Despite overwhelming criticism and ridicule from media and individuals, the sixth Confucius Peace Prize in China, an award established by a non-government organization (NGO) as a "correction to the Nobel Peace Prize," will be awarded as scheduled in an award ceremony in Beijing on Dec. 9.
The Confucius Peace Prize Organizing Committee is the NGO that has been awarding the prize since its inception in 2010. According to the organization, its goal is to promote the "Chinese understanding" of peace.
The prize follows a pattern of being criticized by the public as soon as they announce their winner. This year's winner is Robert Mugabe, the president of Zimbabwe.
The NGO is still awaiting word on whether Mugabe will be able to collect his prize in person.
Mugabe has been criticized in the past, particularly by Western media, for being a "war-monger" who uses "systematic violence" to retain his 35-year rule over Zimbabwe.
Since 1980, Mugabe has ruled Zimbabwe, first as prime minister, then as president in 1987. In 2008, he won after a highly disputed election.
According to Liu Zhiqin, the initiator of the prize, "the different opinions about the prize are understandable. But I think the criticisms will help us to grow, instead of frustrating us."
Liu also said that they will not stop awarding the prize unless they are specifically told by the government to stop.
According to the NGO, they started the award because they saw a flaw in the Nobel Peace Prize, citing a bias toward Western views.
"The Nobel Peace Prize gradually started showing more and more intense ideological coloring, quietly becoming a tool in the hands of Western countries to cause peaceful revolution against political regimes that did not meet their standards," said a 2012 statement by the NGO.
The public's reaction toward the prize has been mostly negative.
Ma Liming, a social commentator on qq.com, said that "the Confucius Peace Prize has soured. It represents an outdated and naive world outlook, carrying some kind of populism. Such thing is hurting our country. I think, such a farce needs to be ended."
However, some have defended the prize from the negative reactions.
Zhang Chuncheng, another social commentator, posted on his blog: "The opposition the prize received is because it has severely betrayed Western mainstream values."
Previous winners of the prize include Lien Chan (2010), honorary chairman of the Kuomintang; Vladamir Putin (2011), then Russian Prime Minister; Kofi Annan (2012), former Secretary-General of the U.N.; Yuan Longping (2012), a Chinese agricultural scientist; Master Yicheng (2013), honorary president of the Buddhist Association of China; and Fidel Castro (2014), former leader of Cuba.
Only Master Yicheng has ever collected the prize in person.