Jailed Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo won the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize yesterday for championing reform and human rights in a move that is certain to anger Beijing.

The writer and university professor was honoured “for his long and non-violent struggle for fundamental human rights in China,” Norwegian Nobel Committee president Thorbjoern Jagland said in his announcement.

In reaction, China said that the Norwegian Nobel committee has “violated and blasphemed” the Peace Prize by awarding it to Mr Liu and warned that ties with Oslo would suffer.

“The Nobel Peace Prize should be awarded to those who work to promote ethnic harmony, international friendship, disarmament and who hold peace meetings. These were (Alfred) Nobel’s wishes,” foreign ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said.

“Liu Xiaobo was found guilty of violating Chinese law and sentenced to prison by Chinese judicial organs,” Mr Ma said in a statement on the ministry’s website.

“His actions run contrary to the purpose of the Nobel Peace Prize. By awarding the prize to this person, the Nobel committee has violated and blasphemed the award.”

Norway, which fears a possible diplomatic backlash from China, was the first nation to congratulate Mr Liu while Amnesty International called him a “worthy winner” and urged China to release all prisoners of conscience.

The London-based human rights group said it hoped the award “will keep the spotlight on the struggle for fundamental freedoms and concrete protection of human rights” in China.

The Chinese government has frequently warned the Norwegian Nobel Committee to steer clear of pro-democracy advocates in general, and recently specifically warned them off Mr Liu.

But Mr Jagland insisted that the Nobel Committee has the right to question the human rights record of one of the world’s great powers.

“China is in breach of several international agreements to which it is a signatory, as well as of its own provisions concerning political rights,” said Mr Jagland, adding that “we have a responsibility to speak when others are unable to speak”.

Mr Liu was a key figure in the pro-democracy student movement in China in 1989, which was brutally crushed by Chinese authorities and culminated in the Tiananmen Square crackdown.

He had been detained on several occasions, and in December 2009 he was convicted of subversion and sentenced to 11 years in prison.

Speaking in China, Mr Liu’s wife Liu Xia said she was “so excited” by the Nobel award.

In recent years Chinese dissidents have routinely been named as top candidates for the prestigious prize but have not won.

In 1989, China was incensed that the Nobel Committee chose the Tibetian spiritual leader Dalai Lama for the Peace Prize.

Oslo’s fears of a backlash from China come as Norway and China are in negotiations to forge a bilateral trade agreement, a deal which the Norwegian government hopes to sign as soon as possible.

This year, the Nobel Committee considered a record 237 individuals and organisations for the Peace Prize, which carries with it an award of 10 million Swedish kroner (€1.09 million).

First reactions

• Amnesty International: Mr Liu was a “worthy winner” and hoped the award would “keep the spotlight on the struggle for fundamental freedoms and concrete protection of human rights that Liu Xiaobo and many other activists in China are dedicated to”. But Catherine Baber, Amnesty’s deputy Asia-Pacific director, said: “This award can only make a real difference if it prompts more international pressure on China to release Mr Liu, along with the numerous other prisoners of conscience languishing in Chinese jails for exercising their right to freedom of expression.”

• Warsaw: The awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize should serve as a message to China that Beijing must respect fundamental values, Poland’s Nobel laureate Lech Walesa said. “I am very satisfied by the decision of the Nobel committee. I consider it a challenge for China and the entire world,” Mr Walesa, the legendary leader of Poland’s anti-communist Solidarity trade union, said.

• Taiwan: The main opposition hailed jailed Mr Liu for winning the Nobel Peace Prize and called for his immediate release. “We urge the Chinese government to respond to the demand by the international community to release Mr Liu and respect his rights so he can collect the award in person,” said the Democratic Progressive Party in a statement. Taiwan’s premier Wu Den-yih said Mr Liu’s win reaffirmed the universal values of human rights, freedom and democracy, which his government has maintained, according to the state Central News Agency.

• Norway: Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg congratulated Mr Liu on his prize, despite a warning from Beijing that the award would be seen as “an unfriendly gesture”.

“I would like to congratulate Liu Xiaobo, who has been awarded the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize for his work to promote democracy and human rights,” Mr Stoltenberg said in a statement.

“Liu Xiaobo has been awarded the prize for defending freedom of expression and democracy in a way that deserves attention and respect,” he added.

• Germany: A spokesman for the Germany government urged China to free Mr Liu to allow him to attend the award ceremony for his 2010 Nobel Peace Prize. “The (German) government would like to see him released soon and receive his prize in person. The government has pressed for his release in the past and will continue to do so,” spokesman Steffen Seibert told reporters.

“He is a brave man, a man who wants to advance democracy and human rights in his country, but one who knows and has always said that this would be a difficult and drawn-out process that should stay peaceful whatever happens.”

• Dalai Lama: “Awarding the Peace Prize to him is the international community’s recognition of the increasing voices among the Chinese people in pushing China towards political, legal and constitutional reforms,” the Dalai Lama, who won the prize in 1989, said in a statement.

• EU: “The decision of the Nobel Peace Prize Committee is a strong message of support to all those around the world who, sometimes with great personal sacrifice, are struggling for freedom and human rights,” Mr Barroso said, although he stopped short of calling for the dissident’s release.

“These values are at the core of the European Union,” Mr Barroso added.