Hurriyet, Turkey
Oct 13 2006

Pamuk: This Nobel goes to all of Turkey, the Turks, and Turkish
language
Friday , 13 October 2006

Speaking at a press conference in New York City yesterday, where he
is currently a visiting professor at Columbia University, Orhan Pamuk
told reporters that the Nobel Prize for Literature was not only given
to him, but to all of Turkey, Turkish culture, and the language of
Turkish. Said Pamuk, "Today I would just like to celebrate this good
news. There is nothing else I wish to talk about or comment on."

Pamuk said that he had learned in the morning of the news via a phone
call from the Swedish Academy. He explained "The head of the Swedish
Royal Academy called me and asked whether I would accept the prize. I
said I would."

Pamuk told reporters that he hoped the awarding of the Nobel to his
work would raise the profile of Turkish literature and culture in the
world at large, adding "I think that this award will cause the world
to re-examine Turkish culture as a culture of peace, and as a mixture
of East and West cultures. My books are proof that in fact Turkey is
a part of both the East and the West."

Pamuk declined to answer any questions on Turkey’s controversial
penal code, nor on his previous statements regarding the Armenian
genocide and cultural clashes.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress