18 September 2026: Acclaimed writers from around the world have signed an open letter to President Isaias Afwerki, in support of PEN’s global Proof of Life campaign. Signatories include Nobel laureates Olga Tokarczuk and J.M. Coetzee; Burhan Sonmez, President of PEN International; Rohinton Mistry, recipient of the Neustadt International Prize for Literature; Ben Okri and Yann Martel, Booker Prize winners; Tsitsi Dangarembga, recipient of the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade; Isabel Allende, recipient of the National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters; Anthony Doerr, Pulitzer Prize winner; and Colm Tóibín, winner of the IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, among others.
The letter calls for verified proof of life for 12 Eritrean writers and journalists who have been held incommunicado since 2001, when the Eritrean government launched a crackdown against independent media and voices, and calls for an end to 25 years of silence and enforced disappearance. The 12 writers and journalists are Amanuel Asrat, Dawit Habtemichael, Dawit Isaak, Fessehaye ‘Joshua’ Yohannes, Matheos Habteab, Medhanie Haile, Sahle ‘Wedi-ltay’ Tsegazeab, Said Abdelkadir, Said Idris ‘Abu Are’, Seyoum Tsehaye, Temesgen Ghebreyesus and Yousif Mohammed Ali.
For a quarter of a century, their families and colleagues have received no verified information about their whereabouts, health or survival. The writers have been held incommunicado without trial. PEN International, English PEN, PEN Eritrea in Exile and many other PEN centres around the world have consistently campaigned for their freedom and for information about their fate.
Take action & join the campaign:
- Sign the global proof of life petition
- Write a letter of solidarity to Amanuel Asrat’s family
Read the letter here.
For further information, please contact: [email protected]