Bruno Ficili nominated for record 13th time

In what must surely be a record, Bruno Ficili, president of the International Association for Peace Education, based in Syracuse, Sicily, has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for the 13th time.

The nomination was submitted to the Norwegian Nobel Committee earlier this year by John B. Larson, a Democratic Congressman, who has represented Connecticut in the US House of Representatives since 1999.

Dr Ficili is a tireless promoter of peace education whose activities have taken him in various countries, including Malta.

He organises an annual Peace Education conference in Syracuse and in 2004 led a humanitarian mission in Rwanda.

He was among the top three finalists for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1996.

The annual Syracuse conference - in which Maltese speakers have also participated - has addressed various global conflict areas, such as the former Yugoslavia, Somalia, the Middle East and US-Soviet tensions.

In his letter Mr Larson highlights the fact that Dr Ficili was invited to Rome by the Committee for the Prevention of Conflicts to open an international conference on "Turkey's entry into the European Union: democracy, human rights and the Kurdish problem".