BY SUKHDEV CHHATBAR
South African jurist Navanethem “Navi” Pillay, who helped establish that rape and sexual violence could constitute genocide while serving at the Arusha-based International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), has won the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee announced the award on October 9, recognising her efforts to promote peace and international law and her contribution to holding perpetrators of atrocities accountable.
EX-ICTR JUDGE WINS NOBLE PEACE PRIZE
“Peace requires justice,” the committee said, highlighting her work in strengthening international courts and defending victims of violence and conflict.
Pillay joined the ICTR in 1995 and became its second president and first female president in 1999. Her work in Arusha included the landmark prosecution of Jean-Paul Akayesu, the former mayor of Taba in Rwanda, whose conviction changed how international courts addressed sexual violence.
On September 2, 1998, Pillay and fellow judges Laïty Kama and Lennart Aspegren unanimously convicted Akayesu of genocide and crimes against humanity, including rape. It was the first genocide conviction by an international court.
The judgement established that rape and sexual violence constituted genocide when committed with the intention of destroying, in whole or in part, a protected group. The judges found that sexual violence against Tutsi women formed an integral part of the destruction of the Tutsi ethnic group. Akayesu was subsequently sentenced to life imprisonment.
“Rape had always been regarded as one of the spoils of war,” Pillay said after the verdict. “Now it is a war crime, no longer a trophy.” Harvard Law School’s account of her career credits her with helping shape the judgement’s reasoning on sexual violence.
During her eight-year tenure at the ICTR, from 1995 to 2003, Pillay played a critical role in the tribunal’s early development and in the interpretation and application of international criminal law.
Under her presidency, the tribunal experienced rapid expansion and increased productivity. She played an essential role as a judge in conducting and completing seven trials.
She also participated in the landmark conviction and sentencing of Jean Kambanda, the former prime minister of Rwanda, who became the first head of government to be held accountable for genocide and crimes against humanity.
Pillay also presided over the Ferdinand Nahimana et al. trial, which held figures from Rwanda’s radio and print media accountable for fomenting ethnic hatred, genocide and other international crimes.
The president of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals, Judge Graciela Gatti Santana, praised Pillay as a “trailblazer in international criminal justice, who broke barriers as a woman judge and President of the ICTR, helping to shape a legacy of courage, integrity, and principled leadership. Her contributions continue to inspire generations of jurists and reaffirm the vital role of justice in upholding human dignity and lasting peace”.
Reflecting on the tribunal’s recognition of sexual violence as an international crime after the Nobel Prize announcement, Pillay told reporters: “We finally recognised that as an international crime in the Rwandan tribunal. I am proud of that.”
Born in Durban under apartheid, Pillay grew up facing racial segregation and discrimination. Her father was a bus driver. She built a legal career defending opponents of apartheid and advocating for abused women.
She established her own legal practice in Natal in 1967, obtained law degrees from the University of Natal and later earned a master’s degree and a doctorate at Harvard. In 1995, she was appointed an acting High Court judge in South Africa before joining the ICTR. She also co-founded Equality Now, the international women’s rights organisation.
After her time in Arusha, Pillay served as a judge at the International Criminal Court (ICC) from 2003 to 2008 and as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights from 2008 to 2014.
Her Nobel Prize recognition brings renewed attention to the legal precedents developed at the ICTR and their lasting significance for survivors of sexual violence.
