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      Every year, PEN International hosts a number of events around the world promoting freedom of expression and celebrating literature in a variety of ways. PEN Centres stage events such as literary festivals large and small, storytelling sessions with families and children, book clubs and everything in between. One important occasion to mark is the annual Day of the Imprisoned Writer, 15 November, which gives the entire PEN community a chance to celebrate our work across the world as well as drawing attention to the ongoing persecution faced by many writers today.

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    The German PEN Hermann Kesten Award 2011


    15 Nov 2011. 19:00 - 20:00
    Staatstheater Darmstadt, Kammerspiele, Darmstadt, Germany

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    In a year that has seen widespread uprisings in the Arab world, German PEN has honoured Mohamed Hashem with the 2011 Hermann Kesten Award, an accolade that is dedicated to the spirit of the PEN International Charter. German PEN announced that, as a publisher, Mohamed Hashem has created a world of thought in which the Arab reform movement found its intellectual breeding ground. Situated close to Tahrir Square, his Dar Merit publishing house has been called a ‘Kaaba for the intellectuals’.

    The Hermann Kesten prize-giving ceremony will take place on 15th November, 2011 at 7 p.m. in the Kammerspiele of Staatstheater Darmstadt. The eulogy will be delivered by Stefan Weidner, journalist and translator. Among former winners of the award are Anna Polikkovskaya and the imprisoned Chinese writer Liu Xiaobo, who became the Nobel Peace Laureate of 2010 shortly after having been announced the Hermann Kesten award holder. The prize sum of € 10.000 is donated in equal parts by the Hessian Ministry for Science and Arts and the German PEN Centre.

    For more information on German PEN, including contact details, please visit the German PEN Centre Page at http://www.pen-deutschland.de/.

    PEN International celebrates literature and promotes freedom of expression. Founded in 1921, our global community of writers now spans more than 100 countries. Our campaigns, events, publications and programmes aim to connect writers and readers wherever they are in the world.