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
-
Status
ReleasedOleg Sentsov
Creative artist, Dramatist, Literary writerRussiaEurope and Central AsiaOleg Sentsov, a Ukrainian film director, was detained in Crimea in May 2014 and sentenced to 20 years in a Russian prison on charges of terrorism on August 25, 2015. Best known for his 2011 film Gamer, Sentsov lived in Crimea’s capital of Simferopol and was active in protests against…
-
Status
ReleasedOleh Halaziuk
JournalistUkraineEurope and Central AsiaRadio Free Europe columnist Oleh Halaziuk was detained by Russian-backed separatists in August 2017. He was released as part of a broader prisoner exchange in Ukraine in late December 2019. Since the outbreak of conflict in Ukraine, he had covered everyday living conditions in the Donetsk region, reporting persistently on…
-
Status
Displaced/In ExileOlga Shparaga
Editor, Journalist, Literary writer, ScholarBelarusEurope and Central AsiaOn October 4, 2020, philospher and writer Shparaga was detained for one day during a protest; but five days later, she was detained at Savecki district police department when she was summoned to testify. On October 12, she received and served a sentence of 15 days in administrative detention. After…
-
Status
Conditional ReleaseOljobai Shakir
Activist, Literary writer, Online Commentator, PoetKyrgyzstanEurope and Central AsiaShakir is a blogger, activist and author. He is an activist for LGBT rights and wrote the 2021 book Adam on this theme. He was detained in August 2023 for “inciting mass unrest” and “attempting to seize power” after he criticized the decision to transfer four resorts in the Issyk-Kul…
-
Status
ReleasedOmar Radi
Activist, Journalist, Online CommentatorMoroccoMiddle East and North AfricaOmar Radi is an award-winning investigative journalist and activist. He was detained for a few days on December 26, 2019 for a tweet criticizing the judicial system for upholding the verdict against protesters from the 2017 protest movement in Hirak el-Rif. On July 19, 2021, Riad was convicted of espionage…
-
Status
ReleasedOmar Shiboba
Creative artist, Singer/SongwriterSaudi ArabiaMiddle East and North AfricaA rapper and songwriter, Shaiboba was arrested in March 2022 for his songs that he had described as revolutionary and which were critical of the ruling authorities, following an online harassment campaign against him by pro-government trolls. His rap song criticized corruption and social injustices within the kingdom. Since his…
-
Status
ConvictedÖmer Aslan
Creative artistTürkiyeEurope and Central AsiaIn 2018, popular satirist Aslan, known as Porçay on YouTube, was charged with encouraging the use of drugs for writing a satirical rap song, parodying another song. In February 2021, Aslan was sentenced to four years and two months in prison but remained out of custody pending appeal. His sentence…
-
Status
ImprisonedOmerjan Hasan
Journalist, Literary writerChina/Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous RegionAsia-PacificHasan, also known as “Bozqir” published essays, short stories, and articles aimed at the promotion of equal civil and political rights for Uyghurs. In April 2016, he was arrested and reportedly sentenced to fifteen years in prison. Hasan was also the administrator of the popular Uyghur language website “Bozqir.” No…
-
Status
Continued HarassmentOmoyele Sowore
Activist, Journalist, Online CommentatorNigeriaSub-Saharan AfricaOmoyele Sowore, a Nigerian-American political activist and journalist, was detained by police on December 2020 during a candlelight procession he had organized against bad governance in Nigeria. He was granted bail on January 12 on the condition he remain in the country and pay N20 million. On January 29, 2025,…
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.