Category Archives: Special Columns

ICPC Origin and Development

By Yu Zhang

PEN International, formerly known as International PEN, founded on 5th October 1921, is currently the only global association of writers. The traditional constituents of PEN membership are summed up in its three letters: P stands for Poet and Playwright, E for Editor and Essayist, and N for Novelist. As a word in combination, PEN is also a traditional tool of writing, very meaningful. Today, a reporter, literary translator or publishes is also eligible to become a member of PEN. Continue reading

Liu Xia: Two Poems under House Arrest

Drinking

Before going to drink with my old brother
I will unplug my telephone Continue reading

Tienchi Martin-Liao: The 228 Incident is the Legacy of the Taiwanese People

The February 28 Incident, or “228,” was an anti-government uprising in Taiwan against the Kuomintang (KMT) that resulted in a number of deaths, estimated anywhere from 10,000-50,000. Taiwan’s process of historical reflection and apology for the 1947 incident highlights tension between the ways in which both China and Taiwan deal with their individual and shared histories. Continue reading

Tienchi Martin-Liao : Two Forgotten Spies: Bianca Tam and Antonio Riva

Foreigners in China, in the mid-twentieth century, were active in the resistance against the burgeoning Communist regime. The stories of two Italian spies have been largely lost in history. Tienchi Martin-Liao seeks to shine light on the pair’s forgotten histories by retelling the story their opposite fates.

Continue reading

Tienchi Martin-Liao: Brave Man, Gao Zhisheng, Stands Up Against Chinese State Power

The censorship of human rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng’s new prison memoir shows that the Chinese authorities are aware of the human rights atrocities that are being committed within the justice system.

Continue reading

Tienchi Martin-Liao: Elegy of a Chinese Peasant Woman

while-their-parents-go-to-work-in-the-cities-children-in-rural-china-are-left-behind

While their parents go to work in the cities, children in rural China are left behind and inherit generational poverty. Image via: Wikimedia Commons.

A tragedy in rural China highlights the socioeconomic divides that have left rural peasant women behind.

Continue reading

Tsoi Wing-Mui: Causeway Bay Bookstore Incident and Hong Kong’s Press Freedom

pi82-cym

Wing Mui TSOI speaking at PEN International 82nd Congress held in Ourense, Spain, on 28 September, 2016

There once was a famous saying in Hong Kong: A border separates Hong Kong from Mainland China. On both sides of this border are the same people with the same cultural tradition and they belong to same race. But there is a key difference: People on one side can criticize anyone but their government while people on the other side can criticize anyone but their wives. Continue reading

Tienchi Liao: An empty chair for Liu xiaobo on the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize ceremony

liu-xiaobo-nobel-prizeTo Chair Woman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee
Mrs. Kaci Kullmann

Former Chairman
Mr. Thorbjorn Jagland

Dear Mrs. Kullmann,
Dear Mr. Jagland,

The 2010 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Mr. Liu Xiaobo is still kept in prison in China, he is serving his 11 years imprisonment and will not be released till 2020. Continue reading