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
ImprisonedBahruz Samadov
JournalistAzerbaijanEurope and Central AsiaOn August 21, 2024, Samadov, a PhD student at Charles University in Prague and a columnist critical of Azerbaijani authorities, was arrested while visiting his family in Baku. He was held incommunicado for two days before appearing in court, where he was remanded to four months of pretrial detention on…
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Conditional ReleaseBakhtyar Kadirbergenov
Online CommentatorUzbekistanEurope and Central AsiaAn online commentator, Kadirbergenov was arrested in July 2022 and accused of participating in and organizing the Nukus riots. He was sentenced to seven years imprisonment in January 2023. He was released in June after he appealled his sentence, which was changed to 5 years of restriced freedom. He had…
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Custodial/Wrongful DeathBaktash Abtin
Creative artist, Literary writer, PoetIranMiddle East and North AfricaPoet and filmmaker Abtin, with two other board members of the Iranian Writers Association, was convicted in 2019 for opposing state censorship policies. Abtin’s six-year prison sentence was upheld, and the trio started their sentences at Evin prison in September 2020. On January 8, 2022, Abtin died from COVID-19 contracted in…
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Under ThreatBalam Rodrigo Pérez Hernández
Literary writer, PoetMexicoAmericasIn 2024, Balam Rodrigo Péres Hernández continued to report the presence of criminal groups at cultural and literary events—mainly across Mexico and the United States—that address migration issues and the violence perpetrated by these groups. He has been threatened with retaliation if he continues to write or speak about the…
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Recorded HarassmentBanamallika Choudhury
Activist, PoetIndiaAsia-PacificIn July 2019, a police report was filed against Choudhury and other “Miya” (Bengali-language Muslim) poets after the online publication of a poem by Hafiz Ahmed that authorities claimed promoted sectarian enmity in Assam. On July 17, 2019, all ten poets were granted anticipatory bail. Though the case did not…
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ReleasedBaolong Hu
Activist, Online CommentatorChina/Inner Mongolia Autonomous RegionAsia-PacificA human rights lawyer and online activist, Baolong was detained in September 2020 for allegedly “leaking secrets” to foreign countries and for his online commentary. He was formally charged with “picking quarrels and provoking trouble.” Authorities targeted him for discussing the situation in Inner Mongolia in a WeChat group with…
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DetainedBardin Jafari
Activist, Singer/SongwriterIranMiddle East and North AfricaBardin Jafari is a Kurdish singer and activist from Gilan who uses his music to support pro-Kurdish causes and women’s rights. In May 2024, Jafari was violently arrested in his home after performing politically charged Kurdish-language songs at an unauthorized festival for the Persian New Year in defiance of threats.…
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On TrialBariş Pehlivan
Journalist, Literary writer, Online CommentatorTürkiyeEurope and Central AsiaPehlivan, an author and journalist, was arrested in February 2020 for “disclosing intelligence information” and sentenced to 3 years and 9 months, though later released. In 2023, he faced “insult” and “calumny” charges over an interview about his book Metastaz, and briefly returned to prison. He is now on trial…
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ConvictedBarış Terkğlu
Journalist, Literary writerTürkiyeEurope and Central AsiaOn March 4, 2020, Barış Terkğlu was arrested for a report published on OdaTV with photos of the funeral of a Turkish officer killed in Syria. In April, he was indicted for “disclosing classified information crucial to the security and interests of the state” and “exposing the contents of documents…
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.