7 December: Tribute to Elie Ducommun

Suman Kumar
2 Min Read
Elie Ducommun

Elie Ducommun (19 February 1833 – 7 December 1906) was a Swiss peace activist, who is perhaps best known for his work with the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU).

Life and Career

He was born on 19 February 1833, in Geneva, Switzerland. He worked as a tutor, language teacher, journalist, and translator for the Swiss Federal Chancellery from 1869 to 1873.

Ducommun began his career as a journalist, writing for various newspapers in Switzerland, including the Journal de Genève.

Ducommun was a committed pacifist who believed that war was an unnecessary and tragic waste of human life and resources. He was a founder and the first secretary of the Permanent International Peace Bureau (PIPB), which was established in Bern, Switzerland in 1891 as a clearinghouse for information on peace movements and international conflicts.

He was also active in the Inter-Parliamentary Union, which was established in 1889 to promote international cooperation and dialogue among parliamentarians from around the world. He served as the secretary general of the IPU from 1894 to 1902 and helped to organize a number of international peace conferences and other events aimed at promoting peace and disarmament.

He also played a key role in organizing the first Hague Peace Conference in 1899.

Throughout his life, Ducommun worked tirelessly to promote international understanding and peace, and he remains an important figure in the history of the peace movement.

He died on 7 December 1906, in Bern, Switzerland.

Award

In 1902, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, along with Charles Albert Gobat, for their work promoting international arbitration and disarmament.

Share This Article