China To Award Own Peace Prize Ahead Of Nobel

A mug bearing a picture of mainland jailed dissident Liu Xiaobao and his wife Liu Xia, who is currently under house arrest.

China will award its own peace prize on December 9, one day before the Nobel Peace Prize is formally bestowed upon jailed Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo.

Organizers said China's Confucius Peace Prize will be awarded to former Taiwanese Vice President Lien Chan, who helped warm ties between Taiwan and the mainland.

The prize features a cash award of $15,000.

China was furious after Liu was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in October and has been pressuring countries not to attend the ceremony in Oslo on December 10 to honor the jailed dissident.

Liu's wife has been put under house arrest.

The Norwegian Nobel committee this week said 19 countries have declined invitations to send representatives to the ceremony.

compiled from agency reports