In the past, the organisers of the Confucius Peace Prize have explained that they set up their prize to "promote world peace from an Eastern perspective." Notably, the prize appears to have been hastily launched after Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo won the 2010 Nobel peace prize.

In a November 17, 2010, editorial in state newspaper the Global Times, Chinese businessman Liu Zhiqin suggested that China create its own peace prize in response. Such a prize could be a "weapon in battle of ideas," Liu wrote.

That weapon hasn't necessarily worked all that well. The very first recipient, Taiwanese politician Lien Chan, told journalists he knew nothing about the award until reporters asked him about it and that he had no plans to accept it. The next year, China's Culture Ministry announced that the award would not be given out anymore and that the prize committee was abandoned. It was later awarded to Putin anyway. The prize's relationship with the Chinese state remains unclear.

This year's award is murky, as well. It appears to have first been announced last month, but seems to have drawn attention only after Zimbabwean outlets noticed this week. Prize co-founder Liu told the Guardian that he himself had concerns about the award being given to Mugabe, noting the leader could "easily be labelled a dictator, tyrant or despot." It remains unclear if the Zimbabwean leader will actually travel to China to collect his prize, which includes a check for 500,000 yuan ($AUD109,013). Few, if any, other winners have made the trip.

Still, the awarding of the prize to Mugabe does make some sense. The Zimbabwean leader is known for his personal ties to Hong Kong, and China is a key investor in the Zimbabwean economy. It's also among a number of prizes that have been set up in a bid to rival the Nobel. From 1988 to 2010, Libya gave out the Al-Gaddafi International Prize for Human Rights. Previous winners included Venezuela's Hugo Chavez, the children of Palestine, and "the libraries of Timbuktu."