Members' Business — S6M-14698 Ruth Maguire: Day of the Imprisoned Writer

That the Parliament recognises 15 November 2024 as the Day of the Imprisoned Writer, a day when people across the world, including in the Cunninghame South constituency, stand in solidarity with writers who have been persecuted, exiled, imprisoned and killed for exercising their right to free expression; notes with grave concern what it sees as the growing threats to free expression in a world increasingly marked by conflict and war, where writers, it considers, are often the first targets of repression; recognises what it considers to be the alarming rise of authoritarian regimes that use censorship, imprisonment and violence to silence dissenting voices, with a particular focus on the plight of female writers, who, it understands, face compounded risks of persecution; emphasises the reported growing number of female writers who are being imprisoned for, it believes, courageously campaigning for equal rights, freedom from discrimination, and access to education and healthcare; acknowledges what it sees as the critical role that writers play in exposing the truths of war, authoritarianism and social injustice; condemns the widespread use of imprisonment, torture and extrajudicial killings to intimidate and eliminate writers, as documented by organisations such as PEN International, Amnesty International, the Committee to Protect Journalists, ARTICLE 19, and Reporters Without Borders; notes the calls for governments worldwide to uphold their duty to protect the right to free expression for all, to ensure justice for writers who have been murdered, persecuted and imprisoned, and to address what it sees as the global climate of impunity that undermines trust in justice systems and emboldens further attacks; further notes the support for the ongoing efforts to secure protection for persecuted and imprisoned writers, and honours and commemorates those writers who have lost their lives or freedom for exercising their right to freedom of expression.