Hafid Bouazza

Hafid Bouazza honoured as "Freethinker of the Year" (2014).

Hafid Bouazza (Arabic: حفيظ بوعزة, ḥafīẓ būʿazza; 8 March 1970 – 29 April 2021) was a Moroccan-Dutch writer.[1]

Born in Oujda, Morocco, Bouazza came to the Netherlands in October 1977 as a seven-year-old boy. He lived with his parents in the village Arkel, near Gorinchem, until he went to study Arabic language and literature at the University of Amsterdam.[1]

He received the E. du Perron prize for his 1996 debut De voeten van Abdullah (The feet of Abdullah).[2] Later works include Momo and Solomon, in 2001 Een beer in bontjas ("A bear in a fur coat"); the play adaptions Apollien, De slachting in Parijs ("The massacre in Paris") and Othello; and Het monster met de twee ruggen : een kameropera ("The beast with two backs: a libretto"). Bouazza gave the 2002 Mosse Lecture, titled Homoseksualiteit en Islam (Homosexuality and Islam).[3] His 2004 novel Paravion won the 2004 Golden Book-Owl prize.[2] His novel Spotvogel appeared in 2009, after years of silence. Bouazza, an atheist,[1] is known for his criticism of Islam. His sister Hassnae is a noted journalist.[4][5] In 2014, the Dutch freethinkers association De Vrije Gedachte honoured him with the title of "Freethinker of the Year".[1]

Bouazza died in hospital in Amsterdam on 29 April 2021. He had been struggling with poor health and drug use.[6]

  1. ^ a b c d Ally Smid (18 May 2014). "Hafid Bouazza: oer-Hollandse jongen met een passie voor middeleeuwse literatuur". Trouw. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
  2. ^ a b Arjan Peters. "In memoriam Hafid Bouazza (1970-2021)". Werkgroep Caraibische Letteren (in Dutch). Retrieved 29 April 2021.
  3. ^ Bouazza, Hafid (20 September 2002). "Nederland slikt te veel onzin van moslims" [The Netherlands swallows too much nonsense from Muslims]. NRC Handelsblad (in Dutch). Retrieved 6 February 2019.
  4. ^ "Zomergasten:Hafid Bouazza" (in Dutch). VPRO. Archived from the original on 20 October 2009. Retrieved 10 May 2009.
  5. ^ Visser, Harm (23 February 2006). "Leven zonder God, elf interviews over ongeloof:Hafid Bouazza" (in Dutch). Hoei, Boei. Archived from the original on 17 August 2011. Retrieved 10 May 2009.
  6. ^ "Schrijver Hafid Bouazza (51) overleden". nos.nl (in Dutch). 29 April 2021. Retrieved 29 April 2021.