 believes that his detention and conviction are linked to his writings and research, which challenges the government's narrative on its counterterrorism operations in the Sinai Peninsula. Alice Kadalani, writings, presented a deep understanding of the situation in Sinai, the diversity of its population, and highlighted the complex socioeconomic interests of civilians and military in this region. His work has been published in various regional and international media, such as independent Lebanese newspaper Al-Safir and Al-Mudon, and the US-based The Wilson Center. His series of articles at the Arab Studies Journal, Jada Liya, provides a unique critical analysis of the political mobilization in Egypt after 2011 and security in Sinai. Alice Kadalani was awarded the Visiting Arab Journalist Fellowship Middle East Program at Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. He also won the Open Eye Hennigarh Visha Award for Exceptional Essay in 2014. In addition, he was a global winner in Youth Essay Contest on Democracy 2009 and the 2009 winner of the National Contest for Spreading Understanding and New Tour Respect of the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies. So who wants to sit next to Ishmael Al-Skandalani, please? Well, I'll take it to Sada. Thank you, Sada. Thank you. We have six empty chairs, so bear with me for a moment. Now I can see that our translators are ready, and I will continue in Slovenia. Innocent Bahati is a young, popular, Rwandan poet known for his open and critical expression on social issues. He publishes his poetry on YouTube and Facebook and regularly performs at poetry events in Rwanda. Bahati has been missing since the 7th of February 2021, after he reportedly went for a dinner meeting with an unnamed person at a hotel in Nyanza district in the southern province of Rwanda. He had reportedly received a phone call from the person before the meeting. After Bahati failed to return to Kigali on the same day after the meeting, as expected, his friend, fellow poet, and housemate tried to reach him on phone, but Bahati's phones were off. After two days of trying to establish his whereabouts, the friend made a report to the Rwanda Investigations Bureau, RIB, whose spokesperson reportedly said that Bahati was not in the agency's custody. The spokesperson further said an investigation was ongoing and that the agency would not reveal any information at the time. Friends and associates of innocent Bahati believe that his disappearance is in relation to his critical poetry, particularly his recent poems, hunger, poverty, and long regulations, which point to the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic by the authorities and its impact on poor Rwandans. It is reported that close to the time of Bahati's disappearance, a prominent government individual had posted comments on Facebook linking Bahati to several critics of President Paul Kagami, who have been targeted for repression by the Rwandan authorities because of their dissenting views. In 2017, innocent Bahati had similarly disappeared after he made a poetic post on Facebook, only to reappear in police custody several weeks later. Although he was not charged for any offense, he was sent to prison without trial and freed after three months following a court order. Penn is investigating what appears to be innocent Bahati's enforced disappearance and continues to urge the Rwandan authorities to ensure his safety and well-being. Who will sit next to innocent Bahati? Please raise your hand. Thank you. Thank you, Jenny. Maung Thao Cho is a writer, scholar, and member of Penn Myanmar. On February 1, 2021, Maung Thao Cho was blindfolded and taken from his home during a morning raid, making him among the first to be detained by the military junta following its illegitimate seizure of power from Myanmar's democratically elected government. Last month, Maung Thao Cho was sentenced to two years' imprisonment with hard labour under Section 505A of Myanmar's penal code, a charge frequently used by the military junta to punish those who have criticised the coups or the military's conduct. The charge reportedly stems from two of Maung Thao Cho's literary works that were published a year before the coup took place. Maung Thao Cho is a professor of Myanmar literature at the Yangon Training College and is also a prominent poet, writer, and editor. He is the author of over 70 literary works with his writing crossing multiple literary genres, including poetry, essays, and short stories. He is also a gifted educator and communicator who is known for his use of satire as a way to address contentious political and social issues affecting Myanmar society. Maung Thao Cho's unjust detention is emblematic of the devastating impact that the military junta's dictatorial rule has had on free expression across the country, included among the almost 10,000 people who are currently in various forms of detention are dozens of writers, poets, journalists, and public intellectuals, including poet Maung Yong Pai, writer Dan Mian Ong, and Pen Mya Ma member Wa Mo Naing. Pen International reiterates its calls for Maung Thao Cho's immediate release, along with all those unjustly detained for their peaceful expression in Myanmar. Who wants to sit next to Maung Thao Cho? Yes, I know. Thank you very much. Maria Cristina Garrido Rodriguez. On the 10th of March 2022, Cuban poet and activist Maria Cristina Garrido Rodriguez was sentenced to seven years in prison on charges of public disorder, contempt, and resistance. For peacefully demonstrating in Cuba, she was arrested with her sister in July 2021. Garrido faces very challenging conditions and detention, including solitary confinement and lack of food and water. While she was detained, one agent beat her arms and legs and woke her up several times in the early morning to force her to shout, Long Live Fidel and Long Live the Revolution. When she refused, she was sent to a dark punishment cell with no water or sanitary facilities. In a letter from prison, Rodriguez said that the state security quote punishes me for every letter I write, but I cannot stop breathing. It suffocates me to swallow the hard, impulsive expression that sustains me, and I cannot remain unchanged in the face of my own problems. End of quote. Penn International condemns her arbitrary imprisonment as yet another example of the Cuban government's blatant attempts to censor those who express criticism of the government. We say no to the censorship of Cuban artists and writers. Spread her poetry around the world. Free Maria Cristina. Who wants to sit next to Maria? Yes. Thank you so much. Alexandra Sascha Kuzhinova was killed on the 14th of March 2022 when her vehicle was struck by incoming fire in Horenka on the outskirts of Kiev. She was 24 years old. A journalist, producer and photographer, Sascha was working with the team from Fox News covering the Russian invasion of Ukraine when she was killed. Veteran Irish news cameraman Kierza Krzewski also died in the attack. At least seven journalists and media workers have been killed in Ukraine since the 24th of February when Russia launched a full-scale military invasion of the country. Countless others have suffered attacks. Penn International utterly condemns the threats to the lives and safety of journalists resulting from the invasion and calls for those responsible to be brought to justice. Penn International further condemns the violence unleashed by Russian forces against Ukraine and urgently calls for an end to the bloodshed. Who wants to sit next to Alexandra? Thank you all. She'll be close to you, Alex. And last but not least, Julian Assange, United Kingdom and you can also say Australia, Europe. Julian Assange is our empty chair of today. We were hoping that maybe we'd have an address from his wife, a video address, but these days are very stressful for the whole team that's trying to prevent the extradition. WikiLeaks founder and publisher Julian Assange was arrested in April 2019 at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London where he had been given asylum for almost seven years. He was arrested for breaching his bail conditions in 2012 and further arrested on behalf of the US authorities under an extradition warrant for his role in obtaining and publishing classified military diplomatic documents in 2010. In the US, Assange would face trial on 17 counts under the Espionage Act and one count under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, which combined could see him imprisoned for up to 175 years. In March 2022, the UK Supreme Court denied Assange's request to appeal an earlier decision by the UK High Court that permitted his extradition to the US, which in turn had overturned a previous ruling by the district court that found extradition would endanger his life. His case is now before the UK Home Secretary. To authorize the extradition, Penn International has repeatedly stressed and that for years I can account for that that Assange's prosecution raises profound concerns about freedom of the press and sends a dangerous signal to journalists and publishers worldwide. Penn International calls on the UK Home Secretary to reject Julian Assange's extradition to the US and to release him from very much prison immediately. Thank you. I suggest that for this session that will be led by M. Emmanuel Pierra, we put Assange out from. Yes, very good. And then later on you can see his, but we all know his case and Belina and Alex I think are on the letter to the Pope if maybe God can help me here.