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CONTACT: Laura Ingalls (laura.ingalls@worldlearning.org) in Washington, 1.202.646.6973
Democracy Fellows Director Wins Romania’s Top Literary Prize
WASHINGTON, DC (January 25, 2010) -- Romania has awarded its highest literary honor for poetry to Dorin Tudoran, a prominent Romanian author, former dissident and director of World Learning's Democracy Fellows Program.
Tudoran accepted the National Prize for Poetry January 18 in the northern city of Botosani, birthplace of Romania's national poet, Mihai Eminescu, after whom the prize is named. Media gave wide coverage to the ceremony, which was broadcast live across the nation. Tudoran also was honored by the Botosani municipal council, which called a special session last week in order to name him an honorary citizen.
The author of 15 books and more than a thousand articles, Tudoran is considered by many to be one of Romania's best living writers. In the early 1980s, Tudoran distinguished himself by resigning from the Communist Party and becoming one of the sharpest critics of the country's dictator, Nicolae Ceausescu. In 1985, he went on a hunger strike that lasted 42 days, leading human rights groups to secure his safe passage to the United States.
After the 1989 revolution, Tudoran worked for an international democracy development organization in Romania and Moldova and helped found two regional nongovernmental organizations that promote participatory democracy. The 21 December 1989 Association, an organization of surviving revolutionaries who helped topple Ceausescu, recognized Tudoran last year by naming him an honorary member.
At World Learning, Tudoran heads the Democracy Fellows Program which places experienced democracy and governance professionals in positions at the United States Agency for International Development, including those in its field missions and Washington headquarters. Fellows gain practical skills and valuable experience as they work to advance democratic practices in emerging and transitional democracies. The program supports up to 15 democracy professionals annually, generally awarding six new fellowships each year.
More information on Democracy Fellows can be found on the World Learning website at: http://wlid.usaid.gov.
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