Syed Fawad Ali Shah
Pakistani columnist Shah was forced into exile in Malaysia for his writing on corruption in Pakistan. He was first kidnapped in 2011 by Pakistani intelligence Services (the ISI) for… More
NEW PEN America Report: Digital Censorship and Threats to Creative Expression Rise Against Artists in Asia
“In the last two years, we have witnessed a steady rise in threats and persecution of artists across Asia, a trend where governments are deliberately targeting and silencing cultural… More
Sajid Soomro
Soomro was arrested on June 10, 2020, when dozens of police officers raided his home. Authorities filed a blasphemy case under the Pakistan Penal Code for Soomro’s writings that… More
Ahmad Waqass Goraya
Goraya disappeared in early 2020 after publishing a Facebook page critical of the government. Freed several weeks later, he moved to the Netherlands, claiming the Pakistani state tortured him… More
Junaid Hafeez
Hafeez, a liberal academic, was arrested for blasphemy in 2013 and has been in solitary confinement since 2014. An Islamist group lodged the accusation against him to prevent his… More
Mohammed Hanif
In December 2019, the son of former president General Zia ul Haq filed a defamation notice against Hanif, citing Hanif's satirical novel, A Case of Exploding Mangoes. The book's… More
Seizure of Satirical Novel is a New Low for Free Expression in Pakistan
“The attempted censorship of a novel is a new low for the Pakistani military, which regularly stifles criticism in the media through various forms of intimidation, particularly the Urdu-language… More
DARE: Daily Alert on Rights and Expression
Justice Dept. Inspector General launches probe into FBI's handling of Clinton emails, prompting the President-elect to slam his former rival on Twitter as "guilty as hell." Secretary of State-designate… More
PEN outraged by targeted murder of Pakistani rights activist
The murder of Sabeen Mahmud, director of bookstore and community space The Second Floor (T2F), today in Karachi showcases the heinous fear tactics used to quash dissent in Pakistan,… More
Leading Journalist and Writer Murdered
PEN International is shocked and saddened by the death of journalist and author Syed Saleem Shahzad, bureau chief of the Asia Times Online and author of the newly published… More
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