Writers Released Under Amnesty

PEN International welcomes the release of several dissident writers as part of a presidential amnesty announced on June 2, 2011. Protestors had called for the release of all political… More

Writer and Journalist Released

PEN International welcomes the release on July 11, 2011, of writer and journalist Abbas Al- Murshid, who had been held since May 15, 2011, for his peaceful dissident activities. More

Poet Released

PEN International welcomes the release on July 13, 2011, of poet and student Ayat Al-Gormezi (f), one month after she was sentenced to one year in prison on anti-state… More

Two Journalists Sentenced

International PEN is seriously concerned by the conviction of freelance journalists Qi Chonghuai and He Yanjie, who were convicted and sentenced to four and two years in prison respectively… More

Artist Ai Weiwei Faces Enormous Fines

On June 28, 2011, it was reported that Ai Weiwei, the internationally acclaimed artist who had been freed on bail a week earlier, had been visited by government tax… More

BBC Journalist Charged

PEN International protests the indictment of journalist Urinboy Usmonov on charges believed to be linked to his legitimate activities as a journalist. More