Ninotchka Rosca is an outstanding contemporary writer, human rights activist and feminist. She is the author of six books: her short story collections include
Bitter Country and
Monsoon Country; her two novels are
State of War and
Twice Blessed which earned the 1993 American Book Award for excellence in literature; and her books of non-fiction are
The Fall of Marcos and her most recent,
Jose Maria Sison: At Home in the World - Portrait of a Revolutionary. Rosca's short stories have been included in several anthologies, among them,
the 1986 Best 100 Short Stories in the U.S. compiled by Raymond Carver and the Missouri Review Anthology. She is a two-time recipient of the New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship and a frequent contributor to
Ms. Magazine, The Nation, Village Voice, Q and other U.S. and European periodicals.
Rosca is an internationally-known activist for human rights. A political prisoner under the Marcos regime in the Philippines, she was forced into exile when threatened with a second arrest. Rosca has participated in numerous world forums and conferences for human rights. She serves on the board of the Survivors Committee, a network of former political prisoners and human rights activists. She has also been in leadership positions with Amnesty International and the PEN American Center.
Rosca was a founder and the first national chair of the GABRIELA, the preeminent women's rights organization of the Philippines. She is the international spokesperson of GABRIELA's Purple Rose Campaign against the trafficking of women, with an emphasis on Filipinas.
She was active in planning the UN Conference on Women which took place in Beijing, China. Rosca is particularly concerned with women's human rights focusing on the issues of sex tourism, trafficking, the mail-order bride industry, and violence against women.
For her achievements, Rosca has been designated as one of the 12 Asian American Women of Hope by the Bread and Roses Cultural Project. These women were chosen by scholars and community leaders for their courage, compassion and commitment in helping to shape society. They are considered role models for young people of color, who, in the words of Gloria Steinem, "have been denied the knowledge that greatness looks like them."
