(NEW YORK)—PEN America announced today that Egyptian poet, lyricist, and pro-democracy activist Galal El-Behairy will receive the 2025 PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award on May 15 at its annual literary gala in New York City. Arrested and unjustly imprisoned since 2018 on multiple charges—solely for the power of his words—El-Behairy’s poetry has become a worldwide symbol of fearless defiance against injustice and tyranny.
The PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award is given each year to a jailed writer of conscience. Recent awardees include Iranian human rights activist Narges Mohammadi who received the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize later that same year.
Members of El-Behairy’s family will receive the award on his behalf at the PEN America gala.
Born in 1990, El-Behairy was jailed after writing the lyrics for the song Balaha and a poetry collection titled The Finest Women on Earth. His writing, which challenges the state, was cited as evidence during his trial. A military court sentenced him to three years in prison but after serving his full sentence, the Egyptian government brought new charges against him and continues to hold him in what amounts to indefinite pretrial detention. Read more at PEN America’s case page on El-Behairy.
Liesl Gerntholtz, managing director of the PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Center at PEN America, said: “Even as El-Behairy languishes in the dark cells of the notorious Badr Security Complex, his courage is an unwavering symbol of defiance and his poetry, though suppressed by tyranny, has inspired the world. Today, we are honored to stand with his family whose sacrifice we acknowledge as we dedicate our global campaign to securing his release and defending the freedom to write.”
In March 2023, on the fifth anniversary of his arrest, El-Behairy began a hunger strike, to protest his wrongful detention. The Egyptian authorities have subjected El-Behairy to inhumane conditions. He has been held in solitary confinement and deprived of medical care, books, and writing materials. His detention has battered both his body and mind, yet he continues to send letters—fragments of resistance—to the outside world.
In 2024, PEN America’s Freedom to Write Index ranked Egypt the ninth leading country for the highest number of jailed writers, with ten writers in prison. Egypt is among the most restrictive environments for free expression in the Middle East and North Africa. Authorities target writers, journalists, artists, and human rights defenders through repressive tactics such as surveillance, judicial harassment, smear campaigns, threats, and travel bans.
In 2024, the number of writers jailed globally reached a new high in a wider range of countries, with at least 375 behind bars in 40 countries, an almost 11% increase from the previous year, according to PEN America’s latest Freedom to Write Index.
The PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award is a powerful tool in PEN America’s efforts to end the persecution of writers and defend free expression, and a springboard for PEN America’s advocacy for the writers it honors. A total of 47 of the 54 jailed writers who have received the award since 1987 have been released due in part to the awareness and pressure the award generates.
At its annual gala, PEN America will celebrate two literary champions—iconic actor, producer and independent publisher Sarah Jessica Parker, who will receive the PEN/Audible Literary Service Award, and Jon Yaged, chief executive officer of Macmillan Publishers, who will be honored with this year’s Business Visionary Award. Authors Jodi Picoult and Dinaw Mengestu, both PEN America trustees, serve as literary co-chairs of the event.
Background on El Behairy’s Imprisonment
In July 2018, a military court sentenced Galal El-Behairy to three years in prison for “insulting the Egyptian army,” among other charges—an act of retaliation for his poetry collection خير نسوان الارض The Finest Women on Earth, which challenges state narratives about the military and its entanglement with politics.
In July 2021, after serving his full term, El-Behairy was charged in a fresh case brought by Egypt’s Supreme State Security Prosecution. He has not been brought to trial on these charges, keeping him in prolonged pre-trial detention to this day.
In a moment of profound despair of ever being freed, El-Behairy wrote a heart-felt message announcing his decision to begin a hunger strike on March 5, 2023—the fifth anniversary of his arrest. He wrote in part:
Against the mandatory uniform, the mandatory food,
Against the 24-hour cell light that never turns off,
Against the 20 minutes a month allowed for family visits,
Against the ban on pen and paper,
Against the ban on all colors but white,
Against 1,912 nights without seeing the moon—except once,
Against it all,
I will begin a full hunger strike on the first day of June.
In September 2023, El-Behairy’s detention officially exceeded the maximum legal limit of pre-trial detention. Despite this, the Egyptian government shows no sign of either releasing him or bringing him to trial, in violation of both domestic and international law.
Since President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi came to power in 2014, Egyptian authorities have increasingly tightened control over the media and culture, frequently silencing independent voices under broad and vague laws related to anti-terrorism, cybercrime, and national security.
About PEN America
PEN America stands at the intersection of literature and human rights to protect free expression in the United States and worldwide. We champion the freedom to write, recognizing the power of the word to transform the world. Our mission is to unite writers and their allies to celebrate creative expression and defend the liberties that make it possible. Learn more at pen.org.
Contact: Suzanne Trimel, [email protected], (201) 247-5057