Buy rights to our authors, Ukrainian Publishers and Booksellers Association urges LBF attendees

The president of the Ukrainian Publishers and Booksellers Association has called on London Book Fair attendees to provide practical help to Ukraine by buying rights to publish Ukrainian authors, as well as donating paper and money. 

In a pre-recorded video, Oleksandr Afonin addressed an LBF panel on the role of publishing and culture during global conflict. “It is extremely difficult for the Ukrainian publishing business today,” he said. “More than two thirds of the country’s main publishing capacity is in the war zone, as well as warehouses with finished products, most of which were either destroyed by bombing or not accessible.  

“Ukrainian publishers have no money, no paper and lack printing capacity. Therefore, we will be very grateful for any help from you. These can be [in the form of] money, paper, buying rights to publish works by Ukrainian authors, giving the opportunity to print Ukrainian books in your printing houses." 

In a moving speech, Afonin continued: “Ukrainian publishers and booksellers planned to be with you today a month and a half ago. However, on Friday 24th February, at 4am, Putin’s Russia treacherously invaded our peaceful homeland, the sovereign state of Ukraine. They are destroying our towns and villages with missiles and bombs, killing civilians regardless of their age or gender. And the death toll is already in the thousands.” 

He labelled Putin’s war a “cannibalistic goal to destroy Ukrainians as a nation and Ukraine as a state". "He is trying to kill everything that is the soul of Ukrainians, our history, culture, language,” said Afonin. “Today in the temporarily occupied territories the Russian occupiers are confiscating from libraries, schools and universities, all literature on the history, culture and art of Ukraine and destroying it.” 

The in-person panel, chaired by Stephen Lotinga, c.e.o. of the Publishers Association, discussed the ways in which the industry could offer practical help to people in Ukraine and other areas of conflict.  

Bodour Al Qasimi, president of the International Publishers Association, emphasised the watchdog role publishers had in defending the freedom to publish. “In times of conflict, books are even more critical for fostering hope, supporting reconciliation and cementing peace. And that’s what we really need to focus on in Ukraine and other parts of the world where there is conflict,” she told the audience. 

She highlighted key takeaways from a previous seminar in Jordan, which showed the need for the publishing industry to support out-of-school children, facilitate refugee integration, contribute to peacebuilding and community healing, mobilise resources to keep books in the hands of readers and rebuild institutions and collections. 

Cortina Butler, deputy director for arts at the British Council, noted that the war was being waged “as a challenge to Ukrainian identity" and that culture had been at the forefront of Ukrainian appeals.  

“This focus on Ukrainian culture is ensuring that the narrative on Ukraine at the moment isn’t just about victims and refugees, destruction and bodies, although that is a critical narrative as well, but also about a vibrant and optimistic and courageous community,” she said. 

She said a UK/Ukraine bilateral season, which was due to launch in May, will still go ahead. She emphasised that publishing needs to ask colleagues in Ukraine what they need, citing “surprising” lessons, such as how important and familiar the Peppa Pig books are to Ukrainian children, even if they are not in translation. 

She warned that the war was for the long haul. The industry must not lose interest, she stressed, and must commit to support rebuilding after the conflict.