Posted on December 12, 2019 at 11:00 AM by Sadye Scott-Hainchek
Sarajevo officials have officially declared Nobel Prize-winning author Peter Handke unwelcome in their city.
Reuters reports that the cantonal assembly for Bosnia’s capital adopted the declaration last night.
In the wake of his Nobel Prize victory, Handke has come under heavy criticism for his past comments about the Bosnian War, including his denial that the Srebrenica massacre took place, and for his support of convicted war criminal Slobodan Milošević.
The Sarajevo declaration calls him a genocide denier and adds that “his possible visit to our homeland ... would prompt additional rage and humiliation of all victims.”
Handke recently said that he might visit an autonomous Serb region of Bosnia next year; the Sarajevo officials’ move means Handke cannot reach that area via their city.
On the flip side, though, the mayor of the region’s de facto capital city, congratulated Handke for his win and invited him to visit.
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Categories: Today in Books