A Norwegian member of parliament nominated former US National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden for the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize on Wednesday, arguing that his release of classified documents made the world a safer place.

Baard Vegar Solhjell, a former education and environment minister for the Socialist Left party, said Snowden’s revelations deepened the public’s understanding of the extent to which states spy on their own citizens.

Thousands of people around the world are eligible to nominate candidates for the Nobel Peace Prize, including any member of any national assembly. There were 259 nominees for last year’s prize, which was won by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons for its efforts to eliminate Syria’s chemical arsenal.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee will collect nominations for the 2014 prize up to Feb 1 and finalise its list on March 4, when the committee holds its first meeting of the year and members submit their own nominations. The winner will be announced on Oct 10.

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