(Yogyakarta, 1936) studied sociology in Yogyakarta and attended the Acadamy of Drama and Film. He was the representative for Indonesia from 1961 to 1965 for the Society of Writers from Asia and Africa in Colombo. From 1969 to 1978 he was a political prisoner in Jakarta and on the island of Buru. His has lived in The Netherlands since 1985 where he works as a translator. His poems and essays were published in several magazines.

Sumatra (1930). Wispi worked as a journalist in Jakarta and Medan from 1952 to 1962. He was press officer of the Indonesian Navy from 1962 to 1965. For political reasons, he moved to China where he lived from 1965 to 1970. After that he studied and worked at the Deutsche Bucherei in Leipzig. Since 1988 he lives in Amsterdam. Agam Wispi is primarily known as a poet, but he also wrote a play and several short stories. He translated Faust in Indonesian. His poems are well known and much loved in Indonesia. .
WN 2001

(Java, Indonesia, 1941) isn't only is a famous poet, he's also a journalist, essayist, editor and columnist. Mohamad contributed to the creation of the Indonesian language, Bahasa Indonesia. He took part in the struggle against Suharto's regime in many ways. He founded the succesful critical literary magazine Tempo, which was banned twice by the government. In 1995 Mohamad initiated the Institute for the Study of Free Information Flow. After Suharto's resignation in 1998, Tempo started publishing again. Mohamad has received various international awards for his readiness to resist. Several of his poetry collections were republished around his 70th birthday. His most recent collections are Don Quixote (2011) and 70 Puisi (70 Poems). In 1995, Mohamad was one of the participants of the first Winternachten festival, and has since returned to The Hague several times for the same purpose.

(Grobogan, Mid-Java, 1965) studied Indonesian language and literature in Jakarta, was a student of the famous poet Rendra and acted for a long time in Rendra's Bengkel Theater. Following this, Srengenge founded the Matahari Theater. His poems were published in magazines such as Horison, Republika and Media Indonesia. He published amongst others Persetubuhan Liar (Wild lovemaking) (1992). In Jakarta he participated in the Istuqual International Poetry Reading and Workshop. He has been invited several times to take part in the Winternachten festival in The Hague. Srengenge is very much involved in the Utan Kayu Theater, an alternative cultural centre in Jakarta. His style of reading is very theatrical, and the context of his work is very much involved with the social development within Indonesia. For example, he has written a number of poems inspired by his stay in East Timor during the struggles for independance.
WIN 2003