Istanbul Book Fair: The freedom of the word
Germany’s appearance as Guest of Honour champions open dialogue.
A girl lies on the blue carpet with her arms and legs crossed. There are letters on her left and right and around them, books arranged in the shape of a flower – we read the German word for flower “Blume” on the one side and “çicek” its equivalent in Turkish, on the other. “Don’t move”, a voice calls to the girl from the background. Then the camera installed some three meters above the floor clicks. The girl views the photo on the computer screen. She is happy, because it looks as though she were floating in the sky.
It was photo illustrator Jan von Holleben who conceived this activity. It is part of the German presence as Guest of Honour at the International Istanbul Book Fair. There is another interactive feature at the German stand, namely completing sentences on postcards. Here philosopher and author Wilhelm Schmid poses the question “What is happiness?”, while author Ilija Trojanow supplied the first part of a sentence to be completed: “When I kissed, I forgot that...” “The interactive elements are attracting an incredible number of people to our stand”, reports Bärbel Becker, Head of international projects at the Frankfurt Book Fair.
For its presentation Germany has adopted the slogan “Words move” and is offering a diverse programme. The German Federal Foreign Office, the Frankfurt Book Fair and the Goethe-Institut Istanbul conceived Germany’s appearance as guest country in collaboration with the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy and the Association of the German Trade Fair Industry AUMA. Some 35 events are taking place over four days – readings, talks with authors and panel discussions. On Sunday, for instance, one panel addressed freedom of the press and of opinion. Under the heading “For the Word and Freedom” Ilija Trojanow, Peter Kraus vom Cleff, Commercial Director of Rowohlt Verlag, and Alexander Skipis, General Manager of the Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels (German Publishers and Booksellers Association), debated the issue with Turkish participants including writer and human rights lawyer Burhan Sönmez. From the Kurdish intellectual’s point of view, not much has changed recently as regards the situation in Turkey: Reprisals and the pressure brought to bear on opposition groups were part of his country’s history, he said. Yet for him that doesn’t mean withdrawing into the internal migration, but resisting. It was precisely this resistance that is his elixir of life, noted the 51-year old.
The current political situation in Turkey is repeatedly the topic of discussions at the Book Fair – be it on the stage of the German stand or at gatherings outside of the official programme. How should we behave in these tense times, when people are imprisoned and freedoms restricted almost every day? The debates revolve around this question. Writers and artists belonging to opposition groups seek to gain something positive from the oppressive atmosphere and the reprisals in their country. This becomes clear during the panel discussion between writer and dramatist Moritz Rinke and actors Meltem Cumbul and Mert Firat. Theatre critic Sercan Gidişoğlu, who moderated the talk, summed it up with the ironically intended statement: “Reprisals stimulate creativity.”
The official opening of the German stand saw speeches by Turkey’s Deputy Minister of Culture Hüseyin Yayman and Prof. Maria Böhmer, Minister of State at the German Federal Foreign Office. She addressed the criticism aimed at Germany for participating in the Book Fair, explaining: “We want to use our role as Guest of Honour and, given the current situation in Turkey, precisely at this point in time make a stronger stand for the freedom of the word.” It was in favour of this that German and Turkish writers demonstrated on Monday afternoon, accompanied by representatives of the German book industry such as Alexander Skipis from the Börsenverein. They held a picket outside Bakırköy women’s prison in Istanbul for the writer Aslı Erdoğan, who was arrested in August. Public prosecutors are demanding life imprisonment for the internationally renowned novelist for “supporting a terrorist organization”.
Major response
On an area measuring 270 square metres in total, German publishers are presenting 350 new works as well as older titles at the Istanbul Book Fair from 12 to 15 November. Among others, the exhibits include the longlist of the 2016 German Book Prize, new children’s and youth books, a compilation of German translations into Turkish, German books on Turkey and a collection on the freedom of the word. “We have noted a marked interest particularly in books about Turkey – and as such also in the outside perspective,” reports Bärbel Becker. She is “very satisfied” with the response to the programme of the German shared stand. By Monday some 2,000 listeners had participated in the discussions at the stand’s stage, she added. “And that despite the fact that it is located at the edge of the main hall and we are not selling any books.” The exhibited books will not be returned to Germany, but will be given away when the fair is over.
