Targeting the Cairo International Book Fair, Palestinian Short Stories Become a Cultural Weapon
The 2026 International Short Story Award on Palestine (ISSA–Palestine) held by LSBPI MUI is being steered into an international cultural movement. The works of the main winners have a chance to be published and taken to the Cairo International Book Fair.
LSBPI MUI Chairman Habiburrahman El Shirazy said short stories were chosen so that literary and content selection could be more objective. The main winning works, especially those in Arabic, will be pushed to be published in book form and brought to the book fair as a form of solidarity and a testimony to the suffering of the Palestinian people.
This competition is open for free to the public in three languages: Indonesian, Arabic, and English. Literature is positioned as cultural diplomacy to build empathy, present human experience, and keep the public memory of Palestine alive amid geopolitical narratives.
LSBPI MUI Vice Chair Helvy Tiana Rosa stressed that this competition does not limit religion or ethnicity. Supported by national and international networks, this program turns solidarity into cross-generational cultural documentation.
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