PEN Club

The PEN Club is presented as a literary organization concerned about Eduard Limonov while he is imprisoned on terrorism charges. In the account, its significance lies in being invoked as evidence that concern for the writer extends beyond his immediate circle, though no specific action by the organization is described.

Concern for Limonov

During a visit to Limonov, Pristavkin tells him that the PEN Club is worried about him. He places that concern alongside Limonov’s literary reputation: Pristavkin calls him a great Russian writer, praises The Book of Water, and notes that it has been shortlisted for the Russian Booker Prize. In this argument, literary recognition and institutional concern reinforce the claim that Limonov should be treated as an artist rather than as one of the accused killers.

The Charges and the Appeal

Pristavkin also says that, although the organs would never officially admit it, the terrorism charges do not hold water. He contrasts Limonov’s case with the economic crimes attributed to Mikhail Khodorkovsky, whom he describes as a genuine criminal. The PEN Club’s concern thus enters the conversation as part of a broader appeal to distinguish Limonov from the people Pristavkin regards as deserving imprisonment.

Scope of the Evidence

The account records Pristavkin’s report that the PEN Club is worried; it does not describe a statement, intervention, or other direct action by the organization. After the visit, Limonov’s lawyer tells him that public opinion has turned in his favor and that he is being seen less as a terrorist than as a writer producing important books from prison. That broader shift is reported separately, and the text does not attribute it specifically to the PEN Club.