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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Displaced/In ExileDenis Kamalyagin
Journalist, Literary writer, Online CommentatorRussiaEurope and Central AsiaIn December 2020, Denis Kamalyagin was labeled a foreign agent by the Russian government. On March 16, 2022, following a raid on his home and office, he fled to Riga. Kamalyagin was fined in June 2022 for not labeling his Telegram posts as “foreign agent material,” and in October 2022…
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Displaced/In ExileDenis Solís González
Activist, Creative artist, Singer/SongwriterCubaAmericasSolís González is a Cuban songwriter and rapper whose musical work critiques repression by the authorities. Solís was forcibly detained in November 2020 after he posted a video on social media criticizing authorities for entering his house without a warrant, and he was given eight months in prison for “contempt.”…
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ReleasedDenise Ho
Activist, Creative artist, Journalist, Online Commentator, Singer/SongwriterChina/Hong KongAsia-PacificA musician-turned-activist, Ho has been repeatedly targeted by Chinese authorities for her outspoken pro-democracy views, expressed through her songs, social media posts, and in columns written for the now-defunct Apple Daily. In December 2021, Ho was briefly detained in a raid on the staff of Stand News, and now faces…
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Displaced/In ExileDeniz Yücel
Journalist, PublisherTürkiyeEurope and Central AsiaColumnist Yücel was subjected to pre-trial detention—including solitary confinement and torture—and then indicted in 2018 with producing “terrorism propaganda,” and “inciting the public to hatred and enmity.” Now in Germany, he was charged in absentia in 2021 for publicly insulting Turkish officials. He is currently on trial for “insulting the…
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Recorded HarassmentDeniz Zarakolu
Literary writer, Scholar, TranslatorTürkiyeEurope and Central AsiaThe son of prominent human rights activists, Zarakolu was first arrested in 2002 for a speech he gave at his mother’s funeral, which led to charges of “inciting hatred.” In 2011, he was arrested again during a widespread crackdown on pro-Kurdish intellectuals and spent over two years in prison. Although…
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MurderedDeyda Hydara
JournalistGambiaSub-Saharan AfricaOn December 16, 2004, Deyda Hydara was murdered. While an army officer testified to his involvement and former president Yahya Jammeh’s role as mastermind before Gambia’s Truth, Reconciliation, and Reparations Commission in 2019, he has not yet been held accountable because he fled the country. In November 2023, a court…
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DetainedDidier Almagro Toledo
Singer/SongwriterCubaAmericasAlmagro is a “contestatory” rapper who uses his music to protest the government and reflect on political topics. In August 2020, he was arrested at his home by state security agents following a protest. He was charged with contempt and public disorder, and sentenced to 3-years imprisonment. He was released…
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DetainedDidier Nusbaumer
Creative artist, JournalistMyanmarAsia-PacificDidier Nusbaumer is a Swiss filmmaker and screenwriter who wrote, filmed, and edited “Don’t Expect Anything,” a film that challenged the traditional depiction of Buddhist monks. On August 8, 2023, Nusbaumer, alongside 13 Myanmar nationals, was arrested for defaming Buddhism. The locations in which these individuals are being held remain…
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ImprisonedDilshat Oralbai
Creative artist, Editor, TranslatorChina/Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous RegionAsia-PacificChinese-born Kazakh translator and musician Dilshat Oralbai has translated 15 literary books, including The Russian Character by Tolstoy, stories, and TV series from Chinese to Kazakh. In May 2018, he was arrested upon his return to Xinjiang on unknown charges and taken to a concentration camp. In August 2019, 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.