume and Lord Trimble were presented with their joint Nobel peace awards on December 10, 1998.

The Nobel committee singled the two leaders out for their work for the Good Friday Agreement and the peace process.

A large contingent traveled from Northern Ireland for the presentation where they were joined by then US ambassador to Ireland, the late Jean Kennedy Smith.

A sister of assassinated US President, John F Kennedy, Ms Kennedy Smith was a close ally of Mr Hume.

For several days in December 1998, Mr Hume and Lord Trimble were the toast of Norway. They were honoured by the city of Oslo before the presentation and later dined with the King of Norway before being guests of honour at a gala concert featuring the band A-ha.

The official celebrations ended with a reception for the two leaders hosted by Mr Hume’s fellow Derry man and then Irish ambassador to Denmark, Iceland and Norway, Jim Sharkey.

Organised by the John and Pat Hume Foundation, the commemoration at Derry’s Guildhall on December 11 will also feature former SDLP Stormont minister Bríd Rodgers, Hume Foundation chairwoman Dawn Purvis and Derry writer Séamus O’Reilly.

Other speakers will include: Kenyan human rights’ advocate Anjli Parrin; President of Voices of Young Refugees in Europe Chougher Maria Doughramajian; David Kerr and representatives of the Salvation Army and the St Vincent de Paul Society.

There will also be a video presentation by BBC foreign correspondent, Fergal Keane.

Mr Hume and Lord Trimble donated their Nobel prize money to St Vincent de Paul and the Salvation Army.

Prior to the event, young people from local schools will join a discussion on Pathways to Human Rights and Peace, also at the Guildhall.

Mr Hume is the only holder of the world’s three major peace awards, the Nobel Prize, the Gandhi Peace Prize and the Martin Luther King award.

Mr Hume passed away in August 2020 while Lord Trimble died in July 2022.

Anyone wishing to attend Monday’s event can do so through: www.humefoundation.org or by booking at place at: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/leadership-for-peaceful-change-solutions-to-lasting-peace-tickets-763302507347?aff=oddtdtcreator

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