Algerian author Boualem Sansal received Prestigious German book Trade Peace prize

Famous Algerian author Boualem Sansal received this year’s prestigious German Book Trade Peace Award along with $35,000 as the prize money.

The felicitation was held on Sunday night at Frankfurt Book Fair in presence of world’s biggest gathering of publishers and authors.

Citing the reason for this year’s choice, Gottfried Honnefelder, president of the organisation said Boualem Sansal is getting this year’s award for his open criticism of the regime in Algeria and his drive for freedom of speech, culture and religion in Algeria.

The 62 year old author said there was a “global revolution” underway. “People want genuine, universal democracy, without borders and without taboos … people are rejecting dictatorships, extremism, the power of the markets, the suffocating grasp of religion,” said Sansal.

He also calls people from everywhere to rise up against dictatorship.

Previously this award was given to Turkish author Orhan Pamuk, Hungarian Peter Esterhazy, Czech author & former president Vaclav Havel and Israel’s most popular author David Grossman.