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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Alexandrani is a researcher and journalist who studies extremism and counterterrorism in the North Sinai. He was arrested in November 2015 and charged with baseless crimes, including “publishing government secrets” and joining the Muslim Brotherhood. After 2 years in pretrial detention, he was sentenced to 10 years in prison by…
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Schvartzman is a Jewish feminist activist who has faced harassment for her writing. In 2018, she received death threats via Facebook, and in late 2019 she was the victim of an attempted armed robbery; though it is unclear if the incident was related to her activism.
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Investigative journalist Safronov was arrested in July 2020 for allegedly passing along classified information to Czech intelligence. He was held in pretrial detention for over two years. The charges do not specify who he provided the materials to. In September 2022, Safronov was sentenced to 22 years in prison. He…
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Zawab is a poet and editor of Meena literary magazine who has written poetry critical of the Taliban and their treatment of women and girls in Afghanistan. He was arrested by the Taliban on January 24, 2024 and is detained on undisclosed charges.
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In August 2009, writer and journalist Tissainayagam was sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment with hard labor under the Prevention of Terrorism Act for “causing communal disharmony” with reporting on conflict in northern Sri Lanka in 2006. He has now been released.
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Poet, scholar, and literary critic Mapanje was arrested after publication of his first book, which the Malawi government subsequently banned. He was detained without charge from September 1987 until May 1991, during which time he wrote two poetry collections. He lives in exile in York.
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In 2017, the State Security Agency (SSA) threatened legal action and issued a cease and desist order against writer and journalist Pauw for his book The President’s Keepers: Those Keeping Zuma in Power. He faces continued defamation suits and threats as a result of his work.
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A prominent filmmaker, Panahi has long been subject to threats and his films banned. After a 2010 arrest with fellow filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof, Panahi was sentenced to a six years (served under house arrest) and banned from travel and filmmaking. In July 2022, he was arrested and given another six…
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A member of PEN Honduras, López has been repeatedly arrested in retaliation for his political commentary and reporting, and has been prohibited from leaving the country and required to appear in court every 15 days. As of 2023, López reported that he is currently under police protection due to repeated…
Writers at Risk Database Key:
STATUS box that is red: Active case
STATUS box that is black: Inactive case
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.
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.