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
ImprisonedLhundrub Drakpa
Creative artist, Singer/SongwriterChina/Tibet Autonomous RegionAsia-PacificLhundrub Drakpa, a Tibetan singer, was detained in May 2019 shortly after releasing his song “Black Hat,” which addressed the repression of Tibetans. He was held arbitrarily for over a year, during which he was reportedly beaten and at serious risk of further torture. Denied access to a lawyer of…
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Conditional ReleaseLi Bifeng
Activist, Literary writerChinaAsia-PacificIn 2012, Li was convicted of contract fraud, though it is likely that he was targeted in retaliation for his peaceful activism and links with exiled writers. On April 7, 2020, after over eight years in prison, he was released into “enforced quarantine” at an unknown location. As of 2023,…
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ReleasedLi Guibao
Dramatist, Online CommentatorChinaAsia-PacificAfter criticizing the government for its handling of COVID-19, playwright and blogger Li was detained in April 2020 and was later sentenced to one year in prison for “picking quarrels” in December. He was tried by the Beijing district of Haidian and his case was not well known until his…
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DeceasedLi Liqun
Literary writer, Online Commentator, PoetChinaAsia-PacificLi Liqun was an esteemed blogger and writer well-known by his pen name Li Huizi who blogged about fairness and justice and wrote poetry. Li took his own life on July 23, 2021, an act that came after years of being surveilled and harassed by the Chinese Communist Party. Li…
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ReleasedLi Tie
Activist, Literary writerChinaAsia-PacificLi was sentenced to ten years in prison in 2012 for ‘subversion of state power’ after writing critical online essays and pro-democracy leaning works. He did not have a fair trial, and was unable to appeal his sentence or choose his lawyer. He was released in September 2020. He reportedly…
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DetainedLi Weizhong
Journalist, Online CommentatorChinaAsia-PacificJournalist Li Weizhong, who writes under the pen name Li Yuanfeng, was forcibly disappeared on October 10, 2024 and then transfered to criminal detention by the Hunan police on October 26 for “seeking obstacles and provoking trouble.” On November 15, 2024, it was revealed that he had been placed under…
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ImprisonedLi Yanhe
Editor, PublisherChinaAsia-PacificAlso known as Fucha or Fuschia, Li Yanhe is an ethnically Manchu publisher and former radio host for Radio Taiwan International. Born in China, he has lived in Taiwan since 2009, where he founded the Gusa Publishing House. Gusa publishes non-fiction books that challenge China’s propaganda and is critical of…
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ReleasedLiu Chengkun
JournalistChina/Inner Mongolia Autonomous RegionAsia-PacificLiu was arrested in April 2018 and sentenced to eight months in prison after he published two short stories about a fictional character that bore a resemblance to the chairperson of China’s largest dairy producer. ICPC reports that Liu was released on December 1, 2018.
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ReleasedLiu Ermu
Activist, Online CommentatorChinaAsia-PacificLiu Ermu is an online activist focused on environmental protection and human rights. He was summoned in 2016 by local police on suspicion of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” because he published an online article protesting the increasingly serious smog problem in Chengdu. He was released later that day after…
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.