Prominent Authors Demand Proof of Life for 12 Disappeared Eritrean Writers Held Since 2001

More than 180 international authors, including Nobel laureates Olga Tokarczuk and J.M. Coetzee, have signed an open letter to Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki requesting immediate, verified proof of life for 12 writers who were detained incommunicado during a 2001 government crackdown on free expression. Organised by PEN International and dated September 18, the letter marks 25 years since the Eritrean government systematically closed independent press outlets and silenced critical voices.

The letter highlights the ongoing unlawful silence surrounding the status of the detained individuals, stating that withholding information regarding their health, survival, and whereabouts violates international law. Other notable literary figures signing the letter include Colm Tóibín, Elif Shafak, Isabel Allende, Ben Okri, Yann Martel, Kamila Shamsie, and Tsitsi Dangarembga, alongside writers such as Andrei Kurkov, Anthony Doerr, Lauren Groff, Lemn Sissay, Maaza Mengiste, Max Porter, Philippe Sands, and Preti Taneja.

Names of the Detained Writers

The letter explicitly identifies the 12 writers and journalists held without contact for over two decades. Among those listed are poet Amanuel Asrat, playwright and journalist Dawit Isaak, Dawit Habtemichael, Fessehaye “Joshua” Yohannes, Mattewos Habteab, Medhanie Haile, Sahle “Wedi-ltay” Tsegazeab, Said Abdelkadir, Said Idris “Abu Are”, Seyoum Tsehaye, Temesgen Ghebreyesus, and Yousif Mohammed Ali. Six of the individuals were previously profiled by The Guardian in 2015.

A total of 188 writers joined the statement, directly telling President Afwerki that a nation's future should rely on its brightest minds rather than their suppression, and emphasizing that no writer or journalist should face disappearance for peacefully voicing their perspectives. Since gaining independence in 1993, Eritrea has been governed under a repressive dictatorship led by Afwerki, with no national elections conducted.

PEN International's Campaign

The recent letter follows a public petition launched earlier this year by PEN International advocating for verified information on the writers. Burhan Sönmez, president of PEN International, stressed that living for a quarter of a century without knowledge of a family member's survival is unbearable. Sönmez stated that the literary community will persist in speaking the names of the missing authors and demanding the truth regarding their fate.