S.E.A. Write Award

The S.E.A. Write Award, or Southeast Asian Writers Award, is an award that has been presented annually since 1979 to poets and writers in Southeast Asia.

The awards are given to a writer from each the countries that comprise the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, though not all countries in ASEAN have been represented every year. The award is sometimes given for a specific work by an author, or it could be awarded for lifetime achievement. The types of works that are honored vary, and have included poetry, short stories, novels, plays, folklore and scholarly and religious works.

The ceremonies are held in Bangkok, with a member of the Thai royal family presiding. The award was conceived by the management of the Oriental Bangkok hotel, which then sought further backing from Thai Airways International and other companies. The ceremonies have featured some notable guest speakers, including Iris Murdoch, Peter Ustinov, Jeffrey Archer, James A. Michener, Gore Vidal, William Golding, Rita Dove and Paul Theroux. The 2006 keynote speaker, Nobel Prize laureate Wole Soyinka canceled his keynote speech in protest against the Thai military's coup against the government, [The Nation, [http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2006/11/16/opinion/opinion_30019095.php Why artistic freedom matters] , 16 November 2006] and was replaced at the last moment by S.P. Somtow.

List of S.E.A. Write Award winners

1979-1989

Until 1984, ASEAN comprised of Indonesia, Malaysia, The Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. Brunei was admitted in 1984 and its first S.E.A. Write honoree was named in 1986.

2000s

References

External links

* [http://www.seawrite.com/ S.E.A. Write Awards]