Conference highlights Naguib Mahfouz and the Arab novel CAIRO: The 23rd General Union of Arab Writers conference will unfold in Cairo late this month for the first time since 1979 when the union s headquarters were transferred to other Arab capitals after Egypt signed the Camp David Peace Treaty with Israel, said Mohammed Salmawy, chief of the Egyptian Writers Union. In a press conference organized Monday at the Egyptian Writers Union, Salmawy highlighted that this edition, entitled "Naguib Mahfouz and the Arab Novel, scheduled to take place from Nov. 21 to 23, will be one of the most significant in the history of the General Union of Arab Writers. The first session of the conference will convene at the Arab League. The guests will then be taken to Prince Taz's palace where Dar Al-Shorouq will exhibit its first editions of Mahfouz's works; before his death the great novelist granted Al-Shorouq reprinting rights to all his works. Apart from the fact that the conference marks the return of the union to Egyptian soil, it is also the first to celebrate Nobel laureate Naguib Mahfouz following his demise that transpired last August, commented Salmawy. This edition will also launch the voting to be organized to select a new secretary-general for the union after Syria s candidacy comes to an end this year, he added. According to Salmawy, all Arab member states will take part in the conference including Palestine. Iraq has been excluded because Iraqi writers have yet to approve the current union, formed following the American invasion. Italian novelist and short story writer Consolo and Spanish author Rosa Rega, who chairs the Spanish National Library, will be guests of honor along with delegations and representatives of the writers unions of Russia, India, Turkey, Italy, Cyprus and Kosovo. Those foreign delegations don t have voting rights but they will participate in the conference s main subject - Mahfouz's works and creativity, explained Salmawy. He added that their presence will be important in consolidating relations between the different Arab writers unions and those of other non-Arab countries. Aside from writers, who else is capable of improving the Arab image in the West? noted Salmawy. Definitely, writers rather than politicians are more capable of undertaking that task. The 24th edition of the Poetry Festival will also be organized in conjunction with the conference. Since the conference s inception, the festival has always been a worthwhile associated feature dedicated to highlighting an important aspect of Arab heritage - poetry. Salmawy pointed out that some 30 Arab poets from several Arab countries will participate in the festival, including: Joseph Harb and Mohammed Ali Shams from Lebanon; Ibrahim Nassrallah from Jordan; Samih Al-Qasim from Palestine; and Saif Al-Dusuqi from Sudan. Salmawy stressed that Egypt will not compete with other Arab countries to head the union. If selected unanimously by all other member states to lead it, Egypt will accept it. But if the members opt to organize a vote, we will not apply to stand as candidates, he commented.
