PEN International

PEN International (known as International PEN until 2010) is a worldwide association of writers, founded in London in 1921 to promote friendship and intellectual co-operation among writers everywhere.

Other goals included: to emphasise the role of literature in the development of mutual understanding and world culture; to fight for freedom of expression; and to act as a powerful voice on behalf of writers harassed, imprisoned and sometimes killed for their views

t is the world's oldest human rights organization and the oldest international literary organization

PEN originally stood for "Poets, Essayists and Novelists," but now includes writers of any form of literature, such as journalists and historians.

The association has autonomous International PEN Centres in over 100 countries.