Swedish Academy defends choice for 2019 Nobel literature prize

Austrian author Peter Handke poses in his garden, following the announcement he won the 2019 Nobel Prize in Literature, in Chaville, near Paris, France October 10, 2019. REUTERS/Christian Hartmann

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - The Swedish Academy has defended its decision to award the 2019 Nobel Prize for Literature to Austrian writer Peter Handke, saying he had made provocative comments but had not supported bloodshed.

Handke's prize has attracted criticism, including from survivors of the 1995 Srebrenica massacre who have called for the academy to revoke the 9 million Swedish crown ($930,000) award it announced last week.