Publisher and Leading Turkish PEN Member Ragip Zarakolu Arrested
PEN American Center has confirmed that Turkish publisher and PEN member Ragip Zarakolu has been formally arrested under Turkey’s anti-terrorism laws and imprisoned pending trial. In all, 23 of… More
Trial of Publisher Ragıp Zarakolu Postponed
Ragip Zarakolu is accused of spreading propaganda seen to support the banned Kurdish Worker’s Party (PKK), through his publication Mehmet Güler’s book, The KCK File/The Global State and Kurds… More
Writer and Human Rights Lawyer Detained
On December 24, 2009, human rights lawyer, writer and PEN Turkey member Muharrem Erbey was arrested in Diyabakir, southeastern Turkey. Two weeks later, he remains in prison awaiting trial. More
PEN, Publishers Decry Conviction of Ragip Zarakolu in Turkey
PEN American Center and the International Freedom to Publish Committee of the Association of American Publishers today denounced the “clearly wrongful” and “anachronistic and discouraging” conviction of Turkish publisher… More
Pamuk Prosecutor Arrested, Charged in Plot
Kemal Kerincsiz, the lawyer who tried to prosecute Orhan Pamuk, Hrant Dink, Elif Shafak, and several other writers for “insulting Turkishness,” has been arrested with 32 others following an… More
PEN Marks First Anniversary of Murder of Armenian-Turkish Journalist
PEN, the international association of writers, is supporting the “Hrant Için, Adalet Için” (For Hrant, For Justice) campaign organized by a consortium of Turkish organizations staging events in Istanbul… More
The Murder of Hrant Dink
ISTANBUL—"I feel like a pigeon," Hrant Dink wrote in his last article. "Like a pigeon I wander uneasily amidst this city, watching my back constantly, so timid and yet,… More
PEN Alarmed by Murder of Armenian-Turkish Journalist
PEN, the international association of writers, is appalled by the news of the murder today of Armenian-Turkish journalist Hrant Dink, who was shot dead outside his office in Istanbul. More
Call for a Repeal of Article 301 in Turkey
In June 2005, following discussions about Turkey's possible ascension to the European Council, the Turkish government enacted a new penal code. Since its instatement over a year ago, the… More
Day of the Imprisoned Writer
The Writers in Prison Committee of International PEN is marking the 26th Writers in Prison Day 2006 (November 15) with a campaign in defense of nearly 100 writers and… More