Writers at Risk Database
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.
Filters
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Status
DeceasedAyşe Nur Zarakolu
Literary writer, PublisherTürkiyeEurope and Central AsiaFounder of the Freedom to Publish Commission, Zarakolu was a pioneering female figure in Türkiye’s literary world. A political essayist herself, she was arrested over 30 times for her writings on taboo subjects like the Armenian genocide and Kurdish rights. She died in 2002.
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ImprisonedAytekin Gezici
Journalist, Literary writerTürkiyeEurope and Central AsiaGezici is a prominent political commentator, Zaman reporter, and author of more than 25 books on Turkish politics. He has been accused of “violating confidentiality” in his books and “insulting President Tayyip Erdoğan through social media” for his writing. Facing charges since 2014, Gezici was detained in 2016 and has…
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Status
ConvictedAzad Zal
Journalist, Literary writer, Poet, PublisherTürkiyeEurope and Central AsiaA writer, former journalist, translator, and Kurdish-language teacher, Zal was released from prison in 2004 after spending 12 years in prison. He was arrested again on June 30, 2020 and accused of being a member of a terrorist organization. He was sentenced to 6 years in March 2022.
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Status
Azad Zal Mehmet Güngõmüs
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Status
Conditional ReleaseAzamat Nuratdinov
Journalist, Online CommentatorUzbekistanEurope and Central AsiaAzamat Nuratdinov is an Uzbek blogger and reporter for El Khyzmetinde who was arrested in July 2022 and charged with inciting riots through distribution of propagandistic material. In January 2023, he was released from detention and sentenced to five years of restricted freedom.
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Status
Custodial/Wrongful DeathAzimjon Askarov
Activist, JournalistKyrgyzstanEurope and Central AsiaAskarov died on July 25, 2020 after contracting pneumonia in Kyrgyz state custody. He was serving a life sentence for alleged involvement in ethnic violence, a charge understood as politically-motivated and linked to his advocacy for the ethnic Uzbek minority.
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Conditional ReleaseBader Al-Ibrahim
Journalist, Literary writer, ScholarSaudi ArabiaMiddle East and North AfricaA dual U.S.-Saudi citizen, Al-Ibrahim was part of a group of journalists and bloggers detained without charge in April 2019. A doctor and author of a book on Shiite Muslim politics, his writing appeared to threaten the Saudi regime. He was conditionally released in February 2021.
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Status
ReleasedBader Al-Rashed
Journalist, Online CommentatorSaudi ArabiaMiddle East and North AfricaOn November 16, 2019, Al-Rashed was one of ten writers and journalists arrested by Saudi officials. He had previously written about regional security issues. He was released later that month.
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DetainedBahar Kurt
Creative artist, Singer/SongwriterTürkiyeEurope and Central AsiaKurt is a member of the activist band Grup Yorum. Since the band’s inception, its critical songs have angered the government and members have faced serious threats. Kurt faced several arrests over the years. She was most recently detained in February 2024 and had her arm broken in custody.
Writers at Risk Database Key:
STATUS box that is red: Active case
STATUS box that is black: Inactive case
Funder
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.
Partner
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.