India, Oct. 9 -- From challenging apartheid-era discrimination in South Africa to shaping international human rights law, Navanethem "Navi" Pillay has built a career around justice, equality and accountability. The South African jurist of Indian Tamil origin has now won the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize, recognising her decades-long efforts to defend human rights and strengthen international justice.

A former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Pillay has also served on international courts and helped advance legal recognition of sexual violence as a potential act of genocide. Her Nobel win brings renewed attention to the journey of a lawyer who rose from fighting racial discrimination at home to becoming a prominent figure in global human r...