The Society of Writers is
a registered United Nations Club and reports to the Socio-Cultural Commission
of the Conseil de Coordination of the United Nations secretariat
in Geneva. As of December 2017 twenty-eight volumes of the journal
had been issued. Vol. XXI is devoted to the theme: Music -- the international
language. Vol. XXII is devoted to Jean Jacques Rousseau. Vol. XXIII is
devoted to Peace. Vol. XXIV is devoted to Swans, the environment, the
bicentennials of Giuseppe Verdi and Richard Wagner, etc. Vol. XXV is
the anniversary issue with 184 pages and the wonderful speech given by
Daniel de Roulet at the UN Library during the celebration "25 years UN
writers" held on 14 October 2014. Volumes XXVI, XXVII, XXVIII have all been issued, each number replete with talent.
Besides the UN
library, Bibliothèque de la Cité, Bibliothèque
nationale suisse, Walliser Mediathek, Deutsche Nationalbibliothek, Bibliothèque
Nationale de France, Biblioteca Nacional de España, Library of
Congress, etc. we have added another library to house the complete 24-volume
series -- the Depositary Library of the Max Planck Institute for Public
International Law in Heidelberg.
The society of writers was founded
on Friday, 14 August 1989 by Sergio Chaves (Argentina, 1931-2015+), Leonor
Sampaio (Brazil)and Alfred
de Zayas (USA).
Over a capuccino (renversé)
at the art-deco Press Bar of the Palais des Nations, Alfred suggested
naming the proposed journal "Ex Tempore", since staff contributions
should be crisp, uncomplicated, impromptu, and as far away as possible
from the stale UN jargon of resolutions and reports.
We wanted to prove that we could write
literature - not just bureaucratic pseudo-intellectual stuff. The most
boring part of our endeavour was the drafting and amending the statutes,
and getting our own issn number: ISSN 1020-6604.
Beyond that we wanted to emulate UNESCO's mandate
to reach out and contribute to a culture of peace through literature.
Indeed, as the UNESCO constitution says: "Since
wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the
defenses of peace must be constructed.”
After 15 years as president of the
UN Society of Writers, I announced at the General Assembly on 15
December 2005 that I would gladly retire and leave my post to the
younger and more enthusiastic colleagues. Since my departure as
president Karin Kaminker (2006-2008) and David Winch (2008 to 2013)
and Marko Stanovic (since 2013) have served in this function.
Following the General Assembly of UNSW held on the 5th of May 2023, the composition of the new UNSW Board is:
President: Marko Stanovic
Vice-President: Carla Edelenbos
Secretary: Amos Wama Taporaie
Treasurer: Martine Thevenot
Editor-in-chief: Alfred de Zayas
Honorary President: Tatiana Valovaya, Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva (UNOG)
Following the General Assembly on 8th of November 2019 at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, the composition of the new UNSW Board is:
President: Marko Stanovic
Vice-President: Carla Edelenbos
Secretary: Amos Wama Taporaie
Treasurer: Ivaylo Petrov
Editor-in-chief: Alfred de Zayas
Honorary President: Tatiana Valovaya, Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva (UNOG)
the Board in 2017
Membership is open to active and retired
staff of the United Nations, specialized agencies, CERN, Permanent
Missions and Observer Missions, inter-governmental organisations, NGO’s
and the press corps. We invite you to subscribe to Ex Tempore and
support the Society of Writers of the UN Staff Socio-Cultural Commission.
The membership fee is SFr. 40.— per year. Please send your generous donations
directly to Ex Tempore’s account with the Union de Banque Suisse,
branch office at the Palais des Nations, Geneva, account No. 279-CA 100.855.0.
Events:
On 27 January 2023 the traditional January Ex Tempore Salon was held as in pre-Covid times.
On 25 September 2022 a literary afternoon salon was held in the North Garden.
On 27 June 2021 a literary tea party was held in lieu of the Ex Tempore Salon, cancelled because of Covid.
On January 2020 the 24th Ex Tempore Salon was held.
On 25 January 2019 the 23rd Ex Tempore Salon was held, with 59 participants
On 26 January 2018 the 22nd Ex Tempore salon was held, with some 60 in the audience and 15 readers.
On 20 January 2017 the 21st Ex Tempore Salon took placed, with 54 in the audienced and 17 readers.
On 22 January 2016 the 20th Ex Tempore salon was held with the paticipation
of 19 poets and essayists and 80 persons in the audience.
On 23 January 2015 the United Nations Society of Writers is holding
its 19th annual literary evening. See Invitation.
On 14 October 2014 the United Nations Library invited to a "library
event" to celebrate 25 years of UN writers for peace. Daniel de Roulet
was our keynote speaker.
On 14 August 2014 at the UN Press Bar seventeen UNSW members celebrated
the founding of Ex Tempore on 14 August 1989.
On Friday 24 January 2014 the United Nations Society of Writers held
its 18th annual salon hosting 61 literature enthusiasts and 17 readers
from the UN, UNCTAD, UNHCR, OHCHR, ILO, CERN, WHO, PEN Club and the
Société Vaudoise
des Ecrivains. Participants declamed poetry and epigrams in Arabic,
English, French, German, Latin, Russian, Spanish, and Vietnamese. Aline
Dedeyan performed her funny sketch "tax evasion". We celebrated
the 100th anniversary of the birth of the American poet William Stafford,
and the 150th anniversary of the birth of Richard Strauss, who was
not only a superlative composer, conductor and orchestrator but a widely
read intellectual with high literary sensitivity and judgment, who
used the best writers of the day as his librettists, including Hugo
von Hofmannsthal and Stefan Zweig, and put to music poems by Hermann
Hesse and Joseph von Eichendorff. Several of our amateur poets
paid tribute to Nelson Mandela and the multiple links between joie
de vivre, diversity, pluralism, freedom of opinion, literature,
culture, mutual respect and peace.
25 January 2013 -- 17th annual Ex Tempore evening. We celebrated Robert
Burns' 254th birthday! In spite of the icy roads, 65 persons showed
up and 15 performed, including Aline Dedeyan, whose sketch was very
original and a pure delight -- and her two male companions were worthy
of West End. We borrowed the electronic piano from the Church and the
mood was upbeat, with the audience joining in the singing and clapping.
http://www.unspecial.org/2013/04/ex-tempore/
On Thursday 28 July 2012 We celebrated Jean Jacques Rousseau's 300th
birthday at the Bar Escargot in the Palais des Nations. We lectured
on the Reveries and the Contrat Social. Here with David Winch and Bohdan
Nahajlo.
On Friday 20 January 2012 I hosted the 16th annual Salon. Because
of inclement weather, only 47 participants came, but the quality was
superb -- English, Spanish, French, German, Russian, Vietnamese. We dedicated
it to the 300th anniversary of the birth of Jean-Jacques Rousseau and
of Frederic the Great -- both of them great thinkers, authors and musicians.
I launched the evening with readings from Rousseau's confessions.
On 21 January 2011 the 15th annual Salon Ex Tempore was held. 63 UN
staffers and members of the P.E.N. Centre Suisse romand assembled in
the traditional salon to indulge
in multi-lingual literature and music-making. This time, thanks to
Connie Ouko from WHO, we added Swahili to the languages spoken and
sung. See UN Special February 2011, page 10: "Le Numéro XXI d'Ex Tempore
est Tiré; il faut le lire..."
On 22
January 2010 Carla and I hosted the traditional Ex Tempore literary
soirée.
73 people showed up, 14 performed -- poems, short stories, essays and,
of course, Aline Dedeyan's sketch, which this time she did together
with Sébastien
Vernay of the service du prêt
of the Bibliothèque des Nations Unies. It was a lot of fun.
Another highlight of the evening was the singing -- yes, Connie, a
colleague from WHO performed her own songs, thus demonstrating in a
very immediate and contagious way the link between literature and music
-- we also played her new CD with her poems. Who said UN staffers didn't
have creative talent? We had languages galore: English, French, German,
Italian, Spanish, Hebrew, Vietnamese... and we announced that the next
issue of the Ex Tempore will be devoted to the general theme: "Music,
the international language". Besides the usual UN crowd, we had
guests from the Geneva Art Club, the Geneva Writers Group, the Société genevoise
des Ecrivains and P.E.N. Suisse romand. Here I am launching the evening:
on 14 August 2009 we celebrated the 20th Anniversary
of the founding of the United Nations Society of Writers with poetry
-- and champagne.
Jacqueline Simon, Irina Gerassimova and Aline Dedeyan
at the garden party.
David Lewis reading his poem "here and there"
On Friday,
23 January 2009, Ex Tempore held its 13th annual salon. We celebrated
the 250th anniversary of the birth of Friedrich von Schiller (1759-1905).
On Friday, 24 January 2008,
Ex Tempore held its 12th annual salon. Aline Dedeyan's sketch was
a resounding success.
On
Friday, 19 January 2007, "Ex
Tempore" held
its 11th annual salon at my home. 63 Poets and essayists from
the United Nations Office in Geneva, some of them members of
PEN International read their oeuvres in English, French,
German, Spanish, Russian -- even Arabic, Vietnamese and Dutch.
We celebrated the centennial of the birth of Samuel Beckett
and the bicentennial of the birth of Elizabeth Barrett Browning,
whose "Sonnets from the Portuguese" seduced
not just her husband Robert Browning!. In 2007 we celebrated Daphne
du Maurier (Rebecca, the Birds) and Henry Wadsworth
Longfellow (Evangeline)
On Thursday, 18 May 2006 Ex Tempore
hosted a lunchtime music-and-poetry event in the Cinema Room at the
Palais des Nations. Thanks to the organization and charm of Karin
Kaminker and Alex Ezana, it was a resounding success. Below is
a photo of some of the participants, courtesy of one of our members
Vatsala Virdee from UNHCR (at the extreme left). I am the last
person on the right, next to Karin.
For more
photos click here
Press reviews:
Les internationaux
lancent un Salon littéraire, Tribune de Genève,
9 avril 1997
Le cercle de poètes
qui libère les Onusiens, Tribune de Genève,
12 février 2004
Les onusiens et la littérature.
UN Special, February 2005.
Dixieme
soireee litteraire de las Societe des Ecrivains. UN Special,
April 2006
Scat: Le
recital de poesie, 18 mai 2006 UN Special June 2006, pp.
19-21.
Chez
Alfred de Zayas: Fête de la Genève Internationale.
Diva International, 2006 Nr. 2.
Ex Tempore- Nouveau Numéro et Soirée Littéraire.
UN Special, Avril 2008, p. 33.
Latest Ex Tempore
Ex Tempore XXX
Ex Tempore XXIX
Ex Tempore XXVIII
Ex Tempore XXVII
Ex Tempore 26
Ex Tempore 25 http://www.extempore.ch/attachments/-01_extempore25newpdf.pdf
Ex Tempore
XXIV - dedicated to that inhabitant of our lakes
and our imagination -- the swan
Latest Ex
Tempore XXIII - dedicated to peace
Ex
Tempore XXII -- dedicated to Jean-Jacques
Rousseau -- 168 pages with contributions in Arabic, Chinese, Czech,
Dutch, English, French, German, Russian, Spanish, Swahili and Vietnamese.
Ex
Tempore XXI: 104 pages with contributions
in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Russian, Spanish, Swahili
and Vietnamese.
Ex Tempore
XX :
160 pages with contributions in Arabic, Chinese, Dutch, English, Esperanto,
French, German, Italian, Latin, Russian, Spanish and Vietnamese.
Ex
Tempore volume XIX (December, 2008)
Ex
Tempore volume XVIII (December 2007)
Ex
Tempore volume XVII (December, 2006)
Ex
Tempore volume XVI (December, 2005)
Ex Tempore volume XV
(2004)
http://www.unspecial.org/UNS640/t32.html
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