Articles by PEN International
Writer Shi Tao reported to have been formally charged
(WiPC/IFEX) – The WiPC of International PEN has received reports that writer, poet and Independent Chinese PEN member, Shi Tao, was formally charged on 14 December 2004 with “illegally providing state secrets overseas”. He remains detained with limited access to his family. International PEN fears that Shi Tao is detained solely for the peaceful expression […]
Arrests of writers raise fears of crackdown against dissident intellectuals
(WiPC/IFEX) – On the afternoon of 13 December 2004, three prominent dissident intellectuals – literary critic Liu Xiaobo, writer Yu Jie and political theorist Zhang Zuhua – were arrested in Beijing and held for 12 hours, before being freed on the morning of 14 December. International PEN fears that these arrests portend a wider crackdown […]
WiPC protests growing attacks on “cyber-dissent”, launches global campaign to release cyber-dissidents in China, Maldives and Vietnam
(WiPC/IFEX) – The following is a WiPC press statement: International PEN’s Writers in Prison Committee Protests Growing Attacks on “Cyber-Dissent” in Asia On 10 December 2004, the Writers in Prison Committee of the world association of writers, International PEN, will be marking International Human Rights Day with a global campaign to release “cyber-dissidents” held in […]
Hearings begin in Bravo murder case
(WiPC/IFEX) – The WiPC of International PEN is appalled at the 9 November 2004 killing of journalist María José Bravo and calls upon the Nicaraguan authorities to ensure that her killer is brought to justice. Bravo, 26, the Chontales correspondent for “La Prensa” and “Diario Hoy” newspapers, was covering a recount of votes cast in […]
Dissident Internet writer Nguyen Hong Quang sentenced to three years’ imprisonment
(WiPC/IFEX) – The WiPC of International PEN protests the three-year prison sentence handed down to pastor, lawyer and dissident Internet writer Nguyen Hong Quang on 12 November 2004. According to PEN’s information, Nguyen Hong Quang, a dissident writer, lawyer and general secretary of the banned Vietnamese Mennonite Church, was arrested on 8 June for allegedly […]
WiPC concerned for the health of two imprisoned writers
(WiPC/IFEX) – The WiPC of International PEN is seriously concerned for the health of writers Hojjatoleslam Hasan Yousefi Eshkevari and Akbar Ganji, who are both reported to be seriously ill in Evin prison. Eshkevari is an insulin-dependent diabetic and has reportedly suffered an eye haemorrhage in prison as a result of the disease. He is […]
Internet essayist, writer and journalist Huang Jinqiu sentenced to twelve years in prison
(WiPC/IFEX) – WiPC has protested the heavy sentence handed down on 27 September 2004 by the Changzhou Intermediate People’s Court to Internet essayist, writer and journalist Huang Jinqiu (aka Qing Shuijun). Huang was sentenced to 12 years in prison on charges of “subversion of state power” for a large number of essays published on the […]
Government withdraws protection from General Gallardo in spite of death threats
(WiPC/IFEX) – The WiPC of International PEN is deeply concerned by the Mexican government’s decision to withdraw from Brigadier-General José Francisco Gallardo Rodríguez and his family the protective measures ordered by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (ICHR) in 2001 and ratified a year later on his release from prison. The decision to withhold protection […]