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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Alpay was detained following the 2016 coup attempt for her connection to pro-Kurdish daily Özgür Gündem. After four months in detention, she was conditionally released in December 2016. She was acquitted in February 2020 following a lengthy and intermittent trial.
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Kurdish reporter and poet Türfent was arrested in May 2016 and sentenced to 8 years in prison on terrorism charges. During pretrial interrogations, he was tortured and forced to sign a confession, while 19 of the 20 witnesses who testified against him have recanted. On November 29, 2022, he was…
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On November 20, 2018, Yasar died after he was shot leaving the launch of his memoir Roots on his life as the founder of a gang who left in 2012 to then become a radio host and mentor. In 2020, two men—the shooter and the getaway car driver—were sentenced to…
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A poet, translator, and student, Aramesh posts her written poems on her Instagram account. She was arrested on September 23, 2022 and detained and reportedly interrogated under threats of torture and harming her family. A month later she was charged with “propaganda against the regime.” She was released on bail…
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Bahrami is a freelance columnist who writes political, economic, and cultural commentary. In May 2020, one year after he was convicted, a court summoned him to begin his one-year sentence for propaganda and anti-state charges. He faces a two-year ban on media activities. Bahrami, furloughed once for poor health, contracted…
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PEN Paraguay member, writer, and author of children’s books Aguilera was convicted of plagiarism in November 2013, following accusations made by Maria Garay in 2010 that he plagiarized her work. After ten years active, the case against Aguilera expired in February 2021.
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Ngar Min Swe was serving a seven-year prison sentence for “inciting hatred against the government,” stemming from Facebook posts and critical news articles about Aung San Suu Kyi. Released after the February 2021 coup, he has more recently spoken at pro-junta rallies and expressed support for the miitary online.
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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.