Cienfuegos, March 2003 Foto by Cindy O'Hara
ˇVolverán! -- They will return!
For 43 years, the country of Cuba has been subject to terrorist attacks, including numerous assassination attempts against its political leaders; the explosion of a Cuban airliner killing 76 passengers; bombings at hotels, shops, and other location designed to thwart the development of tourism; biological and chemical agents dropped on crops and livestock; and of course armed invasion, not only at the Bay of Pigs, but numerous commando bands -- both organized and freelance -- arrive on the island's shores with frightening regularity. The self-acknowledged perpetrators of many of these acts are walking free, and even celebrated as heroes, in the United States.
After years of seeking and finding no assistance from the U.S. government, Cuba sent a number of individuals to the United States to monitor the actions of the groups and individuals perpetrating these terrorist actions. In 1998, five such individuals were arrested and tried in, of all places, Miami, Florida, despite their attorneys' requests to move the trial to a city where anti-Cuban prejudice would be less, such as Fort Lauderdale.
Convicted of crimes ranging from being unregistered agents of a foreign govenment to conspiracy to commit espionage (even though US government witnesses testified at their trial that they had not obtained nor had any access to any classified material). In addition, Gerardo Hernández was convicted of conspiracy to commit murder based on the 1996 action by the Cuban military to shoot down two Brothers to the Rescue planes which had violated Cuban airspace, even though he had no link to the flight of those planes or the Cuban military's action.
These men were given the maximum sentences, and are housed in five different federal prisons:
Gerardo Hernández -- two life terms in Lompoc, California
Antonio Guerrero -- life term in Florence, Colorado
Ramón Labańino -- life term in Beaumont, Texas
Fernando González -- 19 years in Oxford, Wisconsin
René González -- 15 years in Edgefield, South Carolina
Their cases have been appealed to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeal in Atlanta, with a decision anticipated in spring-summer of 2004.
In a world where terrorism threatens many countries, these men's actions to protect their country from terrorist attack should be lauded, not condemned. Please visit the following sites to learn more about their cases, and join with the world-wide movement calling for their freedom.
Havana Tribune site for the liberation of the five