He may not have a passport, or a home address beyond Terminal F in Sheremetyevo airport in Moscow. But NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden does at least have a shot at winning the Nobel Peace Prize, it emerged Monday.
Getting a Nobel Peace Prize nomination isn't the most difficult thing in the world. The list of people who can enter a candidate for the committee's consideration is long, and includes just about every national legislator, plus any professor of history, social sciences, philosophy, law or theology at a variety of universities.
In this case, the nominator was Stefan Svallfors, a sociology professor at Umeå University in the north of Sweden and a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Normally, he's more interested in European welfare policy than international whistleblowers. He tweeted his letter to the Nobel Peace Prize Committee in Norway (spoiler alert: it's in Swedish.)
Mejlar till Norska Nobelkommittén. pic.twitter.com/RCYqxHvOyO— Stefan Svallfors (@StefanSvallfors) July 13, 2013
Svallfors' letter praises Snowden for revealing details of the NSA's email surveillance program, which he calls a "heroic effort at great personal cost." The committee should award Snowden the prize to show that "individuals can stand up for fundamental rights and freedoms."
Unfortunately for Svallfors and Snowden, the deadline for 2013 Nobel Peace Prize submissions passed in February. Snowden could still be considered for the 2014 Peace Prize, by which time he will hopefully have a more permanent residence.
But the Nobel powers-that-be have not dismissed the idea out of hand. Kristian Berg Harpviken, deputy director at the International Peace Research Institute in Oslo, was asked by the Interfax news agency whether Snowden deserved the prize. His response? "A careful yes."