His name is Franz Ontal, head of the inspector training of the United Nations-backed chemical weapons international watchdog, which oversaw the destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons.
Ontal is from Negros Occidental. An article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer said studied in La Salle Bacolod where he completed his undergraduate course in biology. He immigrated to the United States in the 1980s and worked in New York where he held jobs related to medical services. In 2005, he joined the OPWC in The Hague. Netherlands first as a medic for the chemical weapons inspector and disposal teams. He now holds the position of head of inspector training.
“Recent events in Syria, where chemical weapons have again been put to use have underlined the need to enhance the efforts to do away with such weapons, the Norwegian jury that selected the winner said in its tribute to the group.
The OPCW received 8 million kroner ($1.2m) prize, much of it came from the family Nobel’s investment in Azerbaijan, an oil and gas rich country in the Caucasus region.
We had the privilege of visiting Azerbaijan last week to observe their October 9 elections, which saw the re-election of President Ilham Aliyev and there’s an obvious sense of pride among Azerbaijanis in their country’s important role in the Nobel Prize.
A feature online article in the Azerbaijan-based businessyear.com on Gustaf Nobel, chairman of the Nobel Sustainability Trust relates that “In the middle of the 1850s Ludvig Nobel, elder brother to the world famous inventor and creator of the Nobel Prize, Alfred Nobel, established a mechanical factory in St Petersburg producing grenades with a new technology. He later followed this with cannons, rifles, and gun carriages. The company was soon to become one of the largest suppliers to the Russian army and the beginning of a tremendous success story, which would be largely unknown to most people outside Russia and Azerbaijan. Working together with Ludvig was his older brother Robert. He was sent to the Caucasus region on a mission to find walnut wood for rifle stocks to fill an order of 200,000 rifles for the Russian army.
“ Arriving in Baku, he discovered that oil was literally bubbling out of the ground, and he realized that there was a great opportunity in the oil business. He returned to St Petersburg and managed to convince Ludvig to invest in Baku. In 1875, the first Nobel refinery was inaugurated under the name Bra Nobel. Alfred was also called upon to invest in the company, which he did. They could never have realized at the time that by 1917 Bra Nobel would be the second largest oil company in the world. “
A study titled “The Nobel Prize and connection between Sweden, Russia and Azerbaijan” by Vefa Kurban of the Dr.Dokuz Eylul University in Turkey, gave another interesting aspect of the Nobels and how what made them establish the prize that works for world peace and the betterment of the lot of mankind.
Kurban said: “The Nobels were the first foreign oil industrialists in Baku. Immanuel Nobel was the leader of that Swedish family. Immanuel was born on March 24, 1801 in Hevel, Sweden. He studied architecture. Immanuel, the founder of Stockholm Institute of Technology, invented submarine mines when he was still in Sweden. Later, when his invention was noticed by the Russian Armed Forces, he went to Russia in 1837 upon the invitation of the Russian government.”
“Alfred was an engineer and inventor. Robert was the first one in the family who pointed out the trade opportunity in Baku. Ludwig was one of the major actors in the Russian oil industry.”
Kurban said “the Nobels paid attention to safe use of nitroglycerine, discovered by Sobrero in 1945. After the death of his brother Emil in a nitroglycerine experiment, Alfred devoted himself to the invention of a new explosive. He started working to produce that explosive with his father and brothers in Krummel around Hamburg. After three years of working non-stop, he named his invention dynamite.”
“The family name became associated with their inventions, smokeless powder and dynamite, all over the world,” Kurban said.
More from Kurban: “The entire explosive manufacturing in the world was under Alfred Nobel’s supervision. However, Alfred’s inventions did not serve only for the purpose of peace. Dynamite, which caused holocausts, made Alfred regret and feel deep sadness for his invention. He died in Italy on December 10, 1896.
“A year before his death he signed his last will and testament in Paris. His will specified that his fortune be used to establish international awards in physics, medicine, chemistry, literature and peace. First prizes were awarded in Oslo, Norway and in Stockholm Sweden as Alfred wished. Alfred Nobel allocated 30 million crowns for the creation of the reward system. A 5.200.000 crown of that money was the income gained from Baku oil. “
It can be said that the world is better because of the genius and generosity of the Nobels and Azerbaijan oil.
Related video on the Nobels in Baku:
Nobel trivia:
Explosives are very difficult to import, trade, even possess in large quantities. Any company that controls supply in the related industries can make a killing, excuse the pun. Nobel Philippines is one such company. Named after the inventor of dynamite, Nobel Philippines is sister company to Royal Match, a huge user of black powder in its match sticks. Both companies are owned by soon to be ex-senator JP Enrile.
So, is there a grain of truth that Enrile supplied bullets to the Zamboanga rebels?
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The Nobel Peace Prize is a weird experience for Noynoy’s gov’t.
In 2010, the Philippines was forced to throw its support behind China and boycotted the awarding ceremonies in Norway after that shameful event in Luneta was seen on TV the world over. PH officially declined the Nobel invitation for the awarding of Chinese jailed dissident Liu Xiabo who was (and is still) serving an 11-year jail term for campaigning for reforms in China and dismantling the one-party system.
It was an awkward decision for in the following months, China invaded Scarborough Shoal. That’s what we get in return.
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Well, this Fil-Am may have been our first Nobel but in case he doesn’t “feel” it, we already have one, and he lives in QC. Richard Heck, along with two Japanese scientists developed a method of stringing together carbon atoms using palladium several decades ago but the benefits are more important today, like in the treatment of HIV, colon cancer, and herpes. The same discovery ishemistry used in industrial applications due to the numerous organic compounds that can be attached to the carbon skeleton.
Heck is an American octogenarian married to his Filipina wife he first met in a canteen in, of all places, Malacanang.
Tag this: Nobel, Enrile, explosives, chemistry, MNLF, Luneta, China, Scarborough Shoal, Malacanang, Noynoy Aquino.
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O di ba, magkatali silang lahat?
TonQue @ 1..I was debating hard either to send some smokeless powder to relatives for reloading as they are in shooting sports but decided not to break the law…we can possess and acquire smokelss powder,Blackpowder, pyrodex, but the supplier has to record every purchase and if the quantity is suspicious it will trigger surveillance and investigation by the Police authorities as to the purpose of acquisition. Why right now, there is a shortage of Ammos for handguns and even Primers that can not find any for reloading, except for.22 rimfires but abundant for rifles of any calibers, mostly for hunting. I think the Americans are hoarding them as we import are ammos and firearms supplies from the US.
This year Nobel Prize for Literature was awarded to 82 years Alice Munro, the 23rd winner from Canada…
Galing mo talaga,Tongue. Thanks for the “connectivity”.
Can’t trust this old man, Enrile. He did the “coup me” and then changed his color from administration to the next, getting all the perks along the way. Di malaman kung Pinoy nga yan
Farnz congrats! You make the Filipinos proud!
Sorry, Franz, I mis spelled your name.
Vic, not the same in the Philippines. Mere possession of bullets can put you in deep trouble. I know someone who was taken off his Saudi-bound flight for carrying a used bullet which he wore like a necklace. The guy is an ex-Marine who considers the bullet an amulet for the lead was taken from that one which hit his helmet when they were ambushed in ARMM on his very first day on patrol assignment. He reshaped it, inserted to an empty shell, punched holes and wore it in his dogtag like a lucky charm.
Another former neighbor’s son also wore one. He was apprehended by hulidap cops who threatened to put him in jail a la Robin Padilla. They paid P10K for his release and swore never to wear the most ordinary yet the most expensive jewelry ever.
Ang dami mong interesting tidbits, Tongue-Twisted. I’m learning a lot from your posts.
TonQuE, just read the news about a Filipino woman in trouble in India for carrying two live ammunitions on flight..It is also getting stricter, still need a firearm licence to purchase ammo and components and can not carry them other than for authorized and lawful purpose, like hunting and target shooting..although there seems to have no limits at all..we can go out and shoot as many as we wanted, somtimes in thousands of rounds (reloading our own is cheaper, much cheaper as the case is the most expensive components and can be reloaded as many as 30 times or more) But there is no personal carry at all for protection and even at home all firearms must be safely stored and disabled…but self defense in Canada is justifiable reason for homicide and so far it is still within the right to defend himself with the use of any available force, legal or illegal weapons and those he has the duty to defend.. defense of property is another story, could land the property in Big Trouble…the only advantage here is there is no Fees in all these Fireamrs lisensing and if there are any, it will just for the service rendered, very small and only once..there is no regular renewal but just a reminder every five years if the owner still wanted to have the firearms and if not to dispose them..no limit as quantity or even the caliber as long as within the capacity limits 10 rounds for firearms, 5 for centre fired rifles,no mag restriction for .22 rim rifles…any handgun with less than 4 inches is now a prohibited weapon easy to conceal but those who had them before the law can keep for life and will be destroyed after. (can sell and trade among them and I am lucky to be one among the grandfathered owner of prohibited weapons as i decided to get some snubby before the law)