PEN America champions the freedom to write, recognizing the power of the word to transform the world. The bedrock work of the global PEN network is advocacy and assistance on behalf of individuals persecuted for their use of the written word or other forms of expression. PEN America’s Writers at Risk Database is a searchable catalog of the writers, journalists, academics, public intellectuals and others under threat around the world. The database includes historical cases PEN America has worked on from 1987 onwards; non-active cases are color-coded black. PEN America is grateful to the John Templeton Foundation for support that enabled the establishment of the Writers at Risk Database and to PEN International for their collaboration in assembling this database.
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Seynam is a teacher who used his knowledge and writings to educate Tibetans on social and environmental issues. He was arrested in Kardze Serthar County in April 2021. He was sentenced to 6 years in prison in September 2022.
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Rehman was arrested without warrant in April 2016 in connection with a plot to kidnap and murder the prime minister’s son. An active member of the political opposition, he was released on bail later that year and returned to the UK but remains on trial.
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Journalist Kajol was forcibly disappeared for 53 days in March 2020. Found early in May 2020, he was then detained for over 230 days by authorities on charges including defamation and disinformation for his online news articles, before being released in December. In 2021, he was charged under the Digital…
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Shirazi is a dissident cleric who is active on Telegram. In March 2023, he was reportedly taken to court for his writings on Ayatollah Khomeini. In November 2023, he was sentenced to 3 years in prison for “publishing falsehoods” and “propaganda.”
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A long time Palestinian activist and columnist and blogger, Abusalama is well-known for her anti-Zionist stance and her criticism of Israel. She has faced multiple instances of harassment since 2018, including cyberbullying by Zionist groups. In 2022, she received a letter from Hallam University in the UK where she was…
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An internationally-renowned photojournalist, Alam was arrested on August 5, 2018 for commentary criticizing Bangladesh’s response to road safety protests. Although his trial is ongoing, there have been no recent legal developments and Alam is out on bail.
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A pioneering publisher, Lahiji was arrested in 2000 upon her return from a conference. She was charged with spreading anti-state propaganda for criticizing Iran’s policies toward women. She was released on bail after two months in prison and completed her six-month sentence. She passed away in January 2024.
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On June 11, 2018, extremists murdered secular writer Bachchu in a drive-by shooting. Three of the four suspects were later killed in police shootouts, but the legal case is ongoing.
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Sathkumara was detained for four months in 2019 for his short story “Ardha,” under claims that it promoted religious hatred and insult for its indirect references to homosexuality within the Buddhist clergy. His case was dismissed in February 2021 after several trial delays.
Writers at Risk Database Key:
STATUS box that is red: Active case
STATUS box that is black: Inactive case
PEN America is deeply grateful to the John Templeton Foundation for its generous support of the Freedom to Write Index and Writers at Risk Database.
PEN America thanks the PEN International Secretariat and the Writers in Prison Committee for their extensive contributions to and collaboration on compiling the cases included in this database.