Los Angeles: Fans of pop legend Michael
Jackson, including Indian admirers, have launched a massive
online campaign to have their idol nominated for the coveted
Nobel Peace Prize.
The `Thriller` hitmaker whose sudden death on June 25
resulted in a global outpouring of sorrow, is the ideal
candidate for the prestigious prize according to his fans who
are lobbying for the late pop icon.
The groups which are active on social networking sites
like Face Book and Twitter, have thousands of members who have
signed a petition which will be sent to the Nobel Peace Prize
Committee, the deciding body based in Norway.
"He has done a great deal to this world. he deserves
this for his contribution to humanity. If not him who else?"
wrote Ramaswamy from India on one of the petition sites.
The petitioners from all around the world are
campaigning for Jackson citing the humanitarian work
undertaken by the `King of Pop`.
"Michael Jackson deserves a Nobel Peace Prize for his
humanitarian work! I don`t nominate him for his musical work
or artist expression but for his compassion for all things
living on this earth," wrote Antoinette Albert from
California.
The campaigners cite the various charities aided by
the singer, who had written the unity anthem `We Are The
World` to raise awareness about the famine stricken countries
of Africa during the 80`s.
"It would be nearly impossible to count the multiple
hundreds of millions of dollars Michael has donated to charity
from his own finances and also through organising major fund
raising events," reads one of the online petitions.
An online group which had earlier campaigned for
Jackson`s nomination last year has also emerged.
"We are a group of Michael Jackson fans who last year
sent a letter to highly ranked people such as Nelson Mandela,
Jimmy Carter, Kofi Annan and the United Nations," reads their
website ForMichael.org.
As the number of people joining the petition
increases, Jackson who died at the age of 50 of a suspected
cardiac arrest, could quickly become a front-runner amongst
other international names like Chinese activist Hu Jia and
Vietnamese Buddhist monk Thich Quang.
Former winners of the Nobel Peace Prize include Nelson
Mandela, Al Gore and Jimmy Carter while U2 front man Bono has
also been previously nominated.
Bureau Report
