PEN International Writers in Prison Committee works on behalf of persecuted writers worldwide. Established in 1960 in response to increasing attempts to silence voices of
dissent by imprisoning writers, the Writers in Prison Committee monitors the cases of as many as 900 writers annually who have been
imprisoned,
tortured, threatened, attacked, made to disappear, and killed for the peaceful practice of their profession. It publishes a bi-annual Case List documenting free expression violations against writers around the world. The committee also coordinates the PEN International membership's campaigns that aim towards an end to these attacks and to the suppression of
freedom of expression worldwide. PEN International Writers in Prison Committee is a founding member of the
International Freedom of Expression Exchange (IFEX), a global network of 90
non-governmental organisations that monitors censorship worldwide and defends journalists, writers, internet users, and others who are persecuted for exercising their right to freedom of expression. It is also a member of IFEX's
Tunisia Monitoring Group (TMG), a coalition of twenty-one free expression organisations that began lobbying the Tunisian government to improve its human rights record in 2005. Since the
Arab Spring events that led to the collapse of the Tunisian government, TMG has worked to ensure constitutional guarantees of free expression and human rights within the country.
Ma Thida is the Chair of this committee. ==PEN affiliated awards==