Weekend of Action in support of Cuba

Six years in prison in Cuba for 57 activists: supporters face ongoing harassment
18 March 2009

Human rights activists marking the 6-year detention of 57 people imprisoned in Cuba for expressing their right to freedom of expression and association are facing ongoing harassment. Those planning to mark the anniversary of the arrests on Wednesday have been particularly targeted.

In the past, the Cuban authorities have briefly detained people taking part in such peaceful demonstrations. Amnesty International has voiced concerns that this may happen on Wednesday.

Amnesty International has called on the Cuban government to immediately release the 57 people who were arrested in a March 2003 crackdown against political and human rights activists in the country. Amnesty International considers them to be prisoners of conscience.

Ivonne Mallesa, from the organization Damas de Blanco, was reported to have been detained at her home on 10 March by members of the State Security forces. She was taken to a casa de visita - a government premises used to organize public events and meetings.

She was released without charge after four hours. Security officials told her that she would be sent to prison for 20 years if she continued to support the Damas de Blanco (Ladies in White), an unofficial group formed by women who are relatives and friends of the people imprisoned in the March 2003 crackdown.

"There was no valid reason for the original detention of the 57 men and there is certainly no reason for them to remain in prison," said Gerardo Ducos, Cuba researcher at Amnesty International. "The only 'crime' they committed was the peaceful exercise of their right to freedom of expression.

"Cuban officials have many times talked about the importance of human rights. Now they have an opportunity to turn their words into action by releasing those who have been imprisoned unfairly," said Gerardo Ducos.

Fifty-four of the 57 current prisoners of conscience in Cuba are the remainder of a group of 75 people jailed in the context of a massive crackdown against the dissident movement in March 2003. Most of them were charged with crimes including "acts against the independence of the state" because they are alleged to have received funds and/or materials from US-based NGOs financed by the United States government.

They were sentenced to between six and 28 years in prison after speedy and unfair trials for engaging in activities the authorities perceived as subversive and damaging to Cuba.

Among the jailed political opponents is Víctor Rolando Arroyo Carmona, an independent librarian and vice-president of the unofficial organization Foro para la Reforma (Forum for Reform). He was arrested on 18 March 2003 and sentenced less than three weeks later to 26 years in prison.

The activities the prosecution cited against him included setting up a library with more than 6,000 books of 'reactionary' character, collaborating with press agencies not accredited by the Cuban government and having been awarded the Hellman/Hammet human rights prize by Human Rights Watch. He is currently being held in ‘Cuba Sí’ Prison in Holguín Province.

Castro was 're-elected' for 40 odd years.

That's what happens when you don't allow free speech, a free press or free trade unions.

Only sick nerds like Castro and his vile regime.

In response to the first comment, if people want to understand the context of the arrests in 2003 they could read an article published at the time, written with the involvement of activists who had just returned from a brigade to Cuba:

 http://www.revolutionarycommunist.org/frfipages/173/FRFI_173_cub.html

Since then a small group of wives of some of the prisoners (the 'women in white') have held regular protests through Havanna. I have seen videos of these protests, there were no police in sight. But in the context of a country where the vast majority of the population are engaged in developing solutions to their problems focussed on meeting individuals' needs, and are participating in a revolutionary process, the thing I find amazing is that the few individuals like those imprisoned and the 'women in white', who are attempting to undermine the revolution and return Cuba to capitalist exploitation, receive no more than 'occassional harassment'.

In response to the comment from 'Pete', I suggest you research and think through the process taking place in Cuba a little more thoroughly before throwing out such glib statements. If an elected official is accountable and responsive to the people, why shouldn't they reelect him or her for as long as they feel he is doing a good job? Who are you to lecture them that they elected the 'wrong' person? And when you say 'free press', free in what way? Free to use private wealth to monopolise the spread of ideas like the media are 'free' to do in Britain, with all the reactionary, racist, sexist, anti-working class consequences that entails? By 'free' trade unions do you mean free to compete for privileges for particular sectors against a plan developed through discussion across society in the context of what is desirable and what is possible? Do you really expect trade unions to play the same role in a country where the working class has state power and is carrying out a socialist revolution, as in a capitalist country? And what do you mean by 'free expression'? Cuba has numerous mass organisations - Women's Federation, Mid-Level Students, Small Farmers, Cultural Workers, and many many more - who have representation in the National Assembly and can propose legislation. Every major change in Cuba is debated in communities, workplaces, schools, universities, and the outcome of these discussions are systematically incorporated into measures taken by the state. The elections themselves, which take place every five years, last six months because of the extent of the discussion process that is involved in the selection of candidates. But that's just not good enough for you, huh? Do you view the Cuban working class as being so passive or stupid that after 50 years of what you seem to think is an oppressive 'regime', they have been unable to build any kind of resistance, despite the entire adult population being armed and having military training? Your comment is typical of the chauvinism rife in the British left, who have never succeeded in overthrowing 'their own' ruling class, but consider themselves qualified to lecture the Cuban people, who have been struggling to build socialism in the real world - with all the contradictions, setbacks and mistakes that entails - for half a century.

The gains made by the Cuban revolution are gains for the working class and oppressed of the whole world. We need to celebrate them and learn from them.

The persecution and imprisonment of independent trades unionists, anarchists, lesbians and gays and others who don't fit in with authoritarian socialism. 50 years of a totalitarian dictatorship that allows no free press, no free speech, no free trade unions, no access to the internet, no free elections, no political parties except for the communist party and imprisons thousands of people as political prisoners for daring to criticize the regime.

I'd rather be Cuban than Honduran today. I'd rather be Cuban than Colombian any day.

Cuba for all its ills has reignited a beacon of resistance to the dominant world empire, and it deserves praise for that.

Castro's Cuba is a beacon to nobody except a few ignorant, affluent, public sector westerners and some idealistic, clueless students.

Who else would admire a regime that doesn't allow free speech, free elections, access to the internet, freedom to leave the country, free trade unions and the freedom to form and join political parties?


I hope that Cubans will soon be able to join the free world like the East Europeans did when the evil Soviet Empire collapsed in 1989.

Did you read the reply to your first comment?

Easten Europe is so much better off since the collapse of the nasty old Soviet Union, that we've record numbers of these emancipated, survivors, working over here for a fuckin pittance.

All the publicly owned utilities and natural resources have been raided by a few jackals who now live in the "free west", and buy football teams for a hobby.

You know fuck all about Cuba , you are a clown.

I'm working class , live in a council house , been to Cuba a couple of times , met dissenters by the score , found them on the whole cultured , very intelligent , and a lot more pleasant than a trip to my local shops where i'll probably bump into a gang of stoned and pissed youths , being dragged around by bulldogs , but hey atleast they're free and can join a trade union, or vote for one a number of parties that are so fuckin similar its not true , or read the sun or the star or the mirror to become informed that they are scum and should be locked up for having probably not half of the education they would have had in shitty old Cuba.

Cubans have big marraccas, mi friend , and so had Fidel , Che and the rest of those few who began this remarkable thing over half a century ago.

You Pete have tiny marraccas, mi friend.

But thats evolution Pete and theres nowt you can do. night night sweet dreams.