Elie Wiesel, a survivor of the Nazi Holocaust, was awarded the 1986 Nobel Peace Prize Oct. 14 for his commitment to human dignity and his efforts against the forces of repression. ``Elie Wiesel has emerged as one of the most important spiritual leaders and guides in an age when violence, repression, and racism continue to characterize the world,'' the prize citation from the Norwegian Nobel Committee read.
Mr. Wiesel, a naturalized United States citizen, has written extensively about his experiences in World War II concentration camps, the condition of Jews in the Soviet Union, and other human rights issues. Through his writings he has waged a campaign against apathy toward suffering .
He has won numerous literature and human rights awards, including the US Congressional Gold Medal of Achievement for his work as chairman of the US Holocaust Memorial Council.
Wiesel expressed gratitude for his selection as the 1986 peace laureate, but said the honor belongs to all Holocaust survivors ``who have tried to do something with their memory, with their silence, with their life.''
The peace prize was the second of this year's Nobel announcements.
At press time, these other 1986 Nobel Prize winners had been announced:
Medicine -- Stanley Cohen, US, and Rita Levi-Montalcini, Italy-US, for discoveries of ``growth factors'' in human and animal tissue.
Physics -- Ernst Ruska, West Germany, for work in electron optics and designing the first electron microscope; Gerd Binnig, West Germany and Heinrich Rohrer, Switzerland, for design of scanning tunneling microscope, which has made possible the first pictures of individual atoms.
Chemistry -- Dudley R. Herschbach and Yuan T. Lee, US, and John C. Polanyi, Canada, for pioneering study of basic chemical reactions.