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
Displaced/In ExileBei Dao
Literary writer, PoetChinaAsia-PacificBei Dao has lived and taught in England, Germany, Scandinavia, the Netherlands, France, and the U.S. His work has been translated into over 30 languages, including five poetry collections in English (Unlock, Old Snow, The August Sleepwalker, Forms of Distance, Landscape Over Zero), the story collection Waves, and two essay…
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ImprisonedBenny Tai Yiu-ting
Activist, Literary writer, ScholarChina/Hong KongAsia-PacificTai is a legal scholar and public intellectual who wrote foundational political pieces on democracy. He was convicted on politically-motivated public nuisance charges and served 4 months of his 16-month sentence in April 2019 related to the Occupy Central protests. Tai was re-detained in March 2021 after he was baselessly…
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DetainedBergün Varan
Creative artist, Singer/SongwriterTürkiyeEurope and Central AsiaVaran, a member of the activist collective and band Grup Yorum, has faced repeated arrests due to the band’s critical songs, which have angered the Turkish government. She has been detained multiple times during raids on the band’s cultural center and released conditionally, often after months in custody. Most recently,…
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Custodial/Wrongful DeathBerhane Abrehe
Literary writerEritreaSub-Saharan AfricaAbrehe, a former Eritrean finance minister, was arrested in September 2018 after publishing a book critical of President Isaias Afwerki. He was held in solitary confinement at Carshelli prison in Asmara without formal charges or trial. Abrehe’s continued detention called into question Eritrea’s commitment to reform following a historic peace…
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ReleasedBernardo Arévalo Padrón
Activist, JournalistCubaAmericasArévalo was arrested in 1997 and sentenced to six years in prison for insulting Fidel Castro. He was released in 2003 and arrested again in 2014 and briefly detained for his reporting work for an opposition newspaper.
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Conditional ReleaseBigeldy Gabdullin
Journalist, Literary writer, TranslatorKazakhstanEurope and Central AsiaOn November 15, 2016, one day after expressing his support for Seytkazy Matayez, and on the heels of his publishing reports critical of government officials’ business dealings, president of the Kazakh PEN Club Bigeldy Gabdullin was detained on charges of extortion. On January 24, 2017, Gabdullin pled guilty and was…
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ReleasedBilal Al-Saadi
Creative artistIsrael/Occupied Palestinian TerritoryMiddle East and North AfricaThe founder and chairperson of the Freedom Theater in Jenin, Al-Saadi has been a prominent figure in Palestinian cultural and artistic movements. On September 11, 2022, he was arrested by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) at a military checkpoint. Shortly after his arrest, he was sentenced to six months of…
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ImprisonedBo Bo Htoo
Activist, Literary writer, Online Commentator, PoetMyanmarAsia-PacificBo Bo Htoo, a poet and literary writer from Pyin Ma Nar, was arrested by Myanmar’s military authorities on November 15, 2021 at his home. Initially, he was sent to an interrogation camp before being sentenced to two years in prison on July 10, 2022. Despite reports suggesting that he…
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Displaced/In ExileBoris Akunin
Literary writer, Online CommentatorRussiaEurope and Central AsiaBoris Akunin is a renowned translator and writer of historical fiction who has been living abroad since 2014. In December 2023, he was added to Russia’s list of extremists due to his public statements about the war. The publishing house with the rights to his works was raided and his…
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.