English

Extract from the Tunisian Publishers’ Union’s communiqué, published on 21 January 2011

« The Tunisian Publishers’ Union, whose members met on Friday, 21 January, congratulates the Tunisian people, is proud of its glorious revolution and pays tribute to its martyrs, while declaring its unwavering support for the popular resistance ».

Paris, December 2010

It is with great concern that the International Alliance of Independent Publishers has noted the recent censorship of a book in Spain, and the threats made against the independent publishing house Txalaparta, member of the Alliance’s Spanish-speaking network.

The book in question, « El manual del torturador español » (The Spanish Torturer’s Manual) – by Xabier MAKAZAGA denounces the torture carried out by the Spanish police. The book was withdrawn from a public library (in the Basauri town council), following a request by a political party and certain Madrid newspapers to remove it from all libraries where it was made available to readers. However the practices described in this book support the accusations already made in reports by Amnesy International and by the UN Recorder on Human Rights. The campaign against this book has already been publicly denounced by public librarians. Furthermore the Basque Country Human Rights Observer (Behatokia) sent a letter of protest to Frank de la Rue, Special Recorder on Human Rights and Freedom of Expression with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, whose headquarters are in Geneva.

The International Alliance of independent publishers, whose objectives include defending freedom of expression and denouncing all forms of censorship, also has a duty to respond publicly when attacks or infringements are directed – for ideological reasons – against independent publishers, whose very job it is to encourage the dissemination of ideas and to contribute to forging the identity of people and their culture.

One has only to examine Txalaparta’s publishing catalogue to appreciate the vast range of literary works and essays which constitute an undeniable contribution to bibliodiversity, while reflecting a clear editorial policy.

This is why we independent publishers are appealing to the Spanish authorities to respect the work of independent publishers and to encourage respect for fundamental rights and democracy.

We also appeal to independent publishers, booksellers, librarians and readers to follow the development of this matter closely and to express their support to Txalaparta Publishing in order to defend and respect the right to information that is true and diverse.

The Spanish-language network of the International Alliance of independent publishers

On Monday, 6 December 2010, following hours of online discussions among the 9 members of the Reading Committee of the “Terres solidaires” collection (“United Lands”), the 2010 prizewinners of the collection were announced : « Trop de soleil tue l’amour », by Mongo BETI and « Mandela et moi », by Lewis NKOSI !
These two new joint co-publications will be launched in Africa in February 2011.

The Alliance expresses its warmest thanks to the members of the Reading Committee (see the list below) for their involvement and their enthusiastic discussions !

• Agnès ADJAHO (former manager of the Notre Dame bookshop, Bénin) ;

• Élisabeth DALDOUL (Elyzad Publishing, Tunisia) ;

• Boubacar Boris DIOP (writer, Senegal - Tunisia) ;

• Emmanuel DONGALA (writer, Congo- United States) ;

• Mariame GBA (librarian, Côte d’Ivoire) ;

• Sofiane HADJADJ (Barzakh Publishing, Algeria) ;

• Jean-Claude NABA (Sankoka & Gurli Publishing, Burkina Faso) ;

• François NKEME (Ifrikiya Publishing, Cameroon) ;

• The book club of Oujda High School (Morocco).

Le Dictionnaire de la narratologie est un ouvrage de référence, ayant pour objectif de faciliter la diffusion et la transmission des idées, par l’uniformisation des concepts entre lecteurs arabophones. Il permet d’affiner les définitions proposées dans différents essais critiques arabes dont l’appareil conceptuel puise directement dans les œuvres des théoriciens de la narratologie occidentale.
Le Dictionnaire se présente sous forme d’un glossaire des termes en usage dans l’analyse du récit. Il comporte aussi des termes relevant des champs d’étude de la narratologie traditionnelle et énonciative, des termes et des notions empruntées à la pragmatique et à l’analyse du discours.

Aux termes arabes ont été adjoints les correspondances en français et en anglais pour répondre aux besoins du lectorat aussi bien francophone (Maghreb) qu’anglophone (Moyen-Orient).

Le Dictionnaire de la narratologie est entre autres destiné aux étudiants et aux chercheurs, aux critiques littéraires et aux auteurs.

Date de publication : septembre 2010, 600 pages, 16,5 X 23,5 cm, 540 concepts présentés en français, en anglais et en arabe,
ISBN : 978-9973-33-294-3

The International Alliance of Independent Publishers organizes from 18 to 21 December 2010 a meeting on the digital publishing in Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso), in partnership with the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie.

The English-language network next meeting will take place in Paris from 13th to 15th October 2010. Discussions about the network current and future projects (translation, co-publishing, book fairs, etc.) are planned.
Being in Paris will be an opportunity for the seven publishers (Spinifex in Australia, Jacana Media in South Africa, The New Press in the United States, Tulika and Women Unlimited in India and Zed Books in the United Kingdom) to meet French publishers (Actes Sud, La Fabrique...).

The Alliance language network coordinators will meet in Paris on Monday 11th and Tuesday 12th of October 2010. This meeting represents one of the annual appointment of the governance of the association.
Two days of exchanges and debates between the coordinators and the members of the Board of the Alliance... discover the attached programme.

Language network coordinators :

* Nouri Abid, Tunisia (Med Ali), coordinator of the Arabic-language network ;

* Serge D. Kouam, Cameroon (Presses universitaires d’Afrique), coordinator of the French-language network ;

* Marc Favreau, United States (The New Press), coordinator of the English-language network ;

* Araken Gomes Ribeiro, Brazil (Contra Capa), coordinator of the Portuguese-language network ;

* Guido Indij, Argentina (la marca editora), coordinator of the Spanish-language network.

To meet the independent publishers of the Alliance in Frankfurt, download the document below.

To contact these publishers, before or after the Fair, do not hesitate to address directly the International Alliance of Independent Publishers.

In 2010, the Prince Claus Foundation awards a prize to a publisher member of the Alliance. Indeed, the prestigious Prince Claus Award will next December pay tribute to Algeria’s Barzakh Publishing “for the way it gives concrete expression to Algerian voices, for having opened up a very necessary space for critical debates on Algerian realities, for having built a bridge between the different languages and cultures, and for having creatively dispelled the threat of the country’s cultural isolation”.

The Alliance expresses its warmest and most sincere congratulations to Selma Hellal, Sofiane Hadjadj and the whole team at Barzakh Publishing.

From 2010 International Bibliodiversity Day will be celebrated in several Latin American countries on 21 September each year. This day is deeply symbolic, representing Spring Day in the Southern hemisphere, in particular ; spring with its connotations of pleasant weather, diversity, contrasting colours, vigour, flowers in bloom, transitions, love, perfume, and new beginnings.

Even though this is an international day, it was important to note that this initiative originated in the South - in Latin America – and that it bears a concrete signicance. Indeed, in defending and promoting bibliodiversity, Latin American publishers reaffirm the necessity of rebalancing the direction in which books and ideas circulate and of achieving movement in other directions, from South to North, but also from South to South.

Watch the EldíaB 2010 videos !

More information on Bibliodiversity Day Blog : http://eldiab.org/

An incredible censorship attempt is endangering the very existence of the publisher Écosociété (Quebec – Canada) ; more than 60 publishers from 30 countries have declared their undivided support for the Quebec publisher and are calling on the pinstigators of the “Noir Canada” affair to respect the rights of freedom of expression and publication.

Through a step-by-step approach, with examples and a pedagogical method, Stéphane Marill gives a precious “vade mecum” for any publisher wishing to respond to a call for tenders in the school textbook industry.

Why did the large majority of European countries choose to protect the book, setting its price through trade agreements or legal measures ? How were these protection mechanisms, which make the book into a cultural exception permitted by the European Commission, gradually implemented ? Markus Gerlach offers a broad analysis the price-fixing of books in Europe : he begins by relating the background of this measure and then analyzes the economic effects. In the end he shows the extent to which the price-fixing of books, apart from its cultural and economic importance, also assumes an eminently political dimension.

« Protéger le livre » by Markus Gerlach (in French) - available in Spanish (« Cómo proteger el libro »), in Portuguese (« Proteger o livro ») and in Italian (« Proteggere il libro »).

Year of publication : 2006, 160 pages, 15 x 21 cm, ISBN 10 : 2-9519747-2-8 ; ISBN 13 : 978-2-9519747-2-2

Far from being a caricature, developing a reasoning based on his personal conception of publishing, Gilles Colleu explores some of the characteristics of a typical independent publisher.
What do we mean by independent publisher ? Are they necessarily small concerns ? Can a major group be independent ? In a context of concentration and increasing dominance of financial considerations, how can publishers remain independent while playing their crucial role of putting fresh ideas forward ?

Gilles Colleu is a former student of Jean-Marie Bouvaist and has taught alongside him on the Master course at Villetaneuse University. He is now an associate professor in the publishing professions department of the IUT in Aix-en-Provence. He founded the Vents d’ailleurs publishing house and manages it with Jutta Hepke, and for the past 20 years has acted as a consultant to publishers.

In this work, he stresses his conviction that publishing needs to be rooted in a long cycle of cultivation, to build a coherent catalogue and long-lasting business.

NB : pages 94 to 97 of this work feature a full, fresh definition of independent publishing, suggested by the International Alliance of Independent Publishers.

Year of publication : 2006, 160 pages, 15 x 21 cm, ISBN 10 : 2-9519747-2-8 ; ISBN 13 : 978-2-9519747-2-2

A thorough report by Luc Pinhas, in French

Why do books have such restricted circulation in the French-speaking world ? Which way does the flow go and which are one-way streets ? What current legislation encourages publishing and the marketing of works ? Are public policies sufficient ? What setbacks are encountered in the marketing of works ? Luc Pinhas draws a comprehensive portrait of the state of publishing, including legislation, circulation, distribution and marketing of books in the French-speaking world. This dossier, featuring entries on many themes and geographic locations, provides a complete overview of local realities, illustrated with telling examples. After analysing measures that states, associations and syndicates of publishing and book-store professionals have implemented, the author puts forward some proposals to fuel a much-needed debate. To achieve this and to hear what the main players had to say, especially with regard to the South, a fruitful survey was conducted at the Ouagadougou book fair in November 2004, in partnership with the international Association of French-speaking Bookstore Managers (AILF) - [http://www.librairesfrancophones.org/]

Year of publication : 2005, 288 pages, 15 X 21 cm, ISBN : 978-2-9519747-1-X

African literature in French is today better represented and better known in Europe than in Africa, where its distribution remains hampered by many obstacles. However, there are solutions, which require the mobilisation of various stakeholders in the book industry. One solution is co-publishing, based on a joint trade agreement. The publication of « L’Ombre d’Imana » by Véronique TADJO, a groundbreaking example of pan-African co-publishing, proves that it is possible, through joint action, to create the conditions necessary for a (re)appropriation by Africa of its literature. To make this possible, the Alliance is appealing to everyone, authors, publishers and institutions alike, to join forces and promote the bibliodiversity at the heart of the francophone spirit. This appeal is endorsed by many authors and book industry professionals.

Year of publication : 2006, 288 pages, 15 x 21 cm, ISBN 978-2-9519747-3-9

Read the text of the Convention.
Read the Operational Guidelines of the Convention here.