Peter Handke is awarded the Nobel Prize in literature for his authorship. Outside of literature, he has been heavily criticized for taking a stand for Serbia in the Balkan War in the 1990s. Among other things, he offered to testify to the Serbian politician Slobodan Milošević's advantage, when he was brought before the UN Criminal Tribunal for, among other things, human rights violations.
- It's tone deaf. Not wanting to see this is unfortunate, says cultural news critic Ulrika Milles.
Svante Weyler, publisher, says that the choice of Peter Handke is very surprising.
- He is known for his remarkable involvement in the Balkan War. He wanted to get our understanding of the Serbs. It is a very political choice. He has drawn politics into literature with his views.
- In a German and Austrian context, this is extremely controversial.
Ingrid Elam, literary critic, agrees:
- With Handke they have really gone away. You just can't forgive what he's done. At the same time, he has been a very important writer for my generation. He wrote several titles that we read and that meant a lot.