Victorian Group Wins Nobel Peace Prize In Australian First

Photo: Chris Hopkins

Founded in Victoria, the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) will be recognised for its efforts which led to 122 nations voting to adopt the United Nations’ Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons on 7 July 2017.

The treaty is the world’s first to ban nuclear weapons and will become effective when ratified by 50 nations.

ICAN’s prestigious win will be celebrated at an event at the Melbourne Town Hall tonight, where Attorney-General Martin Pakula will congratulate the group on behalf of the Victorian Government.

The Melbourne celebration will also include a live cross to the award ceremony in Oslo, Norway, where a delegation from ICAN Australia will be present.

ICAN began with an office in Carlton, Melbourne, in mid-2006 and is now part of a global coalition of several hundred non-government organisations.

ICAN’s 2017 Nobel Peace Prize is one of five Nobel Prizes established in the will of chemist, inventor and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel (1833–96), awarded annually to those who ‘have conferred the greatest benefit to mankind’.

Former recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize include Martin Luther King Jr, Nelson Mandela and Doctors Without Borders.