Two Belarusians to Fight for Nobel Prize in Literature

"The decision to nominate Niakliaeu for the Nobel Prize in literature was made by the PEN Center in February 2011. Then Niakliaeu was in jail. And such a decision was taken in solidarity with him not only as a great poet, but also as a person with some civil position. It was a sort of extra guarantee of his security," said Andrei Hadanovich, BelaPAN.

According to him, it doesn’t matter how high "the Prize will raise Niakliaeu in Nobel hierarchy." "In any case, it will contribute to an increasing interest towards Belarus. Mostly bad news is heard about Belarus in Europe, including news about a certain bad person. We aim to show that Belarus is not just one person, but talented poets, writers, high culture and good traditions as well," said Andrei Hadanovich.

Meanwhile, Nikolai Cherginets, who called Vladimir Niakliaeu a good poet, but a bad politician, said that "they killed a good poet in him, when asked to participate in political fuss," "ERB."

The head of the official Union of Writers also explained the criteria for the nomination of Georgi Marchuk for the Nobel Prize. "The choice is made in favor of his works, distinguished at home and abroad. He has good chances, if the situation is not politicized... Otherwise, different forces will play here," believes Nikolai Cherginets.

According to Andrei Hadanovich, the Nobel committee receives about 350 nominations in literature from creative organizations and previous winners on average a year. In April 2012, the Committee is going to announce a long list of awards, including 15-20 names.

As Telegraf previously reported, head of the human rights organization "Viasna" Ales Beliatski, who’s been in custody since August 2011, was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2012. It was stated the participants of the international campaign in defense of Ales Beliatski at a press conference in Minsk on October 3, 2011.