Veteran journalist, author and human rights activist Sanjoy Hazarika will receive this year’s Rotary Writing for Peace Award instituted by The Peace Avenue of Rotary District 3141 Mumbai for his acclaimed writing on human rights, conflict mitigation and development-related issues in the North East Region. The award will be presented to Hazarika at Tata Literature Live! The Mumbai Litfest on Sunday, 29th October, at the Godrej Theatre, NCPA.
Sanjoy Hazarika is the International Director of the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) in New Delhi. In addition to his role as a human rights activist, Hazarika is a distinguished scholar, accomplished author, seasoned journalist, and adept filmmaker.
He has penned numerous books, with his most recent work being “Strangers no More, New Narratives from the North East,” a worthy successor to his acclaimed “Strangers of the Mist.” His writing often delves into the complexities of rights issues, conflicts, migration, and development-related topics within the North East and its surrounding regions.
Rotary believes peace-makers must be cherished and honoured in a world where over 70 million people are displaced due to conflict, violence, persecution and human rights violations. Since its inception, Literature Live! (and as evinced through its festival Tata Literature Live!) has been committed to providing a platform for writers representing values of humanism, equality and respect.
Every year, one Indian writer whose body of work has centred around peace-building receives the award. A jury with representatives from organisations and independent members chooses the writer.
Accepting the award, Sanjoy Hazarika said: “The Rotary Literature Live! Peace Writing Award honours the many unsung media professionals who work at great risk in the Northeastern region and across the country at a time when fake news and false narratives promoting hate, suspicion, and prejudice proliferate. A normal life for a professional becomes challenging, even dangerous, in highly complex areas.
I have learned that the best stories emerge when we listen to each other and people at field and policy levels. In that process, we become repositories of their life experiences and tellers of their stories, expanding the limits of our knowledge as we listen, read, and travel. The Peace Writing Award is a spur to do better, broader and deeper work with compassion”.
The festival will be held online from 25th -26th October and offline from 27th – 29th October at the NCPA, Nariman Point, St Pauls Institute of Communication Education Bandra and Title Waves bookstore, Bandra.
