ARRESTED WORDS: PEN ASSOCIATION CELEBRATES IMPRISONED WRITERS
By Jacquelyn Salam
Asharq Alawsat, UK
Dec 5 2006
Toronto, Asharq Al Awsat – Where do the poems and stories that
exist in the minds of imprisoned writers go when they are deprived
of reading and writing tools and are delivered into the hands of the
executioner and subjected to barbaric modern torture devices? Is the
suffering experienced by all prisoners and the stories and poems that
spring from it universally alike in the same way that the agendas
and practices of dictatorship governments are similar?
Perhaps if we were to leaf through the memoirs of any prisoner, both
men and women, on the occasion of the Day of the Imprisoned Writers
as designated by PEN to be the 15th November, where the Writers in
Prison Committee of International PEN marked the 26th Writers in
Prison Day with a campaign that centers around defending over 100
writers and journalists worldwide who are imprisoned or facing charges
for alleged libel. The occasion was celebrated in the 144 different
branches of the PEN association located in 101 different countries.
Nigerian Nobel Laureate, Wole Soyinka was present and read excerpts
from his work. He said during an interview that in 1988, years after
his release from prison, that, "I was in solitary confinement for 22
months for a total period of more than two years. I understood the fact
that it was an attempt to break my mind. Books and all means of writing
were held from me, I persisted in trying to find human interaction."
The Syrian poet, Faraj Bayrakdar, who is the winner of the
Hellman-Hammett Award in 1998 and the American PEN Freedom-to-Write
Award in 1999, said in an interview with the Oman-based ‘Nazwa’
magazine, that "it hadn’t been long since my imprisonment that
I began to discover poetry as a flash of light in the darkness,
and justice in the face of tyranny, and love in the face of hate. I
started writing in memory, as there were no pens or paper. Years later,
they moved us to Sydnaya prison where I was able to reveal the poetry
in my memories and the memories of my friends to transcribe it onto
paper…later, I learned from my late friend, Jameel Hatmal, that he,
in collaboration with others managed to get hold of the first few
and they published them."
Other writers recognized included, Hrant Dink, the Turkish editor of
an Armenian-language newspaper who is still pending trial; Wesenseged
Gebrekidan, the imprisoned Ethiopian journalist; Lydia Cacho, the
Mexican writer who is still on trial for defamation; Yang Xiaoqing,
the internet journalist from China who is sentenced to one year in
prison, and the two Egyptians, editor and journalist respectively,
Ibrahim Issa and Sahar Zaki who are both sentenced to a year for
‘insulting’ the Egyptian President, Hosni Mubarak.
Yet despite all forms of repression, we still hear and read about how
prisoners can ‘reinvent’ ink and paper and still manage to transcribe
their words, set them free and release them into the world. David
Cozac, the Canadian PEN representative who is also the head and
coordinator of the Writers in Exile Network in Canada, gave a speech
in which he highlighted the role and goals of the Canadian branch
of PEN and its role in organizing continuous campaigns that can help
liberate the words and opinions of imprisoned writers everywhere.
In the tradition of the PEN Association, there was a vacant seat in
the hall in honor and memory of an absent imprisoned writer. This
particular seat was dedicated to Chinese writer U Win Tin, from
Myanmar, who is 76-years-old and has already spent one-fifth of his
life in prison for his peaceful opposition to the ruling military
authorities, and his contributions to the defense of human rights and
freedom of expression. First arrested in July 1989, he is not granted
any rights in prison and does not receive proper medical attention or
visitation rights, which is why the Canadian PEN Association issued
a petition demanding his immediate release.
Additionally, women writers from around the world read passages from
their writings, books and autobiographies in what was a reflection
of their personal experiences in Canada and in their native countries.
Jacquelyn Salam read pages from her book ‘Autumn Shedding Berry Leaves’
and a text that includes a dialogue with an ex-prisoner.
The Day of the Imprisoned Writer also took the opportunity to
commemorate writers and journalists who were killed in the past year,
including the late Russian journalist, Anna Politkovskaya whose
death caused PEN centers worldwide to protest, hold vigils and send
appeals to the Russian authorities demanding a proper investigation,
also sending condolences to her family and colleagues. In total, 37
writers had been killed since November 15 of last year, with Iraq,
Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Russia ranking the highest
among the most dangerous countries.