Disturbing the Peace
The Vaclav Havel Library Foundation’s annual Disturbing the Peace Award recognizes writers who share President Vaclav Havel’s passionate commitment to human rights and have suffered unjust persecution for their beliefs. The award is given each year to a writer of a distinguished work of fiction, literary nonfiction, biography, memoire, drama, or poetry, who is courageous in dissent and has been punished for challenging an oppressive regime. The award, which includes a $5,000 cash prize, supports talented individuals who embody Havel’s legacy while drawing attention to the many writers worldwide who bravely fight human rights violations.
Nominations for the award are collected each year from international institutions prominent in literature and human rights. A short list is prepared by the VHLF Award Committee and forwarded to three jurors, who select the awardee.
Awards, Disturbing the peace2023 DISTURBING THE PEACE AWARD TO A COURAGEOUS WRITER AT RISK SOLICITATION OF NOMINATIONS February 6, 2023 The Vaclav Havel Library Foundation is soliciting nominations for the 2023 Disturbing the Peace Award to a Courageous Writer at Risk. The award recognizes authors of distinguished works of fiction, literary nonfiction, biography, memoir, drama, or poetry who are courageous in dissent and have suffered unjust persecution because of their …
Disturbing the peace, NewsAndrey Kurkov, Winner of the Disturbing the Peace Award of Vaclav Havel Foundation September 27, 2022 By Joanne Leedom-Ackerman |New York, September 22, 2022 “The penguin,” said Viktor bleakly, “is me.” You must read Death and the Penguin to appreciate the impact of that line. I don’t think I’ve spoiled the book by sharing it because you have to read the whole first. I am perhaps …
Awards, Disturbing the peaceAndrey Kurkov Wins the 2022 Disturbing the Peace Award to a Courageous Writer at Risk July 22, 2022 The Vaclav Havel Library Foundation announced today that the winner of the 2022 Disturbing the Peace Award to a Courageous Writer at Risk is Andrey Kurkov, Ukrainian writer of screenplays and author of critically acclaimed novels. Kurkov is the author of twenty screenplays and nineteen novels, including the bestselling Death …
Awards, Disturbing the peace2022 DISTURBING THE PEACE AWARD TO A COURAGEOUS WRITER AT RISK: SHORT LIST ANNOUNCED June 12, 2022 The annual Disturbing the Peace award recognizes writers of distinguished works of fiction, literary nonfiction, biography, memoire, drama, or poetry who are courageous in dissent and have suffered unjust persecution for their beliefs. The award helps protect awardees with the shield of international attention while enriching public understanding of the …
Awards, Disturbing the peace, NewsWe Demand Urgent Dialogue | Dmitri Strotsev March 12, 2022 We Demand Urgent Dialogue | Dmitri Strotsev, 2021 Disturbing the Peace Recipient March 10, 2022 The war in Ukraine is a catastrophe of such scale that it threatens to suck in the whole world like a whirlpool. Putin is a criminal. The Russian Federation is an aggressor country. Belarus, my …
Awards, Disturbing the peace, NewsHugs to the Ukrainian people | Ángel S. Prats March 12, 2022 Hugs to the Ukrainian people | Ángel Santiesteban Prats, 2020 Disturbing the Peace Recipient March 9, 2022 A sad and inhuman stain has settled over Ukraine and threatens the rest of the world. Ukrainian children have stopped laughing since last February 24; women mourn their husbands’ heroic deaths. But in …
Awards, Disturbing the peace, NewsWhy support Ukraine | Liao Yiwu March 11, 2022 Why support Ukraine | Writer in Exile: Liao Yiwu, 2018 Disturbing the Peace Recipient March 8, 2022 Many innocent people have died, and many more will die, be injured, be maimed, will flee and will be displaced – all because of the “imperial dream” of Putin, a madman, and a …
Awards, Disturbing the peace, NewsFor Ukraine, For a Better World | Burhan Sonmez March 10, 2022 For Ukraine, For a Better World | Burhan Sonmez, 2017 Disturbing the Peace Recipient March 11, 2022 The twenty-first century, supposed to be a century of hope, is advancing from continent to continent with wars. Ukraine has now joined the horrors in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Ethiopia and beyond. Putin went …
Awards, Disturbing the peace, NewsPeace Must Prevail | Ma Thida March 9, 2022 Peace Must Prevail | Ma Thida, 2016 Disturbing the Peace Recipient March 7, 2022 We, the recipients of the Disturbing the Peace Award to a Courageous Writer at Risk, are whole-heartedly disturbed by Russian forces against Ukraine and its consequences on people of both Ukraine and Russia. We urgently call … Awards, Disturbing the peace2022 DISTURBING THE PEACE AWARD TO A COURAGEOUS WRITER AT RISK SOLICITATION OF NOMINATIONS February 26, 2022 The Vaclav Havel Library Foundation is soliciting nominations for the 2022 Disturbing the Peace Award to a Creative Writer at Risk. The annual award recognizes writers of distinguished works of fiction, literary nonfiction, biography, memoire, drama, or poetry who are courageous in dissent and have suffered unjust persecution for their …
Awards, Disturbing the peace2021 Disturbing the Peace Award Presentation October 18, 2021 The 2021 Disturbing the Peace Award to a Courageous Writer at Risk was presented by Adam Michnik, the Polish historian-essayist-journalist, who himself was imprisoned for anti-communist dissent. Michnik continues to serve as editor of the important newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza, a job given to him by Lech Walesa. He received the …
Awards, Disturbing the peace, NewsDmitri Strotsev: Acceptance Speech for 2021 Disturbing the Peace Award to a Courageous Writer at Risk October 18, 2021 The acceptance speech by Dmitri Strotsev was presented at the VHLF Gala in New York on September 23, 2021, by Olga Levina. Olga is the co-founder and Artistic Director of Jersey City Theater Center, an accomplished dancer, actor, and choreographer, graduate from Minsk School of the Performing Arts. “It is …
Awards, Disturbing the peaceDmitri Strotsev Wins the 2021 Disturbing the Peace Award to a Courageous Writer at Risk June 30, 2021 The Vaclav Havel Library Foundation announced today that the winner of the 2021 Disturbing the Peace Award to a Courageous Writer at Risk is Belarusian poet and publisher Dmitri Strotsev. Since the mid-2000s, Strotsev has chronicled state repression in Belarus in poetic form. Strotsev has helped lead the unprecedented popular … Awards, Disturbing the peaceDisturbing the Peace Award 2021: Short List of Nominees Announced May 25, 2021 The Vaclav Havel Library Foundation’s Disturbing the Peace Award to a Courageous Writer at Risk honors distinguished writers of fiction and non-journalistic non-fiction who have been unjustly punished for challenging oppressive regimes. The award recognizes writers who share the values of Vaclav Havel, the Czech playwright who was imprisoned for … Awards, Disturbing the peace2021 DISTURBING THE PEACE AWARD TO A COURAGEOUS WRITER AT RISK SOLICITATION OF NOMINATIONS February 26, 2021 The Vaclav Havel Library Foundation is soliciting nominations for the 2020 Disturbing the Peace Award to a Creative Writer at Risk. The annual award recognizes writers of distinguished works of fiction, literary nonfiction, biography, memoire, drama, or poetry who are courageous in dissent and have suffered unjust persecution for their …