Michael Jackson Up for Nobel Peace Prize?

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Fans of pop legend Michael Jackson, including Indian admirers, have launched a massive online campaign to have their idol nominated for the coveted Nobel Peace Prize.

The Thriller hitmaker whose sudden death on June 25 resulted in a global outpouring of sorrow, is the ideal candidate for the prestigious prize, according to his fans who are lobbying for the late pop icon.

The groups which are active on social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter, have thousands of members who have signed a petition which will be sent to the Nobel Peace Prize Committee, the deciding body based in Norway.

"He has done a great deal for this world and he deserves this for his contribution to humanity. If not him who else?" wrote Ramaswamy from India, on one of the petition sites.

The petitioners from all around the world are campaigning for Jackson citing the humanitarian work undertaken by the 'King of Pop'.

"Michael Jackson deserves a Nobel Peace Prize for his humanitarian work! I don't nominate him for his musical work or artist expression but for his compassion for all things living on this earth," wrote Antoinette Albert from California.

The campaigners cite the various charities aided by the singer, who had written the unity anthem We Are The World to raise awareness about the famine stricken countries of Africa during the 80's.

"It would be nearly impossible to count the multiple hundreds of millions of dollars Michael has donated to charity from his own finances and also through organising major fund raising events," reads one of the online petitions.

An online group which had earlier campaigned for Jackson's nomination last year has also emerged. "We are a group of Michael Jackson fans who last year sent a letter to highly ranked people such as Nelson Mandela, Jimmy Carter, Kofi Annan and the United Nations," reads their website ForMichael.org.

As the number of people joining the petition increases, Jackson who died at the age of 50 of a suspected cardiac arrest, could quickly become a front-runner amongst other international names like Chinese activist Hu Jia and Vietnamese Buddhist monk Thich Quang.

From the world of music U2 front man Bono has also been previously nominated. Former winners of the Nobel Peace Prize include Nelson Mandela, Al Gore and Jimmy Carter.

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