Transparency & Criteria
Political Prisoner Watch uses a clear, documented framework to determine who qualifies as a political prisoner. Our definitions are our own — grounded in international human rights law and informed by the standards of leading organizations.
What Is a Political Prisoner?
Political Prisoner Watch defines a political prisoner as any person deprived of their liberty — through imprisonment, detention, house arrest, or travel ban — primarily because of their political beliefs, peaceful expression, human rights activity, or identity, or whose prosecution is substantially driven by the political interests of those in power rather than by legitimate law enforcement.
This definition is deliberately broad enough to capture all forms of politically motivated detention globally while being strict enough to exclude those who have committed genuine violent offenses or terrorist acts. Below, we break it down into clear component terms and criteria.
Key Terms
Deprivation of Liberty
We consider a person “deprived of liberty” when they are detained or imprisoned at any location and are unable to leave due to:
- Coercion by a public official, or actions taken with the knowledge of a public authority;
- Enforcement of a judicial, administrative, or other governmental decision;
- Extrajudicial measures such as house arrest, enforced travel bans, or exit restrictions.
Political Motivation
We consider prosecution “politically motivated” when the actual purpose of law enforcement or judicial action is to achieve:
- Consolidation or retention of power by those in authority;
- Involuntary cessation or change of someone's public activities, journalism, or advocacy;
- Suppression of dissent, criticism, or opposition movements;
- Intimidation of a broader community from exercising their rights.
Our Criteria for Classification
A person is classified as a political prisoner in our database if they meet the definition of deprivation of liberty and fall into at least one of the following two categories:
Prisoners of Conscience
Individuals detained solely for one of the following reasons, with no other legitimate criminal basis:
Beliefs & Non-Violent Expression
Detained for political, religious, or other beliefs, or the non-violent exercise of freedom of thought, conscience, religion, expression, peaceful assembly, or association.
Human Rights Work
Detained for activities aimed at defending human rights, documenting abuses, or supporting victims of persecution.
Journalism & Media
Detained for reporting, blogging, or media work that challenges state narratives or exposes corruption and abuses.
Discriminatory Basis
Detained on a discriminatory basis: gender, race, ethnicity, language, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, or other protected characteristic.
Politically Motivated Prosecution
Individuals whose prosecution has legitimate elements but is substantially driven by political motives, as evidenced by at least one of the following:
Denial of Fair Trial
Detained in violation of the right to a fair trial as guaranteed by the ICCPR and the ECHR.
Fabricated or Falsified Evidence
Detained based on fabricated charges, falsified evidence, or in the absence of any actual criminal conduct.
Disproportionate Punishment
The length or conditions of detention are clearly disproportionate to the offense charged, indicating a punitive political purpose.
Selective Prosecution
Detained in a discriminatory or selective manner compared to others charged with similar offenses, suggesting targeting.
Civil Death
Subject to extrajudicial measures — such as asset seizure, employment blacklisting, travel bans, or physical monitoring — designed to silence without formal imprisonment.
Who We Do NOT Classify
To maintain strict integrity, a person is not classified as a political prisoner — even if other criteria above are met — in the following circumstances:
Violent Offenses
A violent offense against persons, except in cases of provable self-defense or extreme necessity.
Hate Crimes
A hate crime against persons or property, or inciting violent action on national, ethnic, racial, or religious grounds.
Terrorism
Individuals prosecuted and sentenced for terrorist crimes in accordance with legitimate national law and the ECHR.
Where Our Criteria Come From
Our framework is informed by — and consistent with — the standards set by the following international authorities. We do not simply duplicate any one framework; instead we synthesize the strongest elements of each.
Council of Europe — Resolution 1900 (2012)
The primary international legal instrument defining a political prisoner, adopted by the Parliamentary Assembly on October 3, 2012. Establishes five core criteria: violation of fundamental freedoms, purely political detention, disproportionate punishment, discriminatory detention, and unfair proceedings.
Our Categories A and B map directly to PACE's criteria, with the addition of journalism-specific and civil death provisions.
Memorial Human Rights Center
Developed a rigorous extended framework rooted in the ICCPR and ECHR, adopted by a working group of human rights defenders from Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, and Ukraine. Distinguishes between “prisoners of conscience” (Category 3.1) and “politically motivated prosecution” (Category 3.2).
Our Key Terms (Deprivation of Liberty, Political Motivation) and dual-category structure are directly adapted from Memorial's model.
Freedom House — “Free Them All” Program
Focuses on human rights defenders, journalists, bloggers, and pro-democracy activists. Unlike other frameworks, Freedom House also recognizes the concept of “civil death” — extrajudicial restrictions like travel bans, asset seizure, and blacklisting that achieve the same silencing effect as imprisonment.
Our criteria B5 (“Civil Death”) and A3 (journalism-specific protections) reflect Freedom House's expanded scope.
Freedom Now
A legal advocacy organization providing direct representation to prisoners of conscience worldwide. Their framework closely aligns with PACE and emphasizes the importance of legal remedies and fair proceedings in determining political prisoner status.
Freedom Now's emphasis on fair trial violations and legal process informs our B1 criteria.
How We Apply These Standards
Multi-Source Data Collection
We aggregate data from verified human rights sources including OVD-Info, Memorial, court records, and direct reports from families and legal counsel.
Framework Evaluation
Each case is evaluated against our criteria (Categories A and B) to determine eligibility and classification.
ML-Assisted Risk Scoring
Machine learning models trained on historical data flag urgency indicators, torture risk, and persecution patterns. AI supplements — it never replaces — human judgement.
Continuous Review
Prisoner statuses are continuously updated as new court decisions, releases, or conditions changes emerge. Our system synchronizes in real time.
Source Documents
See Our Methodology
Learn how we process and analyze data