BREAKING: Former SDLP leader and Nobel peace prize winner John Hume dies at 83
- John Hume, who was the former leader of the SDLP, has died at the age of 83
- The politician was also an MP and MEP during his 35 year long political career
- Hume was awarded 1998 Nobel Peace Prize with fellow politician David Trimble
Former SDLP leader and Nobel peace prize winner John Hume has died, his family has announced.
Hume was the founding member of the Northern Irish political party the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP).
He was the second leader of the nationalist group, which currently has two MPs in Westminster and 12 MLAs in the Northern Irish Assembly.
Hume held the position from 1979 until 2001. During that time he also represented the group as an MP in Westminster, holding the Northern Ireland seat of Foyle from 1983 until 2005.
Hume was the founding member of the Northern Irish political party the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP)
He was also the co-recipient of the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize with fellow Northern Irish politician David Trimble (left)
He was also an MEP at the European Parliament for the SDLP between 1979 and 2004.
Hume was the co-recipient of the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize with fellow Northern Irish politician David Trimble.
In a statement, John Hume’s family said: “We are deeply saddened to announce that John passed away peacefully in the early hours of the morning after a short illness.
‘Celebrating community in all its diversity went to the heart of John’s political ethos and we are very appreciative that our communities supported, respected and protected John.
Former Northern Ireland’s Social Democratic and Labour Party Leader John Hume and His Wife Pat in 2014
‘John was a husband, a father, a grandfather, a great grandfather and a brother.
‘He was very much loved, and his loss will be deeply felt by all his extended family.
The family added: ‘It seems particularly apt for these strange and fearful days to remember the phrase that gave hope to John and so many of us through dark times: “we shall overcome”.’
In their statement, the family also paid tribute to those who cared for Hume, who was being cared for at Owen Mor nursing home in Derry before his death.
The family praised the care he received in his final months as ‘exceptional’ and said the family were ‘unfailingly inspired by the professionalism, compassion, and love they have shown to John and all those under their care’.