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A Palestinian writer Sahar Khalifa, third from left in front row, joins participants of the 2nd Korea-Arab Literature Forum held at the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies in Seoul, Thursday. To Khalifa’s left is UAE Ambassador Abdulla M. Almaaina; and front row far left is Egyptian Ambassador Mohammad El- Zorkany. / Korea Times |
For Sahar Khalifa, her pen has been the voice of the Palestinian people. At least, that's what she hoped to do through her novels.
Being a writer for nearly 35 years has earned her worldwide recognition, which also led her to Korea last week.
At the invitation of the Korea-Arab Society, a non-government organization with the aim of promoting cultural understanding between Korea and the Arab world, Khalifa spoke as a one-day representative of Arab literature at the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, last Thursday.
The author insisted that while politics in the region were volatile and changing, Arab people weren't. She asked Koreans to view them through the real lives of Palestinians portrayed in her novels.
During her stay, the Palestinian writer published one of her novels, "Inheritance," in Korean.
When asked what it was like to be a female writer, she answered "no problem," as if she was insulted by the question. She is well accepted as a voice of the Palestinians.
However, she said, "When I start to talk about women's issues in my country, it becomes a problem."
She was born in 1942 in Nablus, the West Bank. After her education in the Palestinian-occupied territories, she went to study in the United States on a Fulbright scholarship.
She received her doctorate degree in women's studies from the University of Iowa. After returning home in 1988, she founded the Women's Affairs Center in Nablus.
Choi Seung-hoh, secretary-general of the Korea-Arab Society, acknowledged the role of literature as a vehicle for cultural dissemination, hoping the literature forum would contribute to bringing Arab culture to Korean readers.
"Connections between Korea and the Arab world have been long yet thin and intermittent," Choi said.
The first forum occurred last year in Korea, with two Arab writers participating.
skim@koreatimes.co.kr
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