Izvještaj s događaja: "Među oružjem šute muze: etički izazovi u doba političkih nemira "
WRITTEN BY: Anja Opačić
The panel ‘Inter Arma Silent Musae: Ethical Challenges of Literature During Political Turmoil’ took place on Thursday, 4 July at noon, at the Academy of Fine Arts in Sarajevo. The Academy gallery was filled with people who were impatiently waiting for the panelist's address, and especially waiting to hear the words of the Palestinian poet, researcher and librarian Mosab Abu Toha who, according to what he published on his social networks, had a long and tiring journey full of obstacles from Palestine to Sarajevo. The panel was moderated by John Freeman, an American writer and literary critic, and the guests of the panel, in addition to Abu Toha, were Peter Maass, an American journalist, author and former war reporter, and Lana Bastašić, a writer and translator from Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Some of the key points of discussion were the question of engagement of poets and people about the war in Palestine, the question of truth and credibility of stories and testimonies from war zones, censorship of support for Palestine in Germany, the question of erasing history and writing about the war as a necessity and need.
The conversation started with Abu Toha, who emphasized that there are no international war reporters and journalists in Palestine who could tell the world about the war because the Israeli authorities strongly control it, so that task falls on his shoulders because he, as an author and poet, has the duty to write what is happening in his country. He pointed out that if he doesn't write, no one will know what happened – he writes in order to put his emotions on paper, write down his experience and the experience of his compatriots, release the burden from his back and, most importantly, communicate with the world. He explained that communication is the reason why he writes most of his songs in English, that is, sending a message to the world. He emphasizes that this is our war – it is a ‘war against man’.
During the war in Bosnia, Peter Maass was a reporter who covered war events for the Washington Post, and his book ‘Love Thy Neighbor’ about his records from that period was recently published by Buybook. He has not reported from war zones for twenty years, but Maass gave an insight from the journalist's side in the conversation about the war and talked about the truth and how difficult it is to believe the stories that people would tell him about their experiences, even though he himself lived among them , as well as how many obstacles (such as publishers or the government) stand in front of the truth for it to see the light of day. He said that he, and reporters in general, do not have special training for reporting from war zones and that it is difficult to be there and navigate the situations. He had to decide in an instant how to deal with a certain situation and when to break the rules and when to follow them. He recalled his visit to the death camps in Bosnia, where it was immediately clear that starting a conversation with a prisoner meant certain death for him, so he tried to start a conversation with the guard, who openly lied to his question – ‘Sometimes lies reveal more than the truth.’, he concludes.
Lana Bastašić recently returned from Berlin, where she wrote her latest novel, visibly dissatisfied with Germany's reaction to support for Palestine. She said that ‘there are wars you can talk about and wars you can't talk about’, and criticized such obvious hypocrisy. She stated that in Germany there is obvious censorship in public discourse and that there are those wars that are acceptable and those that are not. The war in Bosnia, about which they would sympathetically question her if she spoke of it, is one of those accepted. She is concerned about the situation in that country – how passive and willing people are to blindly follow their government. She believes that there is still a sense of guilt that Germany feels for its role in the world wars, therefore any public sign of support for Palestine leads to sanctions (such as being fired). People stay silent wanting to save their careers, and this arrogance on the literary scene was one of the reasons for her departure. ‘Morality is your life, not your job’ she claims for those who don't want to argue. She is horrified to see how people in power lie and cover up, and notes how a simple ideology is dangerous and contagious, commenting that it is clear to her how the 1930s and 1940s could have happened.
In this almost two-hour conversation, the panelists, coming from different parts of the world and speaking with different experiences, expressed their opinions, concerns and hopes. The conclusion is the following – it is important to talk about the war, write down experiences and testimonies, communicate with the world and speak on behalf of those who are currently unable to speak for themselves.
Photo (c) Raisa Šehu
