Tiziano Terzani
Encyclopedia
Tiziano Terzani was an Italian journalist and writer, best known for his extensive knowledge of 20th century East Asia and for being one of the very few western reporters to witness both the fall of Saigon to the hands of the Vietcong and the fall of Phnom Pehn at the hands of the Khmer rouge
in the mid-1970s.
to poor working class parents. He attended the University of Pisa
as a law student and studied at the prestigious Collegio Medico-Giuridico of the Scuola Normale Superiore, which today is Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies
. After graduating, he worked for Olivetti
, the office equipment producer. In 1965 he went on a business trip to Japan
. This was his first contact with Asia
and his first step towards his decision to change his life radically and explore Asia. During these years he again began writing for l'Astrolabio. He then resigned from Olivetti and moved to Columbia University
in order to study Chinese
language and culture.
, in 1971 he moved to Singapore
as a reporter, with his German-descent wife, Angela Staude, and their two small children, as the Asian correspondent for the German weekly Der Spiegel
. He then offered his collaboration to the Italian daily
newspapers Corriere della Sera
and La Repubblica
. In the meantime, on a semi-secret level, he sent regular information about East Asian politics to the Banca Commerciale Italiana
, which was headed by Raffaele Mattioli.
Terzani knew much about the historical and political background of Asia, but had also a deep interest in the philosophical aspects of Asian culture. Though an unbeliever, he always looked in his journeys for the spiritual aspects of the countries he was visiting. He lived for years at a time in Beijing
, Tokyo
, Singapore, Hong Kong
, Bangkok
and New Delhi
. His stay in Beijing came to an end when he was arrested and expelled from the country for "counter-revolutionary activities". Based on his experiences, he wrote La Porta Proibita (Behind The Forbidden Door), a highly critical book about post-Maoist China
. While staying in Hong Kong working as a journalist, he had a name in Chinese, 鄧天諾 (Deng Tiannuo) (meaning: "heavenly/godly promise"). He stopped using this name after an unpleasant incident in China in 1984.
. The following recount, Giai Phong! The Fall and Liberation of Saigon tells about the takeover of Vietnam's capital by the Vietcong and the scramble of the last westerners to escape with American helicopters; he stayed there for some time and witnessed the changes.Two years later he would face death when trying to document the new "Democratic Kampuchea
": the Khmer Rouge
tried to execute him after his arrival in the border town of Poipet
, and he saved his life only by his knowledge of the Chinese language
. In what is perhaps his most well-known book, Un indovino mi disse (A Fortune-Teller Told Me), Terzani describes his travels across Asia by land and sea following the advice and warning from a fortune teller in Hong Kong
that he must avoid airplanes for the whole year of 1993. One chapter of the book is entirely dedicated to Ferdynand Ossendowski, Polish traveller. Ryszard Kapuściński
wrote about this book "A great book written in the best traditions of literary journalism... profound, rich and reflective". Kapuściński and Terzani shared the same vision of journalism. http://tizianoterzani.info/kapuscinski-terzani
After 9/11
he wrote Lettere contro la guerra (Letters Against the War). The book was born as a response to the anti-Islamic invectives published by the Italian journalist and author Oriana Fallaci
on the daily Il Corriere della Sera on 29 September 2001.
, a stomach cancer
) which eventually led to his death in 2004, but not before he had travelled and searched through countries and civilizations, looking for a cure
and for a new vision of life. A short excerpt from his book:
"...after a while, the goal of my journey
was not the cure for my cancer anymore, but for the sickness which affects all of us: mortality
"
Terzani spent the early 2000s in confinement on the mountainous Himalaya's region, in a small hut that he rented in order to meditate and work on his books. He only seldom visited his family in Italy, but had to desist from his isolation when his sickness advanced too much. He returned to Italy, spending the last months of his life with his wife and grown son in Orsigna, a little village in the Apennine mountains
in the province of Pistoia
that he considered "his true, last love".
Terzani died on 28 July 2004, aged 66. His last memories are recorded in an interview for Italian television entitled "Anam", an Indian word that literally means "the one with no name", an appellative he gained during an experience in an ashram
in India.
theme has been attacked by Roman Catholic sources such as the newspaper Avvenire
. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,13509-2308919,00.html However, Terzani in Un altro giro di giostra is sceptical about the New Age
.
It has been announced that a movie will be shot about Terzani's life, based on La fine è il mio inizio. Terzani will be played by Bruno Ganz
.
His books are being translated into many languages: German, French, Polish, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, Turkish, Slovenian, Japanese, Chinese, Russian, Hungarian and by publishers from India (English), Thailand (English), Brazil (Portuguese) and Argentina (Spanish).
for ideological reasons, as a correspondent in Cambodia
in the mid-1970s
. He apologized right after the facts became known (around 1980), and publicly made amends for his and his colleagues shortsightedness.
, is played by Swiss-German actor Bruno Ganz
and that of his son by Italian actor Elio Germano
. The movie, an art-house German-Italian production, was not expected to be a blockbuster but received positive reviews in the European press.
Khmer Rouge
The Khmer Rouge literally translated as Red Cambodians was the name given to the followers of the Communist Party of Kampuchea, who were the ruling party in Cambodia from 1975 to 1979, led by Pol Pot, Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary, Son Sen and Khieu Samphan...
in the mid-1970s.
Early life
Terzani was born in FlorenceFlorence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
to poor working class parents. He attended the University of Pisa
Pisa
Pisa is a city in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the right bank of the mouth of the River Arno on the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa...
as a law student and studied at the prestigious Collegio Medico-Giuridico of the Scuola Normale Superiore, which today is Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies
Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies
The Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies of Pisa is a special-statute public university located in Pisa, Italy, operating in the field of applied sciences....
. After graduating, he worked for Olivetti
Olivetti
Olivetti S.p.A. is an Italian manufacturer of computers, printers and other business machines.- Founding :The company was founded as a typewriter manufacturer in 1908 in Ivrea, near Turin, by Camillo Olivetti. The firm was mainly developed by his son Adriano Olivetti...
, the office equipment producer. In 1965 he went on a business trip to Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. This was his first contact with Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
and his first step towards his decision to change his life radically and explore Asia. During these years he again began writing for l'Astrolabio. He then resigned from Olivetti and moved to Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
in order to study Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
language and culture.
Career as a journalist
After a first stint as journalist within Il Giorno (newspaper)Il Giorno (newspaper)
Il Giorno is an Italian national newspaper based in Milan, Italy, with numerous local editions in Lombardy.- History :Founded by the Italian businessman Cino Del Duca in 1956, with the journalist Gaetano Baldacci, to challenge the newspaper Corriere della Sera...
, in 1971 he moved to Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
as a reporter, with his German-descent wife, Angela Staude, and their two small children, as the Asian correspondent for the German weekly Der Spiegel
Der Spiegel
Der Spiegel is a German weekly news magazine published in Hamburg. It is one of Europe's largest publications of its kind, with a weekly circulation of more than one million.-Overview:...
. He then offered his collaboration to the Italian daily
Day
A day is a unit of time, commonly defined as an interval equal to 24 hours. It also can mean that portion of the full day during which a location is illuminated by the light of the sun...
newspapers Corriere della Sera
Corriere della Sera
The Corriere della Sera is an Italian daily newspaper, published in Milan.It is among the oldest and most reputable Italian newspapers. Its main rivals are Rome's La Repubblica and Turin's La Stampa.- History :...
and La Repubblica
La Repubblica
la Repubblica is an Italian daily general-interest newspaper. Founded in 1976 in Rome by the journalist Eugenio Scalfari, as of 2008 is the second largest circulation newspaper, behind the Corriere della Sera.-Foundation:...
. In the meantime, on a semi-secret level, he sent regular information about East Asian politics to the Banca Commerciale Italiana
Banca Commerciale Italiana
Banca Commerciale Italiana, founded in 1894, was once one of the largest banks in Italy. In 1999 it merged with a banking group consisting of Cassa di Risparmio delle Provincie Lombarde and Banco Ambroveneto, the former Banco Ambrosiano, which had merged in 1998. On 1 January 2003, the group's...
, which was headed by Raffaele Mattioli.
Terzani knew much about the historical and political background of Asia, but had also a deep interest in the philosophical aspects of Asian culture. Though an unbeliever, he always looked in his journeys for the spiritual aspects of the countries he was visiting. He lived for years at a time in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
, Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, Singapore, Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, Bangkok
Bangkok
Bangkok is the capital and largest urban area city in Thailand. It is known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon or simply Krung Thep , meaning "city of angels." The full name of Bangkok is Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom...
and New Delhi
New Delhi
New Delhi is the capital city of India. It serves as the centre of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. New Delhi is situated within the metropolis of Delhi. It is one of the nine districts of Delhi Union Territory. The total area of the city is...
. His stay in Beijing came to an end when he was arrested and expelled from the country for "counter-revolutionary activities". Based on his experiences, he wrote La Porta Proibita (Behind The Forbidden Door), a highly critical book about post-Maoist China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. While staying in Hong Kong working as a journalist, he had a name in Chinese, 鄧天諾 (Deng Tiannuo) (meaning: "heavenly/godly promise"). He stopped using this name after an unpleasant incident in China in 1984.
Books and essays
Terzani's experiences in Asia are described in articles and essays in newspapers, as well as in the several books that he wrote. In his first book, Pelle di leopardo (Leopard Hide) (1973), he describes the last phases of the Vietnam warVietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
. The following recount, Giai Phong! The Fall and Liberation of Saigon tells about the takeover of Vietnam's capital by the Vietcong and the scramble of the last westerners to escape with American helicopters; he stayed there for some time and witnessed the changes.Two years later he would face death when trying to document the new "Democratic Kampuchea
Democratic Kampuchea
The Khmer Rouge period refers to the rule of Pol Pot, Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary, Son Sen, Khieu Samphan and the Khmer Rouge Communist party over Cambodia, which the Khmer Rouge renamed as Democratic Kampuchea....
": the Khmer Rouge
Khmer Rouge
The Khmer Rouge literally translated as Red Cambodians was the name given to the followers of the Communist Party of Kampuchea, who were the ruling party in Cambodia from 1975 to 1979, led by Pol Pot, Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary, Son Sen and Khieu Samphan...
tried to execute him after his arrival in the border town of Poipet
Poipet
Poipet is a Cambodian town on the Cambodia/Thailand border, in Ou Chrov district, Banteay Meanchey Province. It is a key crossing point between the two countries, and also extremely popular as a gambling destination as gambling is popular, but illegal in Thailand...
, and he saved his life only by his knowledge of the Chinese language
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
. In what is perhaps his most well-known book, Un indovino mi disse (A Fortune-Teller Told Me), Terzani describes his travels across Asia by land and sea following the advice and warning from a fortune teller in Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
that he must avoid airplanes for the whole year of 1993. One chapter of the book is entirely dedicated to Ferdynand Ossendowski, Polish traveller. Ryszard Kapuściński
Ryszard Kapuscinski
Ryszard Kapuściński was a Polish journalist and writer whose dispatches in book form brought him a global reputation. Also a photographer and poet, he was born in Pińsknow in Belarusin the Kresy Wschodnie or eastern borderlands of the second Polish Republic, into poverty: he would say later that...
wrote about this book "A great book written in the best traditions of literary journalism... profound, rich and reflective". Kapuściński and Terzani shared the same vision of journalism. http://tizianoterzani.info/kapuscinski-terzani
After 9/11
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
he wrote Lettere contro la guerra (Letters Against the War). The book was born as a response to the anti-Islamic invectives published by the Italian journalist and author Oriana Fallaci
Oriana Fallaci
Oriana Fallaci was an Italian journalist, author, and political interviewer. A former partisan during World War II, she had a long and successful journalistic career...
on the daily Il Corriere della Sera on 29 September 2001.
Final work and death
In his last book Un altro giro di giostra (One More Ride on the Merry-go-round), in 2001, Terzani deals with his illnessIllness
Illness is a state of poor health. Illness is sometimes considered another word for disease. Others maintain that fine distinctions exist...
, a stomach cancer
Stomach cancer
Gastric cancer, commonly referred to as stomach cancer, can develop in any part of the stomach and may spread throughout the stomach and to other organs; particularly the esophagus, lungs, lymph nodes, and the liver...
) which eventually led to his death in 2004, but not before he had travelled and searched through countries and civilizations, looking for a cure
Cure
A cure is a completely effective treatment for a disease.The Cure is an English rock band.Cure, or similar, may also refer to:-Film and television:* The Cure , a short film starring Charlie Chaplin...
and for a new vision of life. A short excerpt from his book:
"...after a while, the goal of my journey
Quest
In mythology and literature, a quest, a journey towards a goal, serves as a plot device and as a symbol. Quests appear in the folklore of every nation and also figure prominently in non-national cultures. In literature, the objects of quests require great exertion on the part of the hero, and...
was not the cure for my cancer anymore, but for the sickness which affects all of us: mortality
Death
Death is the permanent termination of the biological functions that sustain a living organism. Phenomena which commonly bring about death include old age, predation, malnutrition, disease, and accidents or trauma resulting in terminal injury....
"
Terzani spent the early 2000s in confinement on the mountainous Himalaya's region, in a small hut that he rented in order to meditate and work on his books. He only seldom visited his family in Italy, but had to desist from his isolation when his sickness advanced too much. He returned to Italy, spending the last months of his life with his wife and grown son in Orsigna, a little village in the Apennine mountains
Apennine mountains
The Apennines or Apennine Mountains or Greek oros but just as often used alone as a noun. The ancient Greeks and Romans typically but not always used "mountain" in the singular to mean one or a range; thus, "the Apennine mountain" refers to the entire chain and is translated "the Apennine...
in the province of Pistoia
Pistoia
Pistoia is a city and comune in the Tuscany region of Italy, the capital of a province of the same name, located about 30 km west and north of Florence and is crossed by the Ombrone Pistoiese, a tributary of the River Arno.-History:...
that he considered "his true, last love".
Terzani died on 28 July 2004, aged 66. His last memories are recorded in an interview for Italian television entitled "Anam", an Indian word that literally means "the one with no name", an appellative he gained during an experience in an ashram
Ashram
Traditionally, an ashram is a spiritual hermitage. Additionally, today the term ashram often denotes a locus of Indian cultural activity such as yoga, music study or religious instruction, the moral equivalent of a studio or dojo....
in India.
Legacy
His testament-book La fine è il mio inizio (The End Is My Beginning), authored with his son Folco, was published posthumously in March 2006 and sold 400,000 copies in 4 months. Its New AgeNew Age
The New Age movement is a Western spiritual movement that developed in the second half of the 20th century. Its central precepts have been described as "drawing on both Eastern and Western spiritual and metaphysical traditions and then infusing them with influences from self-help and motivational...
theme has been attacked by Roman Catholic sources such as the newspaper Avvenire
Avvenire
Avvenire is an Italian daily newspaper affiliated with the Roman Catholic Church. It was founded in 1968 in Milan through the merger of two Catholic magazines: L'Avvenire d'Italia of Bologna and l'Italia of Milan.-History:...
. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,13509-2308919,00.html However, Terzani in Un altro giro di giostra is sceptical about the New Age
New Age
The New Age movement is a Western spiritual movement that developed in the second half of the 20th century. Its central precepts have been described as "drawing on both Eastern and Western spiritual and metaphysical traditions and then infusing them with influences from self-help and motivational...
.
It has been announced that a movie will be shot about Terzani's life, based on La fine è il mio inizio. Terzani will be played by Bruno Ganz
Bruno Ganz
Bruno Ganz is a Swiss actor, known for his roles as Damiel in Wings of Desire and Adolf Hitler in Downfall.- Early life :Bruno Ganz was born in Zürich to a Swiss mechanic father and a northern Italian mother. He had decided to pursue an acting career by the time he entered university...
.
His books are being translated into many languages: German, French, Polish, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, Turkish, Slovenian, Japanese, Chinese, Russian, Hungarian and by publishers from India (English), Thailand (English), Brazil (Portuguese) and Argentina (Spanish).
Controversy
Terzani was accused of having deliberately ignored the atrocities carried out by the Khmer RougeKhmer Rouge
The Khmer Rouge literally translated as Red Cambodians was the name given to the followers of the Communist Party of Kampuchea, who were the ruling party in Cambodia from 1975 to 1979, led by Pol Pot, Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary, Son Sen and Khieu Samphan...
for ideological reasons, as a correspondent in Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
in the mid-1970s
1970s
File:1970s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: US President Richard Nixon doing the V for Victory sign after his resignation from office after the Watergate scandal in 1974; Refugees aboard a US naval boat after the Fall of Saigon, leading to the end of the Vietnam War in 1975; The 1973 oil...
. He apologized right after the facts became known (around 1980), and publicly made amends for his and his colleagues shortsightedness.
Biopic
Terzani is the subject of a 2011 movie based on his last book (The end is my new beginning) depicting his last days (summer 2004, when he succumbed to cancer), when he's narrating to his son Folco the adventures of his life, his travels, and his philosophical views on life and death. The role of the ailing, retired Terzani, now living in the mountains of Tuscany dressed and groomed just like an indian sadhuSadhu
In Hinduism, sādhu denotes an ascetic, wandering monk. Although the vast majority of sādhus are yogīs, not all yogīs are sādhus. The sādhu is solely dedicated to achieving mokṣa , the fourth and final aśrama , through meditation and contemplation of brahman...
, is played by Swiss-German actor Bruno Ganz
Bruno Ganz
Bruno Ganz is a Swiss actor, known for his roles as Damiel in Wings of Desire and Adolf Hitler in Downfall.- Early life :Bruno Ganz was born in Zürich to a Swiss mechanic father and a northern Italian mother. He had decided to pursue an acting career by the time he entered university...
and that of his son by Italian actor Elio Germano
Elio Germano
Elio Germano is an Italian actor.Born in Rome, he debuted, aged twelve, in the Castellano e Pipolo's movie Ci hai rotto papà...
. The movie, an art-house German-Italian production, was not expected to be a blockbuster but received positive reviews in the European press.
Books published in English
- Giai Phong! The Fall and Liberation of Saigon (Giai Phong! La liberazione di Saigon, 1976, reprinted also in Thailand in 1997 as Saigon 1975: Three Days and Three Months)
- Behind The Forbidden Door: Travels in Unknown China (La porta proibita, 1985)
- Goodnight, Mr Lenin: A Journey Through the End of the Soviet Empire (Buonanotte, signor Lenin, 1993)
- A Fortune-Teller Told Me: Earth-bound Travels in the Far East (Un indovino mi disse, 1997)
- Letters Against the War (Lettere contro la guerra, 2002)
Books published in Italian
- Pelle di leopardo. Diario vietnamita di un corrispondente di guerra 1972-1973, 1973
- Giai Phong! La liberazione di Saigon (Giai Phon! The Liberation of Saigon), 1976
- La porta proibita (The Forbidden Door), 1984
- Buonanotte, signor Lenin (Goodnight Mr Lenin), 1992
- Un indovino mi disse (A Fortune Teller Told Me), 1995
- In Asia (Asia), 1998
- Lettere contro la guerra (Letters Against The War), 2002
- Un altro giro di giostra (One More Ride On The Merry Go Round) , 2004
- La fine è il mio inizio (The End Is My Beginning), 2006
- Fantasmi: dispacci dalla Cambogia (Ghosts: Despatch from Cambogia), 2008
See also
- Ryszard KapuścińskiRyszard KapuscinskiRyszard Kapuściński was a Polish journalist and writer whose dispatches in book form brought him a global reputation. Also a photographer and poet, he was born in Pińsknow in Belarusin the Kresy Wschodnie or eastern borderlands of the second Polish Republic, into poverty: he would say later that...
- Ferdynand Antoni OssendowskiFerdynand Antoni OssendowskiAntoni Ferdynand Ossendowski was a Polish writer, journalist, traveler, globetrotter, explorer and university professor...
- Foreign correspondentForeign correspondentForeign Correspondent may refer to:*Foreign correspondent *Foreign Correspondent , an Alfred Hitchcock film*Foreign Correspondent , an Australian current affairs programme...