DUAL Poetry Podcast

this week's poem 'Schism' is by Al Saddiq Al Raddi from Sudan. The poem is read first in English translation by Sarah Maguire and then in Arabic by Saddiq himself.

This poem is from a book of poems by Al-Saddiq Al-Raddi inspired by the Petrie Museum’s collection of material from Meroë in Sudan.

If you enjoy this poem and would like to support the Poetry Translation Centre please visit our JustGiving Page.

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Al-Saddiq Al-Raddi is one of the leading African poets writing in Arabic today. He has gained a wide audience in his native Sudan for his imaginative approach to poetry and for the delicacy and emotional frankness of his lyrics. His poetry has always been concerned with the rich cultural and linguistic diversity of Sudan and its complex history.

Saddiq was born in 1969 and grew up in Omdurman Khartoum where he lived until forced into exile in 2012. From 2006, he was the cultural editor of Al-Sudani newspaper until he was sacked from his position for political reasons (along with 22 other colleagues) in July 2012 during the uprising against the dictatorship of Omar Al-Bashir. Saddiq only escaped imprisonment because, thanks to the miraculous timing of Poetry Parnassus (the world's largest ever gathering of international poets at which Saddiq represented Sudan), he was in the UK when a series of mass arrests took place. He successfully applied for asylum and is now living in London.

Find out more about Al-Saddiq Al-Raddi 

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Direct download: PP_Schism_3.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:00am UTC