Durban writer threatened with knife, assaulted with brick

Durban author Zainub Priya Dala was assaulted in Overport on Wednesday, after attending a Time of the Writer festival event where she professed her admiration for Salman Rushdie, reports BooksLive.

Dala was allegedly followed from the festival hotel and was harassed by three men in a vehicle who pushed her car off the road. When she stopped, two of the men advanced to her car, one holding a knife to her throat and the other hitting her in the face with a brick .

Dala’s debut novel, What About Meera, was due to be launched on Human Rights Day at the Durban literary festival.

Dala’s publisher, Umuzi  has released the following statement on the author’s behalf:

“Author ZP Dala, one of the featured writers at the Time of the Writer Festival taking place in Durban from 16 to 21 March, was assaulted in Overport, Durban, on Wednesday, 18 March. The attack came after a session in which she expressed her admiration for the writing style of Salman Rushdie.

Dala was followed from the festival hotel and was harassed by three men in a vehicle who pushed her car off the road. When she stopped, two of the men advanced to her car, one holding a knife to her throat and the other hitting her in the face with a brick while calling her “Rushdie’s bitch”.

She has been treated by her doctor for soft-tissue trauma, and has reported the incident to the police. A case of assault has been opened. As yet, no witnesses have come forward.

Dala’s debut novel, What About Meera, was to be launched tomorrow at the Time of the Writer, but the event has been cancelled.

Dala believes that the attack occurred as a result of a comment she made during a writing forum for schools at the Chatsworth Education Centre on Tuesday morning, which featured two other writers. Dala, when asked which writers she admired, answered that she liked Salman Rushdie’s literary style, along with other writers such as Arundhati Roy. A group of teachers and learners left the forum.

Steve Connolly, Managing Director of Penguin Random House in South Africa, says: “We condemn completely the brutish attack on author ZP Dala. Her crime? To have expressed her admiration for the writing of Salman Rushdie, which heralded a walk-out by teachers and students. Have we reached such a state of intolerance that we cannot listen to one writer profess admiration for another without wanting to attack her with a brick and a knife? If our constitution is to mean anything we must ensure our right to free speech. It is ironic that at a time when the communities of Durban are welcoming writers, some elements are attacking those writers who hold different views. We must not let this shameful and violent bigotry prevail.”

Dala will allow due process to take its course.”