Writers at Risk Database

Dina Meza

Dina Meza, an internationally renowned human rights defender, journalist, and founding member of PEN Honduras, experiences ongoing harassment and surveillance. PEN believes she is targeted for practicing free expression,… More

Cesario Alejandro Félix Padilla Figueroa

Cesario Alejandro Félix Padilla Figueroa

Padilla Figueroa, a journalist and student leader, was reportedly sentenced in 2017 to three years in prison for his participation in protests at the Honduran National Autonomous University. Though… More

Kamalsy Najmal Kamalsy Prana

Malayalam writer and theater activist Najmal was arrested for allegedly insulting the Indian national anthem in a Malayalam-language Facebook post in December 2016. He was released after three days,… More

Elie Kamano

Following a peaceful demonstration against President Alpha Condé’s third term in October, singer/songwriter Elie Kamano was arrested for 'participation in a gathering likely to disturb public order.' In November,… More

Hisham Fouad Mohamed AbdelHalim Hisham Fouad

A columnist for Mada Masr, Fouad was detained in June 2019 and charged with participating in a Muslim Brotherhood plot to overthrow the Sisi regime. After beginning a hunger… More

Magdi Ahmed Hussein Gad

Hussein, who has authored pieces that comparatively examine Islam and Western values, was given a reduced five-year sentence in 2016 for his “contempt of Islam,” alleged distortion of the… More

Writers at Risk Database

Wael Abbas

Known for his blogging to expose police brutality, Abbas was detained in May 2018 on charges of terrorism and dissemination of false news until he was conditionally released in… More

Writers at Risk Database

Abdel-Halim Qandil

A prolific journalist whose work has been censored many times in the past decade, Qandil was jailed in December 2017 for comments he made in a TV interview criticizing… More

Karam Saber

Karam Saber

In June 2013, author and land rights activist Saber was sentenced to 5 years in prison for “contempt of religion” in connection with his 2010 collection of short stories,… More

Medhat Safwat

Sawfat, who has written critically about fundamentalist groups’ strict interpretation of Islam, has faced verbal abuse and intimidation after each piece he has written. He was also formally admonished… More