Frankfurt Book Fair Receives Backlash For Canceling Palestinian Author's Award Ceremony(image:literaturfestival.com)

The Frankfurt Book Fair one of world’s biggest publishing trade event is facing a setback as the cancellation of Palestinian author”s award ceremony created furor among authors and publishing houses.

Palestinian author Adania Shibli has to receive LiBeraturpreis, a German award, for the book A Minor Detail  which is based on a true incident, the rape and murder of a Bedouin girl by Israeli soldiers in 1949. Published in 2017, the English translation of the book in 2020 received nomination for the National Book Award and an International Booker Prize. German Translation published in 2022 was awarded 2023 LiBeraturpreis Prize.

The LiBeraturpreis is an annual award for women authors across Asia, Africa, and Latin America. The prize consists of 3,000 euros and is awarded at the Frankfurt Book Fair.

The award event is organised by Litprom, a German literary association. On October 13, Litprom announced that they are cancelling the award, stating that “due to the war started by Hamas, under which millions of people in Israel and Palestine are suffering.”

Continuing further, Litprom said that they are looking for a “suitable format and setting for the event at a later point.”

“Awarding the prize to Adania Shibli was never in question,” statement added.

A discussion with Ms Shibli and her translator Günther Orth at the book fair has also been cancelled.

At present, more than 1000 authors and publishers signed an open letter condemning the decision, and asking the book fair bring back the event. Signatories include Nobel Prize laureates Abdulrazak Gurnah, Annie Ernaux, and Olga Tokarczuk; Booker Prize winners Anne Enright, Richard Flanagan and Ian McEwan; Litprom prize 2021 winner Pilar Quintana; and other hundreds of concerned writers, including Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, Pankaj Mishra, William Dalrymple and number of publishers and literary agents from all over the world.

Similarly, some Arab publishing industry groups have also announced that they were withdrawing their participation from the Book fair, and Sharjah Book Authority, in the United Arab Emirates is noticeable among them. Recently, Malaysia pulls out of the fair, accusing organisers pro-Israel stance.

Book fair runs from 18 to 22 October 2023.