Avijit Roy | Status: Murdered | Bangladesh
On February 26, 2015, Bangladeshi-American blogger Avijit Roy and his wife Rafida Ahmed Bonya were brutally attacked by assailants wielding machetes outside of the Dhaka Boi Mela book fair.… More
Ahmed Naji | Status: In Exile | Egypt
Ahmed Naji was temporarily released from prison in Egypt on December 22, 2016, after his two-year prison sentence for “violating public modesty” was suspended by an appeals court on… More
Stella Nyanzi | Status: In Exile | Uganda
Jump to: Case Background Case Updates In Their Words Dr. Stella Nyanzi, a Ugandan medical anthropologist, activist, and writer, was convicted after writing and posting a poem online, in which she criticized Ugandan… More
Oleg Sentsov | Status: Released | Russia
Oleg Sentsov, a Ukrainian film director, was sentenced to 20 years in a Russian prison on charges of terrorism on August 25, 2015. PEN believes that the charges stem… More
Shiva Nazar Ahari | Status: Released | Iran
Shiva Nazar Ahari is an Iranian journalist, blogger, and human rights activist and former political prisoner. More
PEN America Joins Push to Impose Sanctions on Human Rights Violators
“With the Global Magnitsky Act, championed in Congress by Senators John McCain (R-AZ) and Benjamin Cardin (D-MD), the US government has been provided a powerful tool to deter the… More
Joint Letter by Civil Society Groups on Burma and the National Defense Authorization Act
Senator Inhofe, Acting Chairman Rep. Mac Thornberry, Chairman Senate Armed Services Committee House Armed Services Committee Senator Jack Reed, Ranking… More
Attacks Against Russian Group an Outrageous Assault on Human Rights and the Freedom to Report
Kadyrov’s threats and the attacks on Memorial’s offices underscore the context behind Oyub Titiev’s arrest. It is impossible to conclude anything other than that his arrest is an attempt… More
Liu Xiaobo Must be Allowed to Seek Treatment Abroad
NEW YORK--In response to the statement from Western medical experts that it is safe to transport Liu Xiaobo abroad for cancer treatment, PEN America Executive Director Suzanne Nossel released… More
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