P R E S S   R E L E A S E

The United Nations General Assembly declared 2001 as the ‘United Nations Year of Dialogue Among Civilizations’ in 1998, with the aim of fostering tolerance, respect and cooperation among peoples. On 5 September, 2000, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said, ‘The United Nations, at its best, can be the true home of the dialogue among civilizations, the forum where such dialogue can flourish and bear fruit in every field of human endeavor.’

To further this aim, the United Nations Society of Writers, with the assistance of Giandomenico Picco, the UN Secretary-General’s Personal Representative for the Year of Dialogue among Civilizations, has called on major cities around the world to join in a series of literary programs under the umbrella project Dialogue Among Civilizations Through Poetry. Chief among these is a series of poetry readings around the world, all to take place in the last week of March 2001. On the schedule are over 240 readings in 200 major cities worldwide. 

Hong Kong, home to poets who write in Chinese as well as English, is one of the participating cities. We are also among the few cities hosting more than one reading and featuring a bilingual programme. Thirty local poets—from veterans to newly emerging talent—will present their poetry in two sessions: on 28 March 2001 at the Space Museum Lecture Hall (7 p.m.-9 p.m.), and on 31 March 2001 at the Shaw College Lecture Theatre, The Chinese University of Hong Kong (3 p.m.-5 p.m.) 

The two events are jointly organized and sponsored by the Research Centre for Translation and the Shaw College of The Chinese University. Other sponsors include the Hong Kong Public Libraries, Leisure and Cultural Services Department, the Centre for Translation at Hong Kong Baptist University and the Centre for Translation Studies at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University.

Admission is free and on a first-come-first-served basis. For further information please call:
28 March HK Space Museum readings 2609 7407/ 2609 7399
31 March Chinese University readings: 2609 7358/ 2609 8538

Programmes featuring all the poems to be read will be available at the venue of each event. An anthology featuring the participating poets and organizers worldwide will appear as an eBook by Fictionpolis.com in New York.