Brussels, 30/09/2009 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday, 12 emerging European authors were awarded the new European Union Prize for Literature at a ceremony in the Flagey Theatre in Brussels attended by 800 people from the European cultural scene. European Commission President José Manuel Barroso and writer Henning Mankell launched the event with a dialogue about literature. They concluded that the real value of this prize would be its ability to get literature across borders in Europe and beyond. Also attending the ceremony were Education and Culture Commissioner Ján Figel', Swedish Minister for Culture Lena Adelsohn Liljeroth and the prize winning authors themselves, along with a large number of those taking part in this week's Culture in Motion conference, which took place immediately prior to the award event, presenting cultural projects funded by the European Commission. (I.L./transl.rt)