Palestinian author refused entry to UK to speak at key event
A Palestinian author who did not receive her UK visa in time to appear at the Edinburgh International Book Festival last week is to speak at a special event after getting permission to enter the country.
Nayrouz Qarmout was one of a dozen Middle Eastern and African writers and illustrators whose applications for visitor visas were refused – some of them multiple times – ahead of this year’s festival. The decision was eventually reversed after her third application, but the Home Office did not grant her visa in time for the sold-out event scheduled for last Wednesday about her forthcoming book, The Sea Cloak and Other Stories.
She is now due to arrive in time to speak at a new event with Taiwanese journalist Hsiao-hung Pai and Brazilian writer Djamila Ribeiro which aims to celebrate people whose suffering often goes unnoticed and writers whose voices struggle to be heard. Her visit to Edinburgh will be the first time in her adult life that she has been able to leave Gaza.
Nick Barley, director of the Edinburgh International Book Festival, said “The plight of Nayrouz and the other authors who have struggled to get visas to come to the UK has struck a chord with writers across the world. That she is now able to speak about her work in Edinburgh represents a victory for free speech.” Drawing on her experiences of growing up in a Syrian refugee camp, the Gaza-based writer will discuss life in Gaza City. The event, chaired by novelist Kamila Shamsie, will take place at 12pm on Thursday.