Writers from Ukraine, Poland, Germany, and Kazakhstan withdraw from Indian festival in protest of Russian participants

This was reported on Facebook by Ukrainian writer Lyubov Yakymchuk.

The annual literary festival in Bengaluru invited Ukrainian writers, but just three days before the event, they learned that individuals connected to the Russian government were included in the program. As a result, nearly 15 writers — Ukrainians, Poles, Germans, and one Kazakh — decided to withdraw.

"We saw that the opening would feature the Russian Consul General in Chennai. Among the participants, there were two people linked to the Russian government. One of them currently works at a research institute under Russia’s Ministry of Defense, developing AI technologies for drones — technologies that make killing Ukrainians even more efficient," Yakymchuk wrote.

She emphasized that this was a direct attempt to lure Ukrainian writers into an event where representatives of the aggressor country were given a platform to legitimize their crimes. Writers initially tried to change the situation by negotiating with the organizers.

They set several conditions, including removing the Russian consul and the two Kremlin-linked participants from the program, eliminating statements portraying Russia as a "leader of the world order," and giving Ukrainians more space in the event lineup.

"A representative of the Ukrainian embassy and a representative of the Polish Institute in India joined us in the negotiations," Yakymchuk noted.

Eventually, the Russian participants were removed from the program.

"Ukrainian, Polish, German, and Kazakh writers firmly refused to participate. I am immensely grateful to all foreigners who supported us not just in words but in action. Literature cannot exist without ethics. However, our names were not removed from the program despite two requests," she added.