188 Writers Ask Eritrea for Proof 12 Jailed Writers Are Alive
188 writers signed a letter dated 18 September to Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki asking for immediate, verified proof that 12 Eritrean writers detained since 2001 are alive. The Guardian The letter lists 12 names. The writers have been held incommunicado since that year, meaning without contact with families, lawyers, or outside observers.
Nobel laureates Olga Tokarczuk and J.M. Coetzee are among the signatories. The wider list includes Colm Tóibín, Elif Shafak, Isabel Allende, Ben Okri, Yann Martel, Kamila Shamsie and Tsitsi Dangarembga. The Guardian
The letter names poet Amanuel Asrat and playwright and journalist Dawit Isaak. The other writers named are 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. The Guardian
The timing follows the calendar. The letter marks 25 years since the Eritrean government's 2001 crackdown on the independent press. That anniversary shapes both the appeal and the campaign activity around it.
PEN International planned to attempt delivery of the letter at the Eritrean embassy in London at 10am on Friday, 18 September 2026. PEN International's news page lists an item titled 'Eritrea: An open letter to President Isaias Afwerki' dated 18/09/2026.
The letter sits inside a longer effort. PEN's Proof of Life campaign for Eritrea's disappeared writers is led by PEN International and PEN Eritrea in Exile with support from sibling centres including English PEN. English PEN The campaign runs from 26 June throughout 2026. English PEN
A public event is attached to that campaign. English PEN's International Translation Day 2026 event focused on the Proof of Life campaign is scheduled for 30 September 2026 at 7pm in Brixton. It will be hosted in person at Brixton Library, London. English PEN
The broader context here is what proof of life means in cases of incommunicado detention. For groups that work on these cases, the request is kept narrow on purpose. It does not decide guilt, sentence, or legal status. It asks for checkable confirmation that the named people are alive, where they are held, and under what authority. That narrow request is often used when access to lawyers, family contact, and review by a court have been unavailable.
Looking at what this means for leverage, the instrument is publicity paired with procedure. An open letter with 188 signatures creates a public record of who asked. Attempted delivery in person at an embassy creates a record of receipt or refusal. A dated anniversary and a scheduled London event create several news moments rather than a single appeal. None of those steps compels a response from Asmara. They keep the names in the institutional record and test whether any channel for verification will open.
