NEW DELHI 16 March 2001 Sapa-AFP
India Friday conferred the International Gandhi Peace Prize on former South African president Nelson Mandela at a grand ceremony at the presidential palace in New Delhi.
The annual award, instituted in 1995 in memory of independence hero Mahatma Gandhi, carries a 10 million rupee (217,000 dollars) cash award, a plaque and a citation.
President K.R. Narayanan presented the award to Mandela, who shared the prize with the Grameen (rural) Bank of Bangladesh, a cooperative institution pioneering micro-credit among the poor.
A jury consisting of the prime minister of India, the leader of the opposition, the chief justice of the supreme court and two other eminent people selected the award winners.
The aim of the award is to "suitably acknowledge the contribution that the Gandhian approach is making at the global level to peace and harmony."
"In honouring Mandela ... we are paying tribute to an unusual hero in the Gandhian mould, who personifies the triumph of the human spirit over forces of oppression," the citation read.
In his acceptance speech, Mandela recalled India's support to South Africa during his struggle against apartheid.
This support, he said, "had translated into partnership and cooperation as South Africa takes its long and arduous route towards development."
India was a model for those countries seeking to address developmental problems, Mandela said.
He also urged developing countries to cooperate to ensure their collective voices were heard at international fora and "that democracy and equality becomes a reality" in the new world order.
Dr. Deepal Chandra Barua, the chairman of the Grameen Bank, in his speech said the award had made the institution more "accountable" to keep up "the good work done" by the bank.
The citation given to Barua described the bank as: "... Development with a human face, development which is not populist but people centred and which promotes self-help and self-respect, values dear to Mahatma Gandhi.
Giving away the award, Narayanan said the Gandhi prize had "special significance" at a time when "materialism and human greed has taken over the world more or less."
He also praised Mandela's "tireless efforts" to ensure peace in Africa, even after retiring from active politics.
Former recipients of the Gandhi Peace Prize include Julius Nyrere of Tanzania and Gerhard Fischer of Germany.
Friday's award ceremony was attended by Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee and senior ministers.