Nigerian literary icon Chinua Achebe has rejected a national honours award from his government in Nigeria in protest at the "dangerous" state of the country, newspapers have reported.
Mr Achebe, who achieved worldwide acclaim for his 1958 novel Things Fall Apartand his criticism of the Nigerian political class in The Problem With Nigeria, rejected the award in a two-page letter addressed to President Olusegun Obasanjo.
"Nigeria's condition today under your watch is, however, too dangerous for silence. I must register my disappointment and protest by declining to accept the high honour awarded me," he told Mr Obasanjo in his letter, published in part in the Guardiannewspaper on Sunday.
Mr Obasanjo's administration has been criticised heavily over the last year by civil society figures, who accuse the former military ruler of presiding over a "civilian dictatorship".
Many Nigerians say poverty, crime, corruption and violence have increased since Obasanjo's election as a civilian president in 1999.
Ethno-religious violence stoked by politicians within Mr Obasanjo's ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP) has rocked the country this year, killing hundreds and prompting Mr Obasanjo to assume emergency powers in one of Nigeria's 36 states.
Rebel warlords backed by political figures have also threatened to destabilise the country's vast oil wealth.
In his letter, Mr Achebe said he was particularly dismayed by the events in his state of Anambra where political infighting led to the brief abduction of the state governor by political rivals last year.