by Inger Sethov

OSLO - At least 16 Nobel Peace Prize laureates called for disarmament and non-violent pursuit of peace in the 21st century in a joint appeal on Monday marking the 100th anniversary of the first Nobel award.

The declaration, agreed in Oslo at the biggest gathering of Nobel Peace Prize winners in history, also called for the establishment of an international criminal court.

``We offer support for the unrelenting, patient and non-violent pursuit of peace wherever conflicts may rage today or tomorrow, such as the Middle East, Colombia or the Great lakes of Africa,'' the statement said.

It was issued just before U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan and the United Nations collect the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo. About 30 laureates have been in Oslo in recent days.

It also urged a prompt establishment of an international criminal court, full implementation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, elimination of weapons of mass destruction and reduction and control of small arms.

A preliminary list, obtained by Reuters, included signatures from 16 individuals or organizations, such as Polish anti-communist campaigner Lech Walesa, Guatemala human rights advocate Rigoberta Menchu and Amnesty International.

``Virtually everyone who is present and able to sign has signed,'' Cora Weiss, president of the International Peace Bureau, which won the prize in 1910, told Reuters.

Others including Northern Ireland Protestant First Minister David Trimble and South Korean President Kim Dae-jung had not signed, nor had U.N. agencies. Tibetan leader the Dalai Lama, who won in 1989, was expected to sign.

She said that no one had refused to sign -- some international organizations were unable to sign because they needed a mandate from members.

Palestinian President Yasser Arafat and Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres, who won the 1994 prize with assassinated Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, were not in Oslo, after a recent surge in violence in the Middle East.

It took the laureates five days to come out with a joint statement after a meeting of about 30 laureates in Oslo.

``Once we came together there was really no resistance,'' she said, but adding ``when you have people in the range from Lech Walesa to Rigoberta (Menchu)...you have to have an accommodating compromise that doesn't compromise your principles.''

The statement also hailed Annan and the United Nations.

Copyright © 2001 Reuters Limited

###