2018 PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award: Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo
Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo are journalists who specialize in politically sensitive subjects. When arrested they were on assignment by Reuters investigating the torching and pillage of Inn… More
“They Killed Him”: Denial of Medical Care in China and the Literary Conscience
As a matter of medicine, it was of course cancer that took Liu’s life. But the responsibility for his death must rest on the shoulders of the Chinese state. More
Yang Tongyan | China
A writer and member of the Independent Chinese PEN Center, Yang Tongyan was sentenced to 12 years imprisonment for “subversion of state power,” and died in November 2017 while… More
Liu Xiaobo | China
Liu Xiaobo, a renowned literary critic, writer, political activist, and 2010 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, was charged with "inciting subversion of state power," and sentenced to 11-years in prison… More
Court Orders Retrial for Ahmed Naji
The court's decision to order a retrial for the novelist prolongs a legal battle over free expression in Egypt that has already gone on far too long. More
Nizar Nayouf | Status: Displaced/In Exile | Syria
Nizar Nayouf is a writer, sociologist, and human rights activist who, at the time of the PEN/Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award, was serving a 10-year prison sentence with… More
April Featured Case: Ukrainian Filmmaker Imprisoned in Russia On Charges of “Terrorism”
Ukrainian filmmaker Oleg Sentsov was sentenced to 20 years in a Siberian prison on charges rooted in his political activities, namely his outspoken criticism of Russia’s annexation of Crimea. More
PEN America to Honor Imprisoned Ukrainian Writer and Filmmaker Oleg Sentsov with 2017 PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award
The abduction, abuse, and baseless conviction of Oleg Sentsov are emblematic of Russian President Vladimir Putin's refusal to countenance dissent. More
2017 PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award: Oleg Sentsov
Acclaimed filmmaker Oleg Sentsov was sentenced to 20 years in a Russian prison on charges of terrorism. Many international governments believe that he has been convicted on groundless charges… More
PEN America Mourns Longtime Trustee Barbara Goldsmith
Goldsmith was a passionate and enormously generous supporter of PEN's freedom of expression advocacy programming for more than three decades. More
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