Nurses Marianne and Margaret receive support for Nobel Prize nomination

The International Council of Nurses (ICN) has announced its support for the Nobel Peace Prize nomination for Marianne Stoeger, 86, and Magaret Pissarek, 85, the two nurses who are called angels on Sorok Island.

The committee to nominate Marianne and Margaret for Nobel Peace Prize and the Korean Nurses Association (KNA) said Monday that the ICN sent the Norwegian Nobel Committee a letter that states support for the nomination of the two nurses on May 20. The ICN represents 26 million nurses from 130 countries. “I understand that other major international public health groups and organizations also support their nomination,” said Lee Sun-ju, the president of the KNA.

According to the committee, campaigns in support of the nomination of Marianne and Margaret are taking place not only in South Korea but also in the United States, Austria, the United Kingdom and Spain. The KNA is reaching out to people who can write a nomination letter for the nurses and running a signature campaign. Marianne and Margaret graduated from a nursing school in Innsbruck, Austria before coming to South Korea in 1962 and 1966, respectively, where they spent about 40 years treating patients with Hansen’s disease on Sorok Island, Goheung, South Jeolla Province. The winner of the Nobel Peace Prize will be announced on the first Friday in October.


Hyeong-Ju Lee peneye09@donga.com