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While we do not normally do news round ups here on The Havana Note, seeing as our friend over at the Cuban Triangle who usually covers all the "odds and ends" is on vacation, we thought we would take a look at some of the news stories that have flown under the radar in the shadow of the coming administrative changes.
Cafe Fuerte reports on the trial of three Cuban-American exiles that staged an armed incursion into Cuba in 2001. The three men were caught with a range of weapons and reportedly confessed that they had planned to commit violent actions against the island, which the Cuban government has called "an act of terrorism". After waiting eight years for a trial, the three men, who had been associated with the militant anti-Castro exile group Alpha 66, received sentences of 30 years to life in prison. The timing of this is quite interesting, as the State Department recently released its terrorism report on August 5th, which once again designates Cuba as a State Sponsor of Terrorism. The report, however, does not mention any of the terrorist actions committed against Cuba that originated in the U.S.
Five dissidents were arrested on Monday August 16, 2010, after peacefully protesting on the steps in front of the University of Havana and chanting "Down with the Castros". Two of the five were released on Wednesday, but the rest remain in police custody, according to the Miami Herald. This seems to be another instance of the Cuban government holding opposition activists for short periods of detainment rather than sentencing them to longer prison terms. Elizardo Sanchez of the Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation, is paraphrased in the Miami Herald article, explaining that "Police technically have 10 days to file charges, but can obtain extensions of the deadline".
Reina Luisa Tamayo, the mother of the prisoner who died earlier this year after a hunger strike, has been facing sustained harassment from "pro-government mobs," which have prevented her from going to church and marching through the streets with relatives to mourn her dead son, according to this AP article.
The United States' Political Prisoner Policy Dilemna
There is no excuse for those countries that detain citizens who try to peacefully exercise their natural rights. While Cuba has released 20 political prisoners this month, many more are still in jail. The pre-release counts range between 53 as reported by Amnesty International and 167 as reported by Cuba's foremost authority, Elizardo Sanchez of the Cuban Human Rights and National Reconciliation Commission. (See this AP article for a discussion of how the different sources have come up with their counts of political prisoners held in Cuba).
Amnesty International's 2010 Report, the State of the World's Human Rights is one of the few resources available which looks at the condition of human rights in every country around the world and does not just focus on one country or region. Although it certainly may not be an exhaustive list of all the prisoners of conscious or political prisoners in each country, here are some of their findings for Cuba and elsewhere:
Cuba: "At least 53 prisoners of conscience remain jailed in the country for peacefully exercising their right to the freedom of expression, association, and assembly." (translated from an updated report from June 30)