6 SOVIET WRITERS DUE AT P.E.N. TALK

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP88-01315R000400200015-3
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 16, 2016
• Document Release Date: November 12, 2004
• Sequence Number: 15
• Publication Date: June 5, 1966
• Content Type: NSPR

JUN 5 1966
Approved For Release 2005/01/12 : CIA-RDP88-01315R000400
`.6 SOVIET. WRITERS
DUE AT M.N. TALK
Expected to Defend Recent
Trial at Meeting Here
3/ A'
Speclel to The New York Times
MOSCOW, June 4-The So-'
viet Union named a delegation
of six writers today to defend,
the 8inyavsky-Daniel trial at a!
congress of the International
Society of Poets, Essayists and.
Novelists I opening next Satur-
day in New York. Mr. Carver told newsmen that
The case of the two Russian officials of the Writers'Union
Novelists, Andrei D. Slnyavsky had Insisted that the sentences
were just. Under these _circum-i
and Yuli- M. Daniel, convicted stances, Mr. Carver said, we
in February -for anti-Soviet cannot possibly offer P.E.N.;
writings, is expected to figure membership to the Soviet Union-
prominently in the discussions during the New York congress.
.at the P.E.N. congress, . . 1 a we had hoped."
Taking no chances that any The Soviet observers named
,opinions contrary to the offs-' today. are better known, in this
cial verdict against the two country as writers' union of-,
men might be aired by Soviet ficials than as working authors.
representatives, the Russians Mr. Breitburd, described as a
did not include in the delegation critic, is more prominent as a'
a single spokesman of the lib- -translator. He did the Russian;
oral trend in modern Soviet lit- version of Giuseppe do Lampe-, ?
erature, ' ? dusla's Italian novel "Thee
Some of the liberal writers Leopard." ?
have made clear their doubts Mr. l{uliyev is a member of.'
about he ivlsdom or fairness of the small Balkar mountain tribe
the verdict In conversations of the Caucasus, which was
with literary' colleagues from; exiled to central Asia by Stalin
the West and other Communist-on spurious charges of having'
r countries. collaborated with the German
As announced by Tass, the of- invaders in. World War II, but
ficial press agency, the Soviet.was allowed to return to its
delegation to the congress will homeland after the dictator's.
consist of. Boris Ryurikov, cdi- death.
tor of the journal Voprosy Lit Xhe trial and conviction of
'eratury; Vladimir Machavariani Mr. Sinyavsky and, Mr. Daniel
,and Georgi Breiburd, literary; stirred a worldwide protest. The
critics; Johannes Semper of Es-itwo authors were convicted un-. ?
tonia; Kaisyn Kuliyev, a Ballcarder a provision of the Soviet
poet . from, the Caucasus, and criminal code covering anti-
Sergei Orlov, from Leningrad. 'Soviet propaganda and agita-
The writers will attend the tion. Both men pleaded inno-.
;conference as observers since cent.
the Soviet Union has not been Much of the criticism came,
accepted for membership to the from Communist' parties iwj
international organization, ;In-East and West Europe. The;
.deed, the .Sinyavsky-Daniel af-,:Russians have been sensitive to
fair emerged as a major road- I this criticism and made extra-
!block to such membership juste ordinary efforts to defend the
at a time when there seemed; authorities', actions.'
a good likelihood of admitting a; Writers' delegations have
Soviet chapter,
held meetings with foreign eel-
Carver's Visit Recalled leagues in Moscow and on trips
David Carver, the British to other capitals. On their rc-
,.secretary of P.E.N. Internation- turn they have reported being
?'al, visited Moscow in April to subjected to heated questioning.,
/urge clemency for the two writ- in one delegation to Prague,
ers, who have been confined to for example, writers' union of-
hard-labor camps. ficers 'presented the official
Mr. Slnyavsky,. sentenced to arguments while, according to
seven years, was published in reliable sources, more liberal ,
the West under the pseudonym members of the, group ap-
Abram? Tertz; Mr. ? Daniel, preached their Czechoslovak
known abroad from his clarides- 1colleagues to dissociate' them-.
,
fz'om_ what khe_ delegation,
tine writings as Nicolas Arzhak, selves loaders had
received a five-year sentence.
Approved For Release 2005/01/12 : CIA-RDP88-01315R000400200015-3