SOME people still say King Faisal International Prize is not as prestigious as the Nobel Prize. This attitude seems clear whenever someone wins the Nobel for an achievement that has already earned the King Faisal International Prize. Indeed, I would blame people who consider such incidents as a proof of the neutrality and credibility of the Arab award. I also blame those who have called King Faisal International Prize the Arab Nobel Prize. Should the better be replaced with the worse? The Nobel Prize has received a considerable amount of criticism that it lacks impartiality and integrity. Let me relate some of the views related in Wikipedia: “The Nobel Prize has reignited criticism that the award committee has been biased since the Prize Foundation in 1901.” Critics have also focused on Nobel awards in the fields of Peace and Economics; those in some countries, including the former Soviet Union, said that the Nobel Prize in Economics is awarded only to those who focus on capitalist economic thought. Another criticism is the award of Nobel Prize in Physics to Francis Fukuyama, which was said to have promoted Western liberal values. Critics blasted US President Barack Obama's Peace Prize in 2009 because it was awarded based on his good intentions, not his accomplishments. I would like to recall the shock of 1994, when the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to the Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, jointly with war criminals Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres. The award was unfair because instead of nourishing the oppressed with a clear message to punish the oppressor, it did not even divide the prize between the co-winners equally, but gave it to the oppressor with a small portion to the oppressed. It was divided between the offender and the victim with the ratio of two to one. It is clear that the Nobel Prize lacks impartiality and integrity and it has been said that you can't give what you never had. We can conclude that awarding the Nobel Prize after the King Faisal International Prize is a privilege for the former, not the latter. The King Faisal International Prize has never been criticized since its foundation in 1977 simply because it is truer and more comprehensive. IT is truer because it has been founded in honor of the late King Faisal in order to reinforce and instill his principles and values in pursuit of achieving true advancement and development of mankind in all walks of life. It is truer because it strictly adheres to deliver its mission, to precisely form the selection committees and determine the winners while giving full consideration to the nomination policy. The King Faisal International Prize deals professionally with candidates' evaluations and selection procedures to select the winners, which makes it the most prestigious award with the highest degree of trustworthiness. The King Faisal International Prize is more comprehensive because over its 34 years of existence, a relatively short period of time, it has made unprecedented achievements in relation to its goals. At the beginning, it was awarded in three areas: Service to Islam, Islamic Studies and Arabic Language and Literature. The first category is more comprehensive than the Nobel Peace Prize because it includes all the issues that affect mankind, including security, peace, freedom and welfare. The second domain has focused on original academic studies in disciplines that enrich human thought and nourish its knowledge, especially in economic matters. I would, however, consider it necessary to develop a new domain for the Prize in Politics and Economics. The third domain, Arabic Language and Literature, has addressed many studies and creative writings, including literary criticism, poetry, prose, stories, children's literature and translation. Two years after the launch of the KFIP, other categories, Medicine and Science, were added. AS for the KFIP being the premier prize, we are currently renewing our celebration of British scientist, Professor Robert Edwards, winner of the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 2010. In this respect, we extend our appreciation to the King Faisal International Prize, which honored this scientist 21 years ago. This honor is not limited to Edwards, but it also extends to 16 other scientists who were first awarded the King Faisal International Prize, and then, many years later, received other international prizes. Despite all the credit the King Faisal International Prize deserves, it is unfortunate that we see little coverage by media and cultural entities. Such activities either coincide with each award ceremony or when people win the Nobel Prize after receiving the King Faisal International Prize. It would not be sufficient to blame the media because scientific, cultural and medical institutions also share the responsibility. The King Faisal International Prize deserves more attention from all Arabic-speaking and Islamic universities, particularly those in Saudi Arabia. It should be our duty, as individuals and institutions, to appreciate and highlight the achievements and contributions of all those who qualified for winning King Faisal International Prize. We have to make every possible effort to capitalize on their achievements by actions such as hosting the laureates on television channels, at literary clubs, in scientific magazines and through forums in our universities and research centers. These efforts need not wait until they win the Nobel Prize, with a simple, small reference to indicate that they won King Faisal International Prize some years ago! I would like to conclude by stating that King Faisal International Prize has always strived to achieve its goals, thanks to Allah, by virtue of its organizers' and sponsors' dedication and their integrity, comprehensiveness and neutrality. The KFIP has truly placed itself as superior, reflecting to the whole world the pure image of Arab and Islamic thought, which promotes good, enlightenment and peace for all mankind. We should consider it a peerless source of pride. – Adel Ali Joudeh is a Palestinian writer based in Riyadh. __
