Two via PEN

PEN’s current newsletter has two interesting pieces cocnerning recent problems that have befallen Arab wrters, on here (the refusal of a visa for Tariq Ramadan) and one in Algeria (re the jailed journalist Mohammed Benchicou). Some details below:

Tariq Ramadan lawsuit
Last week, PEN hailed a court ruling challenging the U.S. government’s refusal to issue a visa to the prominent Muslim scholar Tariq Ramadan, calling the court’s order to process Professor Ramadan’s visa application “a clear and articulate affirmation of the First Amendment rights of Americans.” >>More

Mohammed Benchicou released
PEN also welcomed the release of Mohammed Benchicou, a newspaper publisher whose paper’s independent reporting earned him a two-year prison term in Algeria. This April, Benchicou was awarded a 2006 PEN/Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award. >>More