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Original language: Deutsch
Maxwell Sibanda
Writer, journalist and photographer from Zimbabwe (born 1968). Sibanda was culture editor at the Daily News in Harare until September 2003, when armed police stormed the editorial office on the orders of President Mugabe and the only independent daily newspaper in Zimbabwe was closed down. Sibanda, who also worked for Reporters Without Borders, was forced to leave Zimbabwe. Since then he has been living in Europe, supported by the European network for politically persecuted writers. Published in German to date: "D'Zimbabwe - Haus aus Stein" (Leykam-Verlag, Graz 2006); "Zimbabwe mit spitzer Feder - Politische Karikaturen seit der Unabhängigkeit" (exhibition catalog, Kulturreferat München)
Bashana Abeywardene
Writer and journalist from Sri Lanka (born 1972). Bashana's first poems were written while he was still at school and reflect the horrors of the civil war. He began working as a journalist in 1991. Bashana is one of the founding members of the magazine Hiru, which has been published since 1993. In the mid-1990s, he founded the Hiru Action Group, which campaigns for peace with the Tamils and freedom of the press. The murder of the Tamil journalist Sivaram Dharmeratnam, a close companion of Bashana's, in April 2005 made it abruptly clear that freedom of expression in Sri Lanka is a threat to life. Bashana Abeywardene was also threatened with death and had to flee.
Sharnush Parsipur
Writer from Iran (born in 1946). She worked for Iranian state television while studying sociology. In 1974, she resigned from her post as editor in protest at the execution of two artists. Shortly afterwards, she was imprisoned for a year for her public criticism of the Shah's regime. Under the Islamic government, Parsipur was imprisoned again for publishing the collection of stories "Zanan bedun-e mardan" (Women without Men) and remained in prison for almost five years without giving any further reasons. It was there that she wrote her novel "Tuba - und die Bedeutung der Nacht" in 1983 (Unionsverlag 1995). In 1994, she decided to move to the USA, where she lives today.
Daniel Banulescu
Writer from Romania (born in 1960). After studying engineering, he worked as a proofreader, reporter and night watchman. His first volume of poetry "Ziua i n care am fost publicat" (The day I was published) was published in 1987 as a supplement to the magazine Convingeri Comuniste. He cemented his reputation as the "enfant terrible" of contemporary Romanian literature with his first novel "Te pup in fund, conducator iubit!" (1994, Eng. "I kiss your ass, beloved leader!", Edition per procura 2005), for which he was awarded the prize of the Romanian Writers' Association. A selection of his poems has been published in German translation under the title "Schrumpeln wirst du wirst eine exotische Frucht sein" (Edition per procura, 2003). The volume was awarded the Prize for European Poetry of the City of Münster in 2005.
Apti Bisultanov
Writer from Chechnya (born in 1959). He studied at the philological faculty of the Chechen-Ingush State University in Grozny and worked as a lecturer, editor and publisher. His first volume of poetry "Noch - ze - tschö" (Engl: "Plow - Fire - House") was published in 1986. The title is associated with the word "Nochtschitschö", which means "Land of the Chechens". This was followed in 1988 by the volume of poetry "Zcha Illi" (Engl. "The Song") and in 1991 by the third volume "Tkesan Indare" (Engl. "Shadow of Lightning"), which contains a series of poems dedicated to the victims of the deportations under Stalin. Bisultanov received the Chechen People's Prize for Literature in 1992. He supported the independence movement from the outset and became Vice President for Social Affairs in Chechnya in 1999. Bisultanov has lived in Berlin since 2002 and received the Poets of all Nations Foundation Prize in 2003. Published in German: "Schatten eines Blitzes" (Kitab-Verlag 2004); "Etudes des Abschieds" (Rheinsberger Bogen 24, 2007)
Viatcheslav Kuritsyn
Writer from Russia (born 1965). He worked as a freelance journalist, literary critic and curator in Moscow. Kuritsyn is regarded there as one of the most prominent figures in the literary world, as a "brilliant savage" and pioneer of modern Russian literature. When his generation's illusion of reorganizing the country was shattered, Kuritsyn withdrew from the cultural scene, devoted himself to his artistic work and published under a pseudonym for a while. In 2003, he was nominated for the "Nazionalnij Bestsellser" prize as co-author of the novel "Monat Arcachone". In the fall of 2005, his book "Kuritsyn - Weekly" was published - a compendium of his critical work and chronicle of Russia's Sturm und Drang years, for which he was awarded the prestigious "Andrey Belyi Prize" in 2005. Today he lives as a freelance writer in St. Petersburg.
Jakub Sarwas
Composer, conductor and musician from Poland (born 1977). He began his musical education at the State Music School in Gliwice and graduated in 1996 (main instrument: accordion). From 1996 to 2001 he studied composition, conducting and music theory at the Academy of Music in Katowice. Sarwas completed his postgraduate studies at the State Academy of Music in Cologne. He is a member of the Polish Society for Contemporary Music, the Association of Polish Composers and the Gliwice Society for Music. He is also the founder of the "Sarwas Project" and the "Sarwas Ensemble", with which he works as a composer, conductor and musical director. He composes chamber music, symphonic, electronic and electro-acoustic music, as well as music for theater and film.
