• Mansur Rajih: A Poet and Human in Exile
    Mansur Rajih: A Poet and Human in Exile

    This year, the Writers in Prison Committee (WiPC) of International PEN, celebrates 50 years of defending freedom of expression around the world with a year-long campaign – Because Writers Speak their Minds. As part of this campaign, the Committee looks back on 50 emblematic cases illustrating how and why they have worked. One case on this list is story of Mansur Rajih. This poet was the first International Cities of Refugee Network’s guest writer in Stavanger, Norway, where he arrived in 1998 after spending 15 years in prison in Yemen.

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  • Protecting Freedom of Expression: Interview with ICORN's Helge Lund
    Protecting Freedom of Expression: Interview with ICORN’s Helge Lunde

    Sampsonia Way is pleased to present a series of interviews with writers from all over the world who have participated in International Cities if Refugee Network (ICORN). By way of introduction we present this interview with ICORN Executive Director, Helge Lunde. Here he tells the story of ICORN’s founding, how it has provided support for persecuted writers, and what inspires him to do this work.

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