PEN International Annual Report 2012

Annual Report 2012

‘When political people have finished with repression and violence, PEN can indeed be forgotten. Until then, with its flounderings and failings and mistaken acts, it is still a fellowship moved by the hope that one day the work it tries and often manages to do will no longer be necessary’ Arthur Miller, PEN International President 1966-1969

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The PEN Charter

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John Ralston Saul International President

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Hori Takeaki International Secretary

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Laura McVeigh Executive Director

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2012 at a glance

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International Programmes

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Policy and Advocacy

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Free the Word!

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Free the Word! at Poetry Parnassus

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Free the Word! Around the World

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PEN International Publishers Circle

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PEN International Congress

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Translation & Linguistic Rights

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Writers for Peace

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Writers in Prison

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China

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Latin America and the Caribbean

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Turkey

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Day of the Imprisoned Writer

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Women Writers

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Statement of financial activities

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Clifford Chance

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With thanks Cover image and opposite: Courtesy of Getty Images

PEN International

Annual Report 2012

The PEN Charter

Delegates at the 78th PEN International Congress in Korea, 2012 2

The PEN Charter

1. Literature knows no frontiers and must remain common currency among people in spite of political or international upheavals.

2. In all circumstances, and particularly in time of war, works of art, the patrimony of humanity at large, should be left untouched by national or political passion.

3. Members of PEN should at all times use what influence they have in favour of good understanding and mutual respect between nations; they pledge themselves to do their utmost to dispel race, class and national hatreds, and to champion the ideal of one humanity living in peace in one world.

4. PEN stands for the principle of unhampered transmission of thought within each nation and between all nations, and members pledge themselves to oppose any form of suppression of freedom of expression in the country and community to which they belong, as well as throughout the world wherever this is possible.

PEN declares for a free press and opposes arbitrary censorship in time of peace.

It believes that the necessary advance of the world towards a more highly organised political and economic order renders a free criticism of governments, administrations and institutions imperative. And since freedom implies voluntary restraint, members pledge themselves to oppose such evils of a free press as mendacious publication, deliberate falsehood and distortion of facts for political and personal ends.

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PEN International

Annual Report 2012

John Ralston Saul International President

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John Ralston Saul

When it comes to research in the world of free speech campaigning, PEN has always been the leader and the gold standard. We are careful, thorough, balanced.

People believe what we say because our record shows how solid and accurate we are.

But also how determined and stubborn. We stick to our cases. We are there before, during and after.

This year we have added new approaches to this work. We began to reinvent the idea of advancing causes through PEN Delegations. We began in January with a Delegation to Mexico and in December took an even bigger group to Ankara and Istanbul. In both cases we combined high level meetings with unusual public events.

The results? We certainly managed to put free expression in the centre of the public debate. Laws were passed and signed in Mexico. We used the voice and weight of literature to support free expression.

You can see this two-handed approach in our new ebook - Write Against Impunity 2012 - produced by the PEN International Publishers Circle and bringing together voices from across Latin America.

This is the second Publishers Circle publication and there will be more.

One more example is our new Free the Word! partnership with Hay Festivals.

This is part of our policy to make our Free the Word! Festival events integral parts of already existing literary festivals.

Much of this has been possible because of the solidity of our financial situation.

This, in turn, is a result of the expanding approaches we have taken to fundraising.

At the same time, we’re taking a new and original approach towards public affairs, delivering our message in new ways and making sure that people understand both the depth of PEN’s experience, and our commitment to cutting-edge approaches.

You can see this in the development and approval at the Korean Congress of our Digital Declaration. This charter of rights for the digital world is a first and important step in this area. Put together with the Girona Manifesto on Linguistic Rights, it shows the extent to which PEN is expanding its charter into key contemporary areas.

Perhaps most exciting this year has been a new push both in membership around the world and in the programs of individual Centres.

The core of PEN is grassroots membership. That is why we continually talk of a flat organization with a Board and an International Office both listening, serving and helping to lead.

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PEN International

Annual Report 2012

Hori Takeaki

International Secretary

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Hori Takeaki

I am delighted to present the 2012 Annual Report, which demonstrates that we have achieved our goals set out at the beginning of the year. Now, we are truly in good shape and ready to move forward with the implementation of new and challenging yet exciting programmes for the coming year.

Working with John Ralston Saul, Eric Lax, Laura McVeigh and with the London office team and our PEN colleagues around the world, it is clear that PEN International is now a truly globalized organization.

PEN International has strengthened its position by establishing strong relationships with various international organizations, such as the Council of Europe, La Francophonie, African Union, UNESCO, ICORN, Hay Festivals and many others.

The political climate around the world is still chaotic. Unfortunately, nobody can predict what will happen next in terms of protecting freedom of expression and human rights, thus we introduced new strategies to tackle cases of oppression of free expression from country to country.

Our missions to Mexico and Turkey proved our commitment to protect freedom of expression. We have to continue to strengthen our solidarity campaign as well.

On the digital front, we launched our Declaration on Digital Freedom, a concise statement of PEN’s position on threats to free expression in the digital age.

In conclusion, I am happy to continue my work with PEN International for the term ahead and make my humble contribution to the continuation of PEN International’s long-standing record.

Also, we, all of us, should be proud of our unique management style, which is based on openness, transparency, patience, consultation and coherence among membership. This is our asset. From this particular standpoint, I will put my utmost energy into fostering and endorsing a sense of common interest and values shared by PEN members worldwide.

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PEN International

Annual Report 2012

Laura McVeigh Executive Director

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Laura McVeigh

This year we have focused on the future of PEN. A stronger financial base has enabled us to strengthen and grow the organisation and to deliver new programmes and new ways of working.

We have celebrated over 90 years of PEN International’s remarkable history and now we look forward with a focus on developing our education programmes and our engagement of young people in PEN’s activities. Towards that goal, we launched a new award, the PEN International/New Voices Award to encourage, recognise and support young writers worldwide.

Our campaigning and advocacy work continues to expand with 2012 seeing a major campaign on ending impunity engaging members around the world. We developed key advocacy tools including the PEN International Declaration on Digital Freedom.

We’ll continue to deepen our campaigning on key digital freedom and surveillance issues through 2013 and beyond.

The PEN membership is constantly developing and inventing new, creative ways to both promote literature and defend freedom of expression. I am proud of our work in partnership with many PEN centres over the last year on innovative, challenging campaigns, on civil society projects, on exciting literary events and festivals and working on publications that make the case for the universal importance of freedom of expression.

PEN’s work could not happen without its active membership, its dedicated staff, executive and board, and its loyal supporters – including our funders, our partner organisations, the PEN International Publishers Circle and Writers Circle, and the many individuals who give their time and support year on year to PEN. Thank you all.

Executive Director

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PEN International

Annual Report 2012

‘I am not Mexican. I am not a gringo. I am not Chicano.

I am not a gringo in the USA and a Mexican in Mexico.

I am Chicano everywhere.

I don’t have to adapt myself to anything. I’ve got my own history.’

Carlos Fuentes, former member of PEN Mexico

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PEN International

Annual Report 2012

2012 at a glance

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2012 at a glance

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Research and Campaign support on over 870 individual cases of writers in prison or at risk

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6 Free the Word! events in partnership with PEN Centres including Free the Word! Haiti, Free the Word! Xalapa, Free the Word! London, Free the Word! Frankfurt book fair, Free the Word! Edinburgh, Free the Word! Korea

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Children and young people participating in education, library and community access to learning programmes across the PEN membership with Beacon Centres identified including the Afghan PEN Centre, Central Asian PEN, PEN Philippines, Sierra Leone PEN and Zambian PEN

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Official launch of the Girona Manifesto, PEN’s declaration of linguistic rights, held in Barcelona

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PEN International’s Declaration on Digital Freedom was approved by the PEN General Assembly

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Growth of the PEN International Publishers Circle

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Launch of the PEN International Publishers Circle Series, with ‘Fleeting Words: Anthology of the Revolution’ publishes in Arabic, French and English

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International Delegation to Turkey to highlight challenges to freedom of expression

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Campaign against impunity

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Welcomed two new PEN Centres – the North Korean Writers in Exile PEN Centre and Lebanon PEN

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Worked closely with the International Cities of Refuge Network (ICORN) advising on applicants and working with the PEN Emergency Fund to directly support writers at risk

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Launched the PEN International/New Voices Award – a global award for young writers

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Recruited new staff members to better resource PEN’s activity

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Focused on global press activity and social media

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John Ralston Saul re-elected as International President 13

PEN International

Annual Report 2012

International Programmes

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International Programmes

Every year we work closely with our 146 Centres to identify ways in which we can strengthen how we run programmes with local communities and develop the day-to-day impact of our work on readers and writers across different communities.

Our projects are designed to highlight the value of reading and writing in education, and the importance of dialogue between countries, languages and communities.

In 2012 we focused on developing two new models for international programmes delivery – Beacon Centres and Civil Society Programmes. Over recent years PEN International has worked with individual Centres and with a regional focus.

Part of PEN International’s learning through this process has been to witness the benefits of sharing best practices between Centres. PEN International has identified Centres which can act as ‘Beacon’ Centres within their regions and, through their programme delivery, to inspire other Centres, to share information on ways of working on successful programme models and to partner on projects.

The first group of Beacon Centres that were identified include Afghan PEN, Central Asian PEN, PEN Philippines, Sierra Leone PEN, Zambian PEN and PEN Haiti.

Our new Civil Society programme was also launched and the first group of participating Centres was identified. The first round of civil society projects are run in Cambodia, Central Asia, Egypt, Ghana, Guinea, Jordan, Nepal, Malawi, Kenya, Puerto Rico and South Africa.

‘I enjoy writing because it’s a discovered talent that I love and enables me to communicate my thoughts, feelings, philosophies and create an imaginary world which is brought to reality on paper. It is important to me because it’s an effective way I can use to communicate to others I have never met across the globe and can be preserved and passed on to another generation.’

– Loliwe, Former Zambian PEN school club member

Students at a Ghanaian PEN Writing Workshop 15

Courtesy of Getty Images 16

PEN International

Annual Report 2012

‘Oh, the leaky boundaries of man-made states!

How many clouds float past them with impunity; how many desert sand shifts from one land to another; how many mountain pebbles tumble onto foreign soil in provocative hops!’

Extract from ‘Psalm’

by Wislawa Szymborska, Poet, Polish PEN member, Nobel Laureate

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PEN International

Annual Report 2012

Policy and Advocacy

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Policy and Advocacy

In December, PEN International raised the profile of PEN’s Girona Manifesto on Linguistic Rights by conducting advocacy with states, intergovernmental organisations and NGOs at the meeting of the Intergovernmental Committee on the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (Convention 2005) held at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris. The 2005 Convention recognises linguistic diversity as a fundamental part of cultural diversity and at the meeting PEN stressed the importance of the Intergovernmental Committee’s allocation of funds in protecting and promoting linguistic diversity UN Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity In Vienna in November, PEN International strengthened its long standing relationship with the United Nations by becoming a partner organisation in the Implementation Strategy of the Interagency UN Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity. The Strategy outlines more than 100 concrete actions to be put in place over the coming two years by different UN agencies working in conjunction with PEN International and other NGOs, as part of joint efforts to secure the safety of journalists. Among the measures PEN will be collaborating with the UN are: •

Conducting awareness-raising activities so that citizens understand the importance of the right to freedom of expression and access to information;

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Providing training for journalists on the issue of safety and online safety;

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Enhancing special measures for women journalists in response to the increasing incidence of sexual harassment and rape;

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Promoting good working conditions for journalists developing their professional activities on both a full-time and freelance basis; and

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Establishing real-time emergency response mechanisms.

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PEN International

Annual Report 2012

‘Free the Word! is PEN International in spirit and actions - a festival for authors and readers to make sparks across the divide between national literatures’ Tom Stoppard

Courtesy of Getty Images 20

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PEN International

Annual Report 2012

Free the Word!

Kosal Khiev, Cambodian Poet, at Free the Word! Poetry Parnassus 22

Free the Word!

Free the Word! – PEN International’s event series of contemporary literature – works with PEN Centres to develop an international network of literary events and festivals.

Each festival is rooted in its local culture but is international in outlook. This year, Free the Word! events took place in London, Mexico, Scotland, Haiti and Korea, bringing writers together from around the world to share ideas, experiences and promote reading and writing.

2012 also saw the launch of our new global partnership with Hay Festivals - a world festival of literature and arts.

In 2013 Free the Word! will travel to Colombia, Lebanon, Scotland, Iceland, Wales and many more locations.

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PEN International

Annual Report 2012

Free the Word!

at Poetry Parnassus London, UK Syl Cheney Coker at Free the Word! Poetry Parnassus 24

Free the Word! at Poetry Parnassus London, UK

On 27 June 2012, PEN International, in collaboration with English PEN and London’s Southbank Centre, hosted a series of Free the Word! events promoting freedom of expression and poetry as part of the international Poetry Parnassus festival. Alongside the series of discussions and debates focusing on global conflict, exile and audience, minority languages and marginalized voices, we also ran creative writing workshops with audience members on the theme of freedom.

During the event, Burmese comedian, writer, and former PEN International Writers in Prison Committee main case, Zarganar, spoke about his experiences of imprisonment and torture and the way in which poetry helped him endure his time in solitary confinement. Zarganar has been a fierce critic of the Burmese military government and in November 2008 he was arrested and sentenced to 59 years in prison for criticizing the Myanmar junta’s response to cyclone Nargis.

Other participating writers included Seamus Heaney, Wole Soyinka, John Agard, Shailja Patel, Jack Mapanje and Rafeef Ziadeh highlighting the significance of poetry as communicator across all boundaries.

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PEN International

Annual Report 2012

Free the Word!

Around the World

Wole Soyinka and Peter Godwin at Free the Word! at Hay Festival Xalapa, Mexico 26

Free the Word! around the world

Free the Word! Haiti In April 2012, PEN Haiti hosted its first International Free the Word! Festival in Port-au-Prince and Gonaives. The programme of events focused on free expression in times of crisis, women writers and free speech with a particular focus on the role of PEN International and its work in defending and facilitating freedom of expression.

The festival paid homage to leading writer and political activist Jacques Stephen Alexis who was murdered in 1966 under the Duvalier regime. The festival included a host of Haitian and international writers such as Jean-Euphèle Milcé, Georges Castera, `Emmelie Prophète, Evelyne Trouilot, and Roger Bonnair-Agard.

Free the Word! Korea At the annual Congress in Korea in September a vibrant Free the Word! event programme was included and featured Nobel Laureates Wole Soyinka and Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clezio and Korean poet Ko Un.

Free the Word! Mexico From 3-7 October 2012, we were at the Hay Festival Xalapa, Mexico holding a number of Free the Word! Events highlighting the issue of impunity in the region and our on-going fight to defend freedom of expression. Over the course of 2012, PEN International placed specific focus on escalating violence against writers in Latin America through its PEN Protesta! And Write Against Impunity campaigns.

PEN International’s Free the Word! events included writers such as Peter Godwin, Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka, Ed Vulliamy, Frédéric Martel, Eurig Salisbury, Janne Teller and Jeannette Winterson.

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PEN International

Annual Report 2012

PEN International Publishers Circle

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PEN International Publishers Circle

The PEN International Publishers Circle is a group of leading publishers who support the work of PEN in promoting freedom of expression, literature and intellectual collaboration among publishers, writers and translators worldwide.

Its members believe that literature and free expression are at the heart of a strong and vibrant society.

PEN International is committed to promoting writing and a love of reading through learning and outreach programmes, supporting access to literature through international festivals, events and publications. In defending freedom of expression, we work to ensure that publishers and writers are free to operate in all countries, and readers are free to access the books of their choice.

Set up in 2011 the Publishers Circle now contains 18 member organisations from around the world such as Hachette Livre, Penguin Group, Random House, Aschehoug Forlag, Cappelendamm, Albert Bonniers Forlag, De Oberoende, Douglas & McIntyre, Grove Atlantic, HarperCollins Canada, Harper Collins International, House of Anansi Press, Gyldendal Norsk Forlag, KF Media AB, Natur & Kultur, Schildts & Sรถderstrรถms, and Dar El Shorouk.

This year saw the launch of the first in the PEN International Publishers Circle Series: Fleeting Words: An Anthology of the Revolution. The second publication in the Publishers Circle Series, to launch in 2013, will be Write Against Impunity bringing together writing from leading writers across Latin America.

Ronald Blunden, Senior Vice President, Hachette Livre at a Free the Word! event.

Frankfurt Book Fair, Germany 29

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‘When another writer is in another house is not free, no writer is free. This, indeed, is the spirit that informs the solidarity felt by PEN, by writers all around the world.’ Orhan Pamuk, Nobel Prize Laureate

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PEN International

Annual Report 2012

PEN International Congress

Wole Soyinka, Jean-Marie Le ClĂŠzio and John Ralston Saul, PEN International President, at 78th PEN International Congress, Korea

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PEN International Congress

The 78th PEN International Congress was hosted by PEN Korean Centre with the theme of ‘Literature, Media and Human Rights’. Members from over 80 Centres around the world gathered to focus on key issues of freedom of expression.

International President John Ralston Saul opened the Congress by remembering imprisoned members and colleagues, highlighting the unjust imprisonment of Nobel Prize winner, Liu Xiaobo, who remains in prison in China.

The PEN International Assembly approved its pioneering Declaration on Digital Freedom – which calls on governments, companies and individuals to not censor, restrict or control the content of digital media and respect human rights including the right to freedom of expression – irrespective of national laws. The Assembly of Delegates passed key resolutions and actions on: Belarus, China, Cuba, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Honduras, Iran, Mexico, Syria and Vietnam. Two new PEN Centres were established – Lebanon PEN and North Korean Writers in Exile and John Ralston Saul was re-elected for a second term as PEN International President.

One of the main focuses of the Congress was the engagement of young people and their role in literature, freedom of expression and educational programmes.

Highlighting the importance of engaging young people in PEN’s work, Executive Director of PEN International, Laura McVeigh, launched the PEN International/New Voices Award that will focus on working with young writers around the world.

This Congress was also part of a special celebration of over 90 years of PEN and its work in promoting literature and freedom of expression.

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PEN International

Annual Report 2012

Translation & Linguistic Rights ‘Language allows us not just to think but also to have memories, to have conscience and to get in touch with other human beings, to communicate with them Translation implies to acquire a new proximity to others, to their culture, their way of thinking and acting.’ Josep-Maria Terricabras, Chair of the Translation & Linguistic Rights Committee

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Translation & Linguistic Rights

At the very heart of PEN International’s work is the diversity of stories that make up our community. Celebrating contemporary writing from every culture, language and form, literature in translation is vital in making connections between shared human experiences. In 2012, this was the foundation of a of number of key projects including the Girona Manifesto – a manifesto on linguistic rights: a ten point document designed to be translated and disseminated widely as a tool to defend linguistic diversity around the world. The manifesto has been translated into over 70 languages and this number continues to grow.

The PEN International Translation & Linguistic Rights Committee held its annual meeting in Barcelona in June. With the overall theme ‘Strategies for the promotion of translation’, over 30 participants worked on key debates including – institutional strategies in building a common heritage; strategies related to the publishing industry and literary strategies on translation.

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PEN International

Annual Report 2012

Writers for Peace

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Writers for Peace

The PEN International Writers for Peace Committee was founded in 1984 as a response to the difficulties posed to cultural collaboration during the Cold War years. Its key aim was to open doors to peaceful and intellectual cooperation, encouraging the sharing of ideas and writings, during a period when many other doors were closed. During its early years, the Committee’s annual meetings in Bled gave space for a democratic dialogue between writers from both East and West and during the break-up of the former Yugoslavia, offered somewhere that writers from these countries could exchange views and tell their stories. Today, it continues to provide a platform for intercultural and literary dialogue and understanding.

2012 has been an active year for the Writers for Peace Committee engaging on key issues including the issue of Impunity, in particular, the predicament of writers and journalists in Mexico; discussion of environmental issues in relation to human security; difficulties of minorities; a continuation of dialogue between Israeli and Arab writers; connecting with writers in Afghanistan, Iraq and Iran; engagement in the Balkan network and participation in the Maribor European Capital of Culture programme.

‘My respect for this organization has no borders and among the organizations that help writers, PEN has been so fierce, so consistent and ferocious in its efforts that it is difficult to ignore their fame and their impact.’ Toni Morrison, 2008 PEN/Borders Literary Service Award

Courtesy of Getty Images 37

Courtesy of Getty Images 38

PEN International

Annual Report 2012

‘Arthur Miller and I landed at Istanbul airport on March 17, 1985. We were visiting Turkey on behalf of International P.E.N., to investigate allegations of the torture and persecution of Turkish writers. The trip got off to a bad start. I had two suitcases. One hadn’t made it.

Apart from other things, this left me with no socks. So Arthur lent me his. Bloody good ones they were too.’

Harold Pinter

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PEN International

Annual Report 2012

Writers in Prison

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Writers in Prison

The PEN International Writers in Prison Committee was established in 1960 in response to increasing attempts to silence voices of dissent by imprisoning writers and journalists.

In 2012 the committee continued its high quality monitoring of the threat to over 870 writers and journalist around the world. Over the course of the year some 85 Rapid Action Network alerts were issued focusing on 25 countries and over 90 individuals; over 40 per cent of imprisoned individuals were released.

The PEN Emergency fund made 30 aid donations, 17 of which were in the Middle East and North Africa. 14 of these donations were made in Syria reflecting the impossible situation for Writers at Risk in the country, who are left with little choice but to seek refuge placements.

‘When your heart trembles for the rights of another human, that is when you begin to slip; that is when the interrogations begin.

When your heart trembles for another prisoner, a woman, a child labourer, that is when you become the accused. When you find faith in people and believe in humanity and nothing else, that is when you commit your first crime.’ Extract from a letter by imprisoned Iranian writer, activist and blogger Shiva Nazar Ahari

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PEN International

China

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Annual Report 2012

China

To mark the second anniversary of the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to our colleague Liu Xiaobo, poet and former president of the Independent Chinese PEN Centre (ICPC), PEN International, in partnership with the Dublin-based human rights organisation Front Line Defenders, launched an international campaign to call for his release.

Chinese poet and human rights defender Liu Xiaobo is serving an eleven-year prison sentence for his dissident writings and peaceful activism, the fourth year of which was marked on 8 December 2012. PEN International and Front Line Defenders’ continuing campaign has been gathering video recordings of writers around the world reading excerpts of Liu’s poetry, which have been uploaded on the campaign website: http://www.lighthonestyhrd.org/ In 2013 PEN International will launch the ‘The PEN Report: Creativity and Constraints in Today’s China’ examining the climate of freedom of expression in the world’s most populous state.

‘I am serving my sentence in a tangible prison, while you wait in the intangible prison of the heart’ Nobel Laureate Liu Xiaobo, to his wife, Liu Xia

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PEN International

Annual Report 2012

Latin America and the Caribbean ‘They fall without noise the leaves of the trees their green, their life is extinguished without reducing the bustle of the forest of its overflowing, violent vitality.’ Gioconda Belli, President of PEN Nicaragua, Write Against Impunity

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Latin America and the Caribbean

Write Against Impunity In the first six months of 2012, more reporters were murdered in Latin America than in any other region worldwide. Mexico was the second most dangerous country in the world in which to be a writer or journalist, with Honduras and Brazil coming close behind.

To mark the International Day to End Impunity, PEN International launched its Write Against Impunity e-anthology: a selection of collected works by writers and journalists from across Latin America as part of a literary protest highlighting the escalating violence against journalists, writers and bloggers in the region, and the impunity enjoyed by those who seek to silence them.

The contributors to the campaign were as follows: Luis Miguel Aguilar, Mexico. Claribel Alegria, Nicaragua. Luigi Amara, Mexico.

Homero Aridjis, Mexico. Gilda Batista, Honduras. Gioconda Belli, Nicaragua.

Alberto Blanco, Mexico. Carmen Boullosa, Mexico. Lydia Cacho, Mexico.

Martin Camps, Mexico. Rosalba Chavez Bocanegra, Mexico. Jennifer Clement, Mexico. Angel Cuadra, Cuba. Amelia del Castillo, Cuba. Yvonne Denis Rosario, Puerto Rico. Ariel Dorfman, Chile/USA. Lety Elvir, Honduras. Alvaro Enrigue, Mexico. Denis Orlando Escobar Galicia, Guatemala. Laura Esquivel, Mexico.

Luis Felipe Fabre, Mexico. Julio César Gálvez, Cuba. Carlos Gamerro, Argentina.

Adela Garcia, Mexico. Carlos Rene García, Guatemala. Ricardo Gonzalez Alfonso, Cuba. Gloria Guardia, Nicaragua/Panama. Judyth Hill USA/Mexico.

Emi Kasamatsu, Paraguay. Tamara Leon, Mexico. Tedi Lopez Mills, Mexico.

Victor Manuel Mendiola, Mexico. Rolando Najera, Mexico. Luis Alberto Ospina Bozzi, Colombia. Jorge Olivera, Cuba. Jose Emilio Pacheco, Mexico.

Melissa Patiño, Peru. Amada Ponce, Honduras. Elena Poniatowska, Mexico.

Alicia Quiñones, Mexico. Sergio Ramirez, Nicaragua. Simon Richards, Argentina.

Lucano Romero Carcamo, Mexico. Claudia Sanchez, Honduras. Victor Sahuatoba, Mexico. Irene Selser, Argentina/Mexico. David Shook, USA /Mexico. Erick Tejada Carbajal, Honduras. Victor Terán, Mexico. Elsa Tio, Puerto Rico. Luisa Valenzuela, Argentina. Diana Vallejo, Honduras. Gaby Vallejo, Bolivia.

A paperback version of the anthology will be released and available online in 2013.

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PEN International

Annual Report 2012

‘I believe that [journalists and human rights groups including PEN International] saved my life by writing letters, by being there, by making calls or even just by thinking or wishing that I was alive...’ Lydia Cacho, Mexican author and activist

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PEN International

Turkey

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Annual Report 2012

Turkey

Turkey has an extraordinarily high number of writers and journalists in prison, and many other writers, journalists and publishers are currently on trial or facing trial.

We believe that a significant number of the writers, publishers and journalists who are in prison or on trial in Turkey have been targeted for what they have written or published, and that Turkey’s broadly framed anti-terror laws are empowering overzealous state prosecutors to pursue cases where no material links to terrorism exist. The number of cases that we monitor in Turkey has increased alarmingly in the past year: more than 70 writers and journalists are currently in prison, and at least 60 other writers, publishers and journalists, are on trial, ensnared in legal processes that can last years.

In November a high-level delegation led by PEN International held a series of meetings with senior government officials, politicians, members of the diplomatic community in Ankara, and with writers and publishers in Istanbul.

The delegation, which included the PEN executive, and representatives of Centres from six countries around the world, met with President Abdullah Gßl and presented the president with an outline of PEN’s concerns, including key cases of writers, journalists, and publishers who are either in prison or on trial in Turkey.

We requested that the government immediately review all such cases to ensure that no one is being penalised for the legitimate exercise of the right to peaceful freedom of expression, and release all those currently detained, imprisoned, or facing prosecution in violation of this right.

PEN International continues to monitor cases of this nature in Turkey.

Elif Shafak, writer, PEN supporter and former WiPC case 49

PEN International

Annual Report 2012

Day of the Imprisoned Writer

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Day of the Imprisoned Writer

On 15th November, PEN International marked the 31st Annual Day of the Imprisoned Writer, an international day to recognise and support writers at risk. Each year, for the past 31 years, PEN Centres around the globe have commemorated the Day of the Imprisoned Writer to raise awareness of the unjust imprisonment and persecution of writers around the world.

This year we highlighted cases from Iran, the Philippines, Mexico, Turkey and Ethiopia.

These cases are emblematic of the kinds of persecution faced by many writers and journalists worldwide in carrying out their basic right to free expression.

‘When your heart trembles for the rights of another human, that is when you begin to slip; that is when the interrogations begin. When your heart trembles for another prisoner, a woman, a child labourer, that is when you become the accused. When you find faith in people and believe in humanity and nothing else, that is when you commit your first crime.’ – Extract from a letter by Shiva Nazar Ahari to a fellow prisoner.

‘In a world where independent voices are increasingly stifled, PEN is not a luxury, it is a necessity.’

Margaret Atwood

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Courtesy of Getty Images 52

‘[We want] to make it clear to people in [their] country that we with our allies are not fighting only for ourselves but for the belief we share with every man, of any race and religion, who holds that men should respect each other and minds should be free’ From the appeals to the Conscience of the World, published in 1940 on Storm Jameson’s initiative, the first female president of English PEN

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PEN International

Annual Report 2012

Women Writers

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Women Writers

In many countries around the world, women have little or no opportunity to read and write beyond a basic education, if they receive an education at all. PEN International works with its Centres to campaign for greater access to literature for women and girls. We emphasise literature’s importance in encouraging understanding of women’s rights and the role writers can play in raising awareness of human histories through storytelling.

During 2012 the Women Writers Committee continued to highlight the work of members and draw attention to human rights cases involving women writers in particular through online and social media platforms such as the Our Voice Facebook page, online at www.piwwc.org and through the PEN International website www.peninternational.org The Women Writers Committee also continued its annual participation at the United Nation’s Consultation on the Status of Women. The committee campaigned on behalf of women writers subject to abuses of freedom of expression including cases in Iran, Turkey, Bahrain, Russia, Mexico and Vietnam.

In October, the Chair of PEN International’s Women Writers Committee, with thousands of Egyptian women delegates from dozens of women’s organizations, stood before the presidential palace in Cairo carrying posters and banners to express their protest against the marginalization of women after the January 25 revolution and appealed to the president to issue a law against harassment.

In the same month, PEN International’s Women Writers Committee released a statement condemning the brutal attack of 14 year old blogger and education activist Malala Yousafzai by Taliban gunmen. Yousafzai was shot in the head in an assassination attempt on 9 October 2012 as she was returning home from school in the Swat region of northern Pakistan.

Teachers at Philippine PEN literary workshop 55

PEN International

Annual Report 2012

Statement of financial activities Including income and expenditure account for the year ended 31 December 2012

Incoming Resources from generated funds Unrestricted funds

Donations and legacies

2

151,387

Activities for generating funds

3

132,581

Investment income

4

123

Incoming resources from charitable activities Total incoming resources

56

5

Designated funds

Restricted funds

24,643

-

Total 2012

Total 2011

176,030

154,607

132,581

143,055

123

-

284,091

24,643

308,734

297,662

14,613

632,137

646,750

397,338

298,704

656,780

955,484

695,000

Statement of financial activities

Resources expended Unrestricted funds

Costs of generating funds

6

Restricted funds

Total 2012

Total 2011

2,686

4,884

350,477

485,870

306,759

359

113,685

162,000

291,330

3,418

464,162

647,870

598,089

3,563

18,042

10,631

197,455

3,418

467,725

668,598

613,604

Unrestricted funds

Designated funds

Restricted funds

Total 2012

Total 2011

101,249

-3,418

189,055

286,886

-21,550

7,309

14,241

81,396

132,334

3,059

47,956 180,290

2,686

Costs of generating donations and legacies

Designated funds

Charitable activities General advocacy and support Writers in Prison Total charitable expenditure

14,479

Governance costs Total resources expended

Net incoming/(outgoing) resources before transfers Gross transfers between funds

10

Net income for the year/ Net movement in funds

Fund balances at 1 January 2012

79,699

3,891

203,296

286,886

81,396

112,729

9,190

64,566

186,485

105,089

Fund balances at 31 December 2012

192,428

13,081

267,862

473,371

186,485

57

PEN International

Annual Report 2012

Statement of financial activities Including income and expenditure account for the year ended 31 December 2012

Balance sheet

2012 Notes

Fixed assets

11

Tangible assets Current mulcts

£

12

Debtors

135,126

Cash at bank and in hand

428,040

Creditors: amounts falling due within one year

13

126,613 170,613

563,166

297,226

-102,876

-119,931

£

9,190

473,371

186,485

15

267,862

64,566

16

13,081

9,190

192,428

112,729

473,371

186,485

Unrestricted funds:

58

13,081

£

177,295

Total assets less current liabilities

Designated funds

Other charitable funds

£

460,290

Net current assets

Income funds

Restricted funds

2011

Clifford Chance

PEN International is pleased to work with global law firm Clifford Chance as one of the organisation’s global strategic pro bono clients.

Alongside recent project engagement in Honduras, Mexico, and Zambia, Clifford Chance is working with the PEN International’s Translation and Linguistic Rights Committee providing legal expertise and research into the international legal framework for protecting cultural diversity and the wider role PEN’s Girona Manifesto can play in protecting and defending linguistic rights around the world.

Staff from across Clifford Chance’s different areas also provide invaluable pro bono support on Human Resources, legal and IT matters in addition to providing much valued translation support.

‘We are delighted at PEN International to be working with Clifford Chance on such a wide range of practical projects and new initiatives with a range of PEN centres internationally. Having staff bring their skills, time and expertise to support PEN’s development is making a real difference both locally and at the international level.’ – Laura McVeigh, Executive Director, PEN International

‘We are proud and excited to continue to work with PEN International.

Our involvement builds on the firm’s broader corporate responsibility objectives to support access to justice, finance and education and we are delighted to be able to bring our breadth of expertise to support PEN International and PEN Centres on a wide range of new initiatives.

We look forward to seeing such worthwhile projects come to fruition.’

Catherine Cook, Partner, Clifford Chance LLP

59

PEN International

Annual Report 2012

With thanks to the following organisations for their valued support:

Albert Bonniers Forlag

The Knight Foundation

Aschehoug Forlag

Eric and Karen Lax

Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation

Natur & Kultur

Cappelendamm

Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Commonwealth Foundation

OIF

Dar El Shorouk

Oxfam NOVIB

De Oberoende

Penguin Group

Douglas & McIntyre

Pentagram

European Commission

Power Corporation

Frankfurt Book Fair

Prince Claus Foundation

Fritt Ord Foundation

Random House

Future Shorts

John Ralston Saul

Getty Images

Schildts & Söderströms

Grove Atlantic

Secret Cinema

Gyldendal Norsk Forlag

SIDA

HarperCollins Canada

Haroon Siddiqui

Hachette Livre

Sigrid Rausing Trust

HarperCollins International

Swedish Cultural Ministry

Hay Festivals

Temple Translations

John Honderich

UNESCO

House of Anansi Press

Zerofee

ICORN IFEX International Human Rights Program, University of Toronto Faculty of Law

anonymous donors and PEN Centres who help

KF Media AB

enable PEN International’s work.

60

And with thanks to the individual donors,

President John Ralston Saul Secretary Hori Takeaki Treasurer Eric Lax Executive Director Laura McVeigh Board Sylvestre Clancier Lee Gil-won Markéta Hejkalová Elizabeth Hiester Philo Ikonya Yang Lian Antonio Della Rocca Haroon Siddiqui Staff Anthony Archer Finance Manager Ghias Aljundi Middle East Researcher & Development Officer Sarah Clarke International Policy and Advocacy Officer Patricia Diaz Asia Pacific & Middle East Research Assistant Sandrine Fameni Finance & Administrative Assistant Paul Finegan Centres & Committees Co-ordinator/Executive Assistant Frank Geary Deputy Director & International Programmes Director Sahar Halaimzai Communications & Campaigns Manager Emma Wadsworth Jones Writers in Prison Committee Assistant Emese Kovács International Programmes Officer Cathy McCann Asia Pacific & Middle East Campaigner, Researche Tamsin Mitchell Africa & Americas Campaigner, Researcher Cathal Sheerin Africa & Americas Campaigner, Researcher James Tennant Literary Manager Sara Whyatt Deputy Director & Programme Director Writers in Prison Volunteers Anthea Gordon Jack Jeffries Karis Lacroix PEN International celebrates literature and promotes freedom of expression.

Founded in 1921, our global community of writers now spans more than 100 countries.

Our campaigns, events, publications and programmes aim to connect writers and readers wherever they are in the world.

PEN International is a non-political organisation and holds special consultative status at the United Nations.

To support the work that PEN International carries out around the world please go to http://www.pen-international.org/support-us/ Pen International Brownlow House, 50/51 High Holborn, London WC1V 6ER T 44(0)20 7405 0338 Email info@pen-international.org INTERNATIONAL P. E. N. (known as PEN INTERNATIONAL) (A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE) is a registered charity in England and Wales with registration number 1117088 A full copy of our audited 2012 accounts are available to download at: www.pen-international.org

Promoting Literature, Defending Freedom of Expression

PEN International Brownlow House, 50/51 High Holborn, London WC1V 6ER T 44(0)20 7405 0338 Email info@pen-international.org

Supported by SIDA