Ivan Klima

Ivan Klima, Czech Republic

"A former dissident and current author, Ivan Klima spent 3 years at the Nazi concentration camp at Terezin. He was a writer from a young age, initially with success, but the regime labeled him a dissident and banned his works, which were popular in the samizdat press. In 1968, he was editor of the anti-regime Czech Writers' Union journal. He is a winner of the Franz Kafka Prize and a recipient of a medal for outstanding service to the Czech Republic from former President Havel."

• White House "Champion of Freedom" (2005)