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.
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Displaced/In ExileGabriela Selser
Journalist, Literary writerNicaraguaAmericasGabriela Selser is a journalist who wrote The truth about the 2018 rebellion in Nicaragua, which covers the start of President Ortega’s authoritarian regime. She is also the author of 5 books which are mainly about the Nicaraguan revolution. In January 2022, Selser was stopped at the airport as she…
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DetainedGalal El-Behairy
Poet, Singer/SongwriterEgyptMiddle East and North AfricaGalal El-Behairy is an Egyptian poet, lyricist, and activist who has been imprisoned since his arrest at Cairo International Airport in March 2018 while attempting to travel abroad. Before his arrest, El-Behairy had collaborated with musician Ramy Essam on the protest song “Balaha,” for which he wrote the lyrics. Just…
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ReleasedGamal Al-Gamal
JournalistEgyptMiddle East and North AfricaA freelance columnist and well-known critic of President El-Sisi’s policies, Al-Gamal left Egypt in 2017. On February 22, 2021, upon returning from exile in Türkiye, he was detained and charged with spreading false news, joining a terrorist organization, and inciting public opinion against the state. Released on bail on July…
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ImprisonedGangkye Drukpa Kyab
Literary writer, Poet, ScholarChina/Tibet Autonomous RegionAsia-PacificKyab, a poet, teacher, and essayist, has written extensively on the 2008 Tibetan unrest. He was jailed from 2012 to 2016 for his writings. On March 23, 2021, he was arrested in Kardze’s Sertha county under undisclosed charges. In October 2022, it was revealed that he had been sentenced to…
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Displaced/In ExileGanimat Zahid
Journalist, Literary writerAzerbaijanEurope and Central AsiaGanimat Zahid, an Azerbaijani journalist, literary writer, and editor-in-chief of the opposition outlet Azadlig, is currently living in exile in France. On May 31, 2025, Azerbaijani authorities issued an arrest warrant against him in absentia. In December 2025, he was sentenced in absentia to seven years in prison for “calls…
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Recorded HarassmentGao Yu
Activist, JournalistChinaAsia-PacificGao Yu, a prominent Chinese journalist, has been imprisoned three times for her dissident reporting. Most recently, in 2014, she was sentenced to seven years for allegedly revealing state secrets, specifically the Chinese Communist Party’s internal document “Document No. 9,” which condemns various Western values, including “news freedom.” In November…
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ReleasedGartse Jigme
Literary writerChina/Tibet Autonomous RegionAsia-PacificJigme was arrested after publication of his book ‘Tsenpoi Nyingtop’ (Tsenpo’s Valor) because it allegedly contained political views. He served five years in prison for “inciting ethnic separatism” and is now banned from speaking at public gatherings.
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Conditional ReleaseGaston Philippe Abe Abe
Singer/SongwriterCameroonSub-Saharan AfricaAbe Abe, known by his stage name Valsero, was arrested at a demonstration in Yaoundé and spent almost nine months in prison on trumped up charges, including terrorism. He weaves politics into his music, and is popular among youth listeners but draws ire from the government. As of March 25,…
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ReleasedGautam Navlakha
Activist, Journalist, Literary writerIndiaAsia-PacificWriter and human rights activist Navlakha was one of many writers and activists arrested for “inciting caste violence” in the village of Bhima Koregaon in August 2018. He was released from house arrest in October 2018 but was again taken into custody in April 2020. He was repeatedly denied bail…
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.