THE Norwegian Nobel Committee has a penchant for awarding premature peace prizes. It gave one to Barack Obama less than a year into his presidency. And now it has bestowed one on Colombia’s president, Juan Manuel Santos, just days after Colombian voters rejected in a plebiscite his plan to end the country’s 52-year-long war with the FARC, a hybrid revolutionary army and organised-crime outfit.
The committee’s head, Kaci Kullman Five, acknowledged the “real danger” that the war will resume after voters vetoed the peace accord on October 2nd. She thinks that the prize will make that less likely. “We hope it will encourage all good initiatives and all the parties who could make a difference in this process in Colombia,” she said. Whether it will is the question of the hour in Colombia. The majority against the accord was a narrow one—50.2% to 49.8%—and turnout was low. Both Mr Santos and the FARC promised to continue working towards peace. In accepting the prize, Mr Santos called on Colombians to “unite our efforts, our minds and our hearts so that we all win the most important prize: peace for Colombia.”
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