In her stirring pocket-sized 2020 manifesto How to Stay Sane in an Age of Division, Elif Shafak writes "there are many citizens around the world today who have a hard time recognising their countries, walking like strangers in their own homelands".
The celebrated novelist was referring to an increase in authoritarianism and religious fundamentalism in parts of the world, including her native Turkey.
During her virtual appearance at the 2021 Emirates Airline Festival of Literature on Saturday, she warned of what would happen “when countries go backwards".
“The first thing that will be taken away is women’s rights,” she said.
“We have seen this in country after country. Wherever democracy crumbles, appreciation for diversity is also lost. We have seen a rise in patriarchy. We have seen a loss in women’s rights. And in that context, if you are deemed to be different in the eyes of society, be it for the colour of your skin, how you look ... your life is going to be difficult.”
During her talk, Shafak highlighted a cemetery in Istanbul for people who have left no one behind in life, who have been abandoned by their families and society. The tombstones bear no names, only numbers. There are many minorities buried there, as well as abandoned babies, Aids victims of the 1990s, and a growing number of Syrian and Afghan refugees, Shafak added.
She also revealed that she became interested in the cemetery years ago, visiting it often and trying to imagine the people behind the numbers.
“It is a very sad and strange place,” she said.
It was at that cemetery that Shafak found the main character of her 2019 novel 10 Minutes 38 Seconds in this Strange World. In a place that turns humans into numbers, Shafak sought to individualise one of the tombstones, to take a number and give it a story. And so she named her protagonist – a sex worker shunned by the world – Leila.
“I think literature has to and does rehumanise people who have been dehumanised constantly,” Shafak said.
The author revealed that this philosophy has been one of her driving forces, adding that her two latest releases – even though one is fiction and the other non-fiction – are linked by their aim to bring the marginalised to the fore.
“I’ve always been much more interested in the periphery than the centre,” Shafak said. “I think literature, the art of storytelling, does bring the periphery to the centre, makes the invisible a bit more visible. The unheard, a bit more heard.”
Shafak credits mother and grandmother with instilling her love for literature and culture. The Honour writer described her "unusual upbringing" at the festival, saying the pair helped hone her storytelling skills.
“My mum is a very rational, modern, secularised woman,” she said. “My grandmother was more irrational in some aspects, less educated because she was not allowed to have a proper education because she was a girl,” Shafak said. “She was a very wise woman who made me see that there were different ways of attaining knowledge. From my mother, I inherited a love for written culture. From my grandmother, I got my love for oral culture.”
Emirates Airline Festival of Literature continues until Saturday, February 13. More information is at emirateslitfest.com
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
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Most match wins on clay
Guillermo Vilas - 659
Manuel Orantes - 501
Thomas Muster - 422
Rafael Nadal - 399 *
Jose Higueras - 378
Eddie Dibbs - 370
Ilie Nastase - 338
Carlos Moya - 337
Ivan Lendl - 329
Andres Gomez - 322
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
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The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
UK-EU trade at a glance
EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years
Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products
Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries
Smoother border management with use of e-gates
Cutting red tape on import and export of food
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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T20 SQUADS
Australia: Aaron Finch (c), Mitchell Marsh, Alex Carey, Ashton Agar, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Chris Lynn, Nathan Lyon, Glenn Maxwell, Ben McDermott, D’Arcy Short, Billy Stanlake, Mitchell Starc, Andrew Tye, Adam Zampa.
Pakistan: Sarfraz Ahmed (c), Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hafeez, Sahibzada Farhan, Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik, Asif Ali, Hussain Talat, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Usman Khan Shinwari, Hassan Ali, Imad Wasim, Waqas Maqsood, Faheem Ashraf.
The biog
Name: Fareed Lafta
Age: 40
From: Baghdad, Iraq
Mission: Promote world peace
Favourite poet: Al Mutanabbi
Role models: His parents
Scores in brief:
Boost Defenders 205-5 in 20 overs
(Colin Ingram 84 not out, Cameron Delport 36, William Somerville 2-28)
bt Auckland Aces 170 for 5 in 20 overs
(Rob O’Donnell 67 not out, Kyle Abbott 3-21).
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THE SPECS
Touareg Highline
Engine: 3.0-litre, V6
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Power: 340hp
Torque: 450Nm
Price: Dh239,312
Visit Abu Dhabi culinary team's top Emirati restaurants in Abu Dhabi
Yadoo’s House Restaurant & Cafe
For the karak and Yoodo's house platter with includes eggs, balaleet, khamir and chebab bread.
Golden Dallah
For the cappuccino, luqaimat and aseeda.
Al Mrzab Restaurant
For the shrimp murabian and Kuwaiti options including Kuwaiti machboos with kebab and spicy sauce.
Al Derwaza
For the fish hubul, regag bread, biryani and special seafood soup.
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If you go
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct to Nairobi, with fares starting from Dh1,695. The resort can be reached from Nairobi via a 35-minute flight from Wilson Airport or Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, or by road, which takes at least three hours.
The rooms
Rooms at Fairmont Mount Kenya range from Dh1,870 per night for a deluxe room to Dh11,000 per night for the William Holden Cottage.
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if you go
The flights
Emirates flies to Delhi with fares starting from around Dh760 return, while Etihad fares cost about Dh783 return. From Delhi, there are connecting flights to Lucknow.
Where to stay
It is advisable to stay in Lucknow and make a day trip to Kannauj. A stay at the Lebua Lucknow hotel, a traditional Lucknowi mansion, is recommended. Prices start from Dh300 per night (excluding taxes).