Barack Obama has won the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize, a decision that caused surprise and some criticism given the early stage of his presidency. But it is not the first time that a Nobel Peace Prize has sparked controversy.
In 1994 Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat won the prize jointly with Israeli President Shimon Peres and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzak Rabin, as right-wing Israelis staged protests in Oslo.
The previous year, Nelson Mandela shared the award with former South African President FW de Klerk for their role in ending apartheid, although Mr De Klerk also led the party that had instituted the racist policy.
In 1998 John Hume, left, and David Trimble, right, received the award for their role in bringing peace to Northern Ireland, following the Good Friday peace agreement. But radical Unionists called the award a "farce".
Perhaps the most controversial laureate of all was former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, who won the prize with Le Duc Tho of North Vietnam for helping negotiate an end to America's role in the Vietnam War.
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