SÃO PAULO
Brazilian Senator Vanessa Grazziotin has nominated former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden for the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize.
Grazziotin is in charge of a Senate panel investigation into claims the NSA, one of the United States' main surveillance bodies, ran a vast monitoring programme in Brazil, targeting ordinary citizens, political figures and businesses.
A statement from the Amazonas state senator, who is a member of the Community Party of Brazil (PCdoB), was published on the Portal Vermelho website:
“We are convinced that Mr Snowden's actions, more than other individual's, have contributed to a more stable, peaceful future,” the statement read, adding that: “In exposing the extent of electronic surveillance of citizens across the world, Mr Snowden has restored the fundamental principle of transparency to democracy.”
Grazziotin's is the fifth public nomination for Snowden to be put forward for the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize, according to the Free Snowden (freesnowden.is) website, along with two politicians from Norway, another parliamentarian from Iceland, the Green/European Free Alliance group in the European Parliament, and a sociology professor in Sweden, who reportedly submitted the original nomination.
Nominations received must be postmarked no later than 1 February 2014. Any person or organisation can be nominated for the award. This year's winner or winners are set to be announced in October.
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