Zimbabwean writer Chenjerai Hove has died in Norway at the age of 59.
The exact cause of death is not clear but he suffered from liver problems massive organ failure, his wife Tekla Hove told the BBC.
Mr Hove was known as a critic of President Robert Mugabe and went into self-imposed exile in 2001 after harassment from the authorities.
He won several awards for his work and was regarded as a leading figure in post-colonial literature in Zimbabwe.
Mr Hove’s wife and sister were with him when he died – the first time they had been together since 2001.
He had been taken ill three weeks ago and slowly deteriorated but he remained “bright and clear until the end”, said friend and colleague Helge Lunde, the executive director of International Cities of Refuge Network.
Mr Hove was a “great writer, novelist, poet and playwright”, Mr Lunde said, “but first and foremost he was a freedom fighter, fighting for human rights in his country”.
Credit: BBC
