“All the members of our academy look forward to seeing this writer, both from France and Algeria, return to life as quickly as possible,” wrote the institution on its website this Monday.
The French Academy hopes to see the Franco-Algerian writer Boualem Sansal, arrested in mid-November in Algeria, “released without delay”she said in a press release Monday. The institution reacted to a column published on Sunday by around thirty writers who won its Grand Prix du roman in our columns, for the “physical backup” and the “respect for basic rights” of the writer.
“The French Academy warmly welcomes the initiative of the winners of its Grand Prix du roman. She shares their hope of seeing Boualem Sansal released without delay”she indicated. “All the members of our academy look forward to seeing this writer, both from France and Algeria, return as quickly as possible to the life which, until now, was his, inhabited by an obstinate desire to write and not to suffer”she added.
An “emergency vote” to elect Boualem Sansal as an academician?
On Saturday, academician Jean-Christophe Rufin indicated that he had proposed to others “Immortals” and “emergency vote” to elect Boualem Sansal as academician.
The proposal clashes with the usual procedures of the French Academy, which provide for declaring a seat vacant, opening applications for a defined period, then finally proceeding to the election to decide between them. The Academy made no comment in its press release on this innovative proposal.
The Algerian government agency APS confirmed on Friday, without specifying the date or for what reasons, “the arrest” at the Algiers airport of the author of “2084: The End of the World”. According to several media, it took place on November 16. Diplomatic relations between France and Algeria, already difficult, were greatly strained after the support affirmed at the end of July by Paris for “autonomy plan” Moroccan for the disputed territory of Western Sahara.
France
