Writers at Risk Database
PEN America champions the freedom to write, recognizing the power of the word to transform the world. The bedrock work of the global PEN network is advocacy and assistance on behalf of individuals persecuted for their use of the written word or other forms of expression. PEN America’s Writers at Risk Database is a searchable catalog of the writers, journalists, academics, public intellectuals and others under threat around the world. The database includes historical cases PEN America has worked on from 1987 onwards; non-active cases are color-coded black. PEN America is grateful to the John Templeton Foundation for support that enabled the establishment of the Writers at Risk Database and to PEN International for their collaboration in assembling this database.
Filters
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Recorded ThreatItatí Schvartzman
Activist, PoetArgentinaAmericasSchvartzman is a Jewish feminist activist originally from Uruguay who has faced harassment for her writing. In 2018, she received death threats via Facebook. In late 2019 she was the victim of an attempted armed robbery, although is unclear if the incident was related to her activism. No threats against…
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Conditional ReleaseJulian Assange
PublisherUnited KingdomEurope and Central AsiaAssange, publisher of WikiLeaks, was imprisoned in the U.K. in 2019 for violating bail terms. He faced imminent extradition to the U.S. where he has been indicted on multiple charges, including on 17 counts under the Espionage Act, with worrying implications for press freedom. After a lengthy appeal of his…
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Conditional ReleaseLama Ghosheh
Journalist, Online Commentator, ScholarIsrael/Occupied Palestinian TerritoryMiddle East and North AfricaA journalist and online commentator, Ghosheh also worked as a researcher at the Palestinian Museum in Birzeit. She was arrested at her home in August 2022 after sharing social media posts and detained for two weeks. She was released into house arrest on September 13, pending trial proceedings. Ghosheh was…
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DeceasedLi Liqun
Literary writer, Online Commentator, PoetChinaAsia-PacificLi Liqun was an esteemed blogger and writer well-known by his pen name Li Huizi who blogged about fairness and justice and wrote poetry. Li took his own life on July 23, 2021, an act that came after years of being surveilled and harassed by the Chinese Communist Party. Li…
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ImprisonedMaría Cristina Garrido Rodríguez
Activist, PoetCubaAmericasGarrido Rodríguez was detained following her involvement in the 11J protests in Quivicán, Mayabeque along with her sister Angélica, and was forcibly disappeared for 18 days. In March 2022, she was sentenced to seven years imprisonment and was subjected to diverse forms of punishment, acts of torture, and prohibitions on…
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DetainedMohamed Al-Atrash
Journalist, Online CommentatorIsrael/Occupied Palestinian TerritoryMiddle East and North AfricaAl-Atrash, a host on Radio Alam and co-founder of Space Media, which covers Palestinian issues, also writes commentary online. He was arrested at his home in the West Bank on November 8. At a hearing a few weeks later, Israeli prosecutors charged Al-Atrash with incitement based on posts from his…
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Conditional ReleaseMoqbel Al-Saqqar
Literary writerSaudi ArabiaMiddle East and North AfricaSaudi Arabian writer and novelist particularly known for his support of women’s rights in the country, Moqbel Al-Saqqar was arrested at his home in Riyadh during the April 2019 crackdown on writers and journalists in Saudi Arabia, commonly referred to as the “April Campaign.” He was detained without access to…
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Recorded HarassmentNandini Sundar
Activist, Literary writer, ScholarIndiaAsia-PacificIn 2016, Nandini Sundar, a writer, academic, and activist, was accused, along with nine others, of murdering Shamnath Baghel, a tribal man who had previously filed complaints against her for allegedly supporting Maoists and inciting tribal groups against the Indian state. All charges were dropped in early 2019. Despite this,…
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DetainedNgar Min Swe
Journalist, Online CommentatorMyanmarAsia-PacificNgar Min Swe was serving a seven-year prison sentence for “inciting hatred against the government,” stemming from Facebook posts and critical news articles about Aung San Suu Kyi. Released after the February 2021 coup, he has more recently spoken at pro-junta rallies and expressed support for the miitary online. On…
Writers at Risk Database Key:
STATUS box that is red: Active case
STATUS box that is black: Inactive case
Funder
PEN America is deeply grateful to the John Templeton Foundation for its generous support of the Freedom to Write Index and Writers at Risk Database.
Partner
PEN America thanks the PEN International Secretariat and the Writers in Prison Committee for their extensive contributions to and collaboration on compiling the cases included in this database.