Writers at Risk Advocacy
The PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Center at PEN America advocates for writers jailed and persecuted for their free expression around the world.
Writers face grave risks for documenting the past, reflecting on the present, imagining different futures, and speaking up to hold power to account. When governments target writers, writers are not the only ones at risk – freedom for all is at stake.
The annual Freedom to Write Index, a count of writers jailed worldwide during each calendar year, examines thematic and country-specific threats to writers and their freedom of expression. The Writers at Risk Database tracks a range of threats against individual writers, cultural figures, and journalists, such as legal charges without detention or physical attacks, in addition to detention and imprisonment. Learn more about the methodology used for our Index and Database here. The PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Center was established in 2022 by a donation from the Edwin Barbey Charitable Trust.
What you need to know:
The latest Freedom to Write Index found that the number of writers jailed reached a new high, with at least 401 jailed across 44 countries during 2025.
The Writers at Risk Database catalogs cases of more than 1,000 writers who face various threats: legal harassment, exile, and physical attacks in addition to prison.
Attacks on culture – from the destruction of libraries in Gaza and Ukraine to the deletion of the Mongolian-language internet – weaken our ability to share ideas freely.
Writers Jailed Globally in 2025
Blogs and Interviews
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PEN International Young Writers Committee Brings Advocacy to Next Generation
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The World’s Longest-Jailed Writers and Journalists: What we know about the writers and journalists detained for more than 20 years in Eritrea
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375 Voices Behind Bars: Why Governments Repress Writers
Latest Updates
Freedom to Write Index 2025
The number of countries jailing writers reached an all-time high in 2025.
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China
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Iran
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Saudi Arabia
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Vietnam
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Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory
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Russia
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Türkiye
#FreeNarges: Freedom to Write Award Winner 2023
Learn more about Narges Mohammadi’s case, add your name to a petition for her release, and send her a message of support. The Free Narges Coalition Steering Committee is led by the Narges Foundation, PEN America, Reporters Without Borders (RSF), and Front Line Defenders. Together, the coalition urges the global community to hold the Islamic Republic government accountable for its abuses.
