Over 100 notable international writers and artists on Monday expressed concern over the state of freedom of expression in India and called on President Droupadi Murmu to support democratic ideals.
The group of 102 writers, including Marina Abramovic, Paul Auster, J.M. Coetzee, Jennifer Egan, Jonathan Franzen, Azar Nafisi, and Orhan Pamuk, joined the writers’ organisations PEN America and PEN International in signing the letter to Ms. Murmu, a statement by PEN America said.
“As India celebrates 75 years of independence, the state of free expression is under grave threat and is being mourned rather than celebrated,” said PEN America’s director of Free Expression at Risk Programs Karin Deutsch Karlekar.
