Dear President Obama
Arguing that the United States owes a public debt to those who refused to support or participate in torture, PEN American Center has joined with nine other leading human… More
Give Us Back Our Bahrain
httpv://youtu.be/K8-qOerX3xI The above video captures Bahraini poet Ayat al-Gormezi reciting her poem, “Khalifa” (Prime Minister), at a pro-democracy protest in Pearl Square. She was arrested in March and charged with incitement… More
Words a Cell Can’t Hold
I had imagined being there beneath sunlight / with the procession of martyrs / using just the one thin bone / to uphold a true conviction More
Enoh Meyomesse:Ma Vie en Prison (francais)
Mes premiers jours ont été difficiles à Kondengui, où je suis arrivé jeudi 22 décembre 2011 à 14 heures, quoique, en comparaison aux trente passés en garde à vue… More
Autopsy Reports
Hi, I’m __________________. I am reading excerpts from a series of autopsy and death reports of detainees who died in U.S. custody in Iraq and Afghanistan.Autopsy Number: AO3-51.Date of… More
Kwame Anthony Appiah’s Nomination of Liu Xiaobo for the Nobel Peace Prize
On January 29, 2010, PEN President Kwame Anthony Appiah sent his letter of nomination for Liu Xiaobo for the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize. More
PEN Letter of Support for Nomination of Liu Xiaobo
On January 29, 2010, 20 members of PEN American Center submitted a letter of support for Kwame Anthony Appiah's nomination of Liu Xiaobo for the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize. More
E.L. Doctorow Calls for Liu Xiaobo’s Release
Such events as this have been necessary for as long as I can remember. PEN Members marched around the Czech embassy to protest the jailing of Vaclav Havel. Twenty… More
Testimony, Hearing on Restoring the Rule of Law
Opportunistic governments have co-opted the U.S. “war on terror,” citing support for U.S. counterterrorism policies as a basis for internal repression of domestic opponents. In some instances, U.S. actions… More
Days of Illegal Detention
Once again, on the afternoon of December 14, I was interrogated by agents of the Pudong Subdistrict Security Bureau. After two hours of small talk, they had asked about… More