Archbishop Camara to accept peace prize

Archbishop Helder Camara of Brazil has decided to accept an alternative peace prize initiated by groups in Norway, who are dissatisfied with this year s winners of the Nobel Peace Prize.
Joint winners of the prize this year are North Vietnam's chief peace negotiator, Le Duc Tho, and Mr. Henry Kissinger, U.S. Secretary of State. Le Duc Tho declined his portion of the prize and Mr. Kissinger, although accepting, said that the pressure of international affairs will prevent his appearance at the award ceremonies.
Archbishop Camara heads the archdiocese of Olinda and Recife in poverty-stricken north-east Brazil. His efforts on behalf of the poor and the workers in his area, as well as his appeals for socio-economic reforms and his opposition to capitalism, have aroused strong campaigns against him by rightwing businessmen and large landholders in Brazil.
He has been accused of being a Communist and his residence has been machine-gunned. Most of his statements have been banned from publication by the government. The archbishop has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by many groups for the past several years.
The archbishop's prize is scheduled to be awarded at Oslo University on December 9, one day before the Nobel prizes are to he awarded.