PEN Canada for Freedom of Expression

Writers in Exile

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Chad

Hassan Cherif Kala
After being repeatedly detained and harassed by political authorities in Chad, Hassan Chérif Kala was forced to flee his native country and came to Canada. Kala studied journalism at the University of Yaoundé in Cameroon and the University of Québec in Montréal, where he obtained a Journalism Diploma with a specialty in television reporting. Upon completion of his studies, Kala returned to Chad and began working for the country’s public media. There he served as director of programming and news at Chad Television from 1997 to 1999. Prior to that, Kala worked as director for the Chad Press Agency from 1995 to 1997, and as editor-in-chief of Télé-Chad from 1992 to 1995.

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I owe PEN Canada for whatever it is we call a home…. I was deeply traumatized when I crossed mountains to flee my invaded home. When I got here, the immigration office labelled me as ‘general labour’. I am nothing less than ‘highly-skilled labour’ - in the field of poetry.” Poet and PEN Canada writer in exile Saghi Ghahraman