South African jurist Navanethem “Navi” Pillay has won the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts to promote peace and international law, particularly in ensuring that war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide are prosecuted.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee announced the award on Friday, October 9, 2026, saying Pillay had demonstrated exceptional courage and integrity in advancing a more comprehensive global legal order.
According to the committee, “Navi Pillay’s commitment to universal legal principles and her firm moral compass are constants in a long career.”
Born into a family of Indian Tamil origin under apartheid in Durban, South Africa, Pillay became a lawyer and legal pioneer who confronted structural discrimination, segregation and exclusion.
The committee said her career had been marked by her early work defending Nelson Mandela and others who opposed apartheid, as well as her subsequent service as a judge in significant international court cases.
Pillay has served as a judge on South Africa’s High Court, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and the International Criminal Court. She also served as the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and chaired the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory until recently.
She is currently a judge at the International Court of Justice in the case in which Myanmar stands accused of genocide.
Explaining her contribution to international justice, the Nobel Committee said Pillay had significantly expanded the scope and impact of international law.
“In historic international court cases, she has shown that legal measures can help prevent acts of war and violence,” the committee said.
It added that her “independence, expertise and steadfastness have made her one of the most respected international jurists of our time.”
The committee highlighted Pillay’s contribution to legal developments concerning rape, sexual violence and genocide during proceedings at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.
It said her influence was significant when the tribunal established that rape and sexual violence could constitute crimes against humanity and genocide.
The committee also credited her with contributing to a legal breakthrough in which a defendant faced charges of incitement to commit genocide solely on the basis of spreading propaganda.
“Navi Pillay has held states and national leaders accountable and brought hope to victims of violence and conflict,” the committee said.
It added that, throughout her career, she had emphasised the responsibility of individuals and states to comply with the rule of law and helped define relevant legal principles.
Nobel committee warns of pressure on international law
In announcing the award, the committee stressed the importance of international law in resolving conflicts peacefully, warning that the global legal system and its institutions were facing mounting pressure.
It noted that the first Nobel Peace Prize was awarded 125 years ago and that resolving conflicts through international law had remained a recurring theme throughout the prize’s history.
According to the committee, the development of United Nations institutions after the Second World War expanded the reach of international law, with further legal mechanisms introduced in subsequent decades.
It said the central principle was that lasting peace should be founded on legal principles rather than the will of powerful states or a fragile balance of power.
However, the committee acknowledged that the international legal order had not always operated equally, noting that powerful countries had often evaded responsibility.
“In practice, cases brought under international law have produced different results depending on who is the perpetrator and who is the victim,” it said.
The committee added that more conflicts were being addressed through diplomacy, treaties and legal mechanisms rather than threats, violence and warfare.
“At a time of existential challenges – including more wars and conflicts than the world has seen in a long time – international law is no longer just a supplement to peace and security. It is an absolute necessity,” the committee said.
It warned that the system of international law was under tremendous pressure and that its institutions were under attack, with power politics increasingly taking precedence over legal frameworks and global respect for justice.
“Whenever might overtakes right, it undermines stability, trust and peaceful co-existence,” the committee said.
‘Peace requires justice’
The committee said the award was intended to reaffirm the importance of the rule of law at both national and international levels in maintaining peace and resolving conflicts without violence.
“In awarding this year’s Nobel Peace Prize, the Norwegian Nobel Committee wants to remind the world that the rule of law – national and international – underpins the system we have set up to ensure peace and resolve conflicts non-violently. Peace requires justice,” it said.
It also praised judges for protecting legal order, particularly at a time when judicial institutions and their members faced sanctions and attacks.
“History has shown that a world operating without the rule of law is unjust, unwise and inhumane,” the committee said.
The committee said Pillay’s career demonstrated the importance of supporting and strengthening international legal institutions.
The Nobel Committee concluded that her commitment to justice and human dignity offered hope and inspiration to people working towards a more peaceful world.
It said the 2026 award was directly rooted in Alfred Nobel’s will, noting that Pillay had strengthened fraternity between nations by advancing the use of tribunals to promote peace and justice.