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International associations of authors, publishers, booksellers and libraries have warned of the growing movements to cancel and ban works and authors, which undermine democracy, calling for the defense of freedom of expression, publishing and reading.
Several associations, including the Portuguese Publishers and Booksellers Association (APEL) have issued a declaration on Freedom of Expression, Publishing and Reading - which remains open to signatures from the sector - to be presented at various international events throughout the year, the first of which took place on Thursday, March 14, at the London Book Fair, it was announced this Friday.
The joint declaration was launched by the International Authors Forum (IAF), PEN International, the International Publishers Association (IPA), the European and International Booksellers Federation (EIBF) and the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA), to tackle "the growing efforts to restrict books and those who write, publish or make them available to readers", they explain in a statement.
APEL, like the IPA and EIBF, is also a signatory of this declaration which, "in these times, is extremely important", says the association's president, pointing out that "the lack of freedom to write, publish and read erodes the foundations...