PAWA PARTNERS PALESTINIAN WRITERS FOR THE PALESTINE INTERNATIONAL POETRY PRIZE

The Pan African Writers Association ( PAWA) will partner with the General Union of Palestinian Writers and Authors in the execution of the Palestine International Poetry Prize.

The Palestine International Poetry Prize is a creative award dedicated to poetic works that document the Palestinian tragedy while establishing the justice and legitimacy of the Palestinian right. It seeks to embody the Palestinian dream of freedom, return, independence, and to present to the world the Palestinian narrative grounded in truth, justice, dignity, beauty, love, life, and the common good—defending life and its reasons in the face of narratives of killing, erasure, exclusion, and ugliness.

According to a recent press release by the Secretary General of the Palestinian Writers body, Dr Murad Al-Sudani, other partners for the prestigious prize include, the International Federation of Writers Associations and the World Poetry Movement.

The Prize will be supervised by a Board of Trustees made up of distinguished creative and influential figures from across the continents of our planet.

The Chairman of the Board of Trustees serves as the President of the Prize.

The Board of Trustees includes prominent and highly respected personalities in cultural and creative circles. Its mission is to provide all forms of support necessary for the endorsement the prize and its objectives.

The prize will also have a dedicated jury panel.
The Palestine International Poetry Prize is awarded annually. Each edition carries the name of a poet who has contributed to Palestine and its people, or who has supported the justice of the Palestinian cause and the legitimate rights of its people.

The prize is divided into three categories. Winners are announced and honored during a special ceremony dedicated to the prize, held in a country determined by the Board of Trustees.

Vision and Aspiration

The Palestine International Poetry Prize presents itself as the only international poetry award emerging emanating from the State of Palestine to the world. It serves as a mark of appreciation and recognition for poets worldwide and their creative works that support Palestinian rights.

At the same time, it also aims to encourage creative production that resonates with the aspirations and sacred values of Palestine—land of holiness, peace, and civilizational and spiritual illumination.

The prize will also serve as a platform for engagement with poets from across the world and their languages, paving the way for new cultural dialogues between civilizations and cultures.

Objectives

1.Enhancing and strengthening the Palestinian presence in the global poetic movement and in the global cultural landscape in general, meanwhile developing the effectiveness, engagements of creatives worldwide with Palestine and its poetic cultural context.

2.Deepening awareness of the Palestinian identity and destiny, and committing dialogue and interaction between Palestinian poets and their counterparts around the world.

3.Encouraging Achieving an equation to motivate poets to write about Palestine poets to write about Palestine, while honoring those who have embraced Palestine as a major aesthetic cause and highlighting the spiritual values it has radiated to the world.

4.Encouraging poets worldwide—especially young poets— to express solidarity with the Palestinian people and recognizing their creative achievements.

About the Prize
The prize was launched by the General Union of Palestinian Writers and Authors in 2026. Its first edition carries a title “Gaza’s Martyr Poets”.
This edition comes in recognition of the unprecedented solidarity shown by poets worldwide—particularly within the World Poetry Movement—with Palestinian suffering and their condemnation of the Israeli war of genocide and cultural destruction. Poets around the world expressed this solidarity through poems, readings, and poetic events, many of which have been translated into various languages.

Prize Conditions
1.The submitted work must not have previously received any award, and must have been published by a qualified publishing house within the past three years (2024, 2025, 2026).
2.Participants must register by completing the application form on the official website of the prize, attaching a curriculum vitae and three personal photographs.
3.Participants must declare that the submitted work will not be entered for another award in the same year, and they bear full responsibility for any intellectual property violations, while respecting the decision of the Jury.
4.The prize administration reserves the right to exclude any submission that does not meet the stated requirements.
5.Members of the prize administration or the jury are not permitted to participate in the competition in the same year.
6.Only one work must be submitted per participant.
7.The prize is awarded to poets who do not speak Arabic..

Prize Categories
1.Palestine International Poetry Prize — USD 4,000
2.Palestine International Translation Prize — USD 3,000, awarded for translations of Palestinian poetry into other languages
3.Palestine International Prize for the Study or Publication of Palestinian Poetry — USD 3,000, awarded to a critic reviewer, researcher, publisher, or institution.

Award Ceremony
The prize will be presented during a special ceremony held in Palestine or abroad. In addition to the cash award, the winning works will be translated into Arabic and other languages, and the winners will receive certificates of recognition and the prize medal. They will also be invited to Palestine to participate in joint cultural and poetic events.

Note: The official participation application form can be downloaded from the website of the General Union of Palestinian Writers and Authors via the following link:
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1BE5FnayAi/

Note: The official participation application, along with the required attachments, should be submitted via the Union’s email address
gupw2010@gmail.com

Application Deadline: June 4 2026