TRINIDAD and Tobago writer Jamir Nazir has defended the originality of his category-winning Commonwealth Short Story entry amid allegations surrounding the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in literary submissions.

In a statement posted to LinkedIn yesterday, Nazir said the story was 'entirely written' by him and based on his experiences growing up in rural Trinidad.

'I am directly addressing the baseless claims regarding my Commonwealth story. To be pellucidly clear: this work was entirely written by me, drawn from childhood memories of growing up in rural Trinidad,' Nazir stated.