Thousands of eyes were glued to national television screens this last Friday. The social networks and text messages also vibrated nervously. A strong rumor had been growing all week, feeding the hopes of Cubans on and off the island, killing sleep. Initiated and fed by official voices, the speculations centered on the possibility of the National Assembly announcing travel reforms.
In a country where citizens face severe limitations on leaving and entering their own territory, such suspicions are too important not to pay attention. Bags packed, airplane tickets reserved, and long-delayed hugs between relatives not seen for decades about to be realized. But the illusion lasted only a few days and was deflated with the same haste with which passports are stamped "denied."
Instead of proclaiming the end of the demeaning Exit Permit -- also known as the "White Card" -- Raul Castro reported on a pardon for more than 2,900 prisoners. People sentenced for diverse crimes, among which were some against State Security. In the words of the official press release, it affected prisoners, "older than 60, sick, women, and also young people with prior criminal histories." A gesture that could be aimed at paving the way for the visit of Pope Benedict XVI this coming March.
The General thus preferred to open the doors of the small prisons, seeing that he is still not disposed to pull back the bureaucratic bars of the great prison. The island as a penitentiary and the immigration officials as stern gatekeepers with a bunch of keys hanging from their belts.
Although the president reaffirmed his "unchanging will to gradually introduce the required changes" in the current migratory policies, he could not prevent a snort of frustration bursting forth from the mouths of those who listened at home. For the umpteenth time hope withered and the embrace of an uncle or brother who would not be returning remained annoyingly locked in the trunk of the postponement.
The family and friends of the newly pardoned, however, did have reasons to prepare a Christmas with greater happiness. Although the penal code keeps intact that crimes that led them to prison, those released this Christmas feel themselves to be the beneficiaries of a magnanimous wink from the seat of power.
The presidential indulgence has touched them this time, but thousands of Cubans wait for a similar gesture in matters of basic human rights: A pardon that manages to open the heavy gate that blocks free travel, coming and going from one's country without having to ask for permission.
Follow Yoani Sanchez on Twitter: www.twitter.com/yoanifromcuba
Yoani Sanchez: Reading Vaclav Havel In Havana
Yoani Sanchez: No, the Cuban Regime Still Will Not Let Cubans Travel
Yoani Sanchez: Eighteen Times the Castro Regime Has Said No... Tomorrow Will They Let Me Travel?
I hope you will consider signing it and encourage others to do so.
And Castro releasing so many prisoners pretty much slays all the right wing claims of him being such a "tyrant." Such claims haven't been true since the 1980s.
Juan Batista author said: "Sanchez's hysteria is getting more unhinged all the time. The number of Cuban refugees has been tiny for decades, in spite of all the favoritism they get in the US."
CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE: Cuban Migration to the United States:- Policy and Trends- Ruth Ellen Wasem- Specialist in Immigration Policy- June 2, 2009
The immigration of Cubans to the United States has increased since 1995, although the actual
admission numbers have ebbed and flowed over this period. Cuba consistently ranks among the
top 10 source countries for legal permanent residents (LPRs). Cuba ranked fifth as a top
immigrant-sending country—after Mexico, China, India, and the Philippines—in FY2008. A total
of 49,500 Cubans became LPRs in FY2008.
U.S. Coast Guard interdictions of Cubans have fluctuated since the mid-1990s, yet the general
trend has moved upward. Cuban interdictions reached a 12-year high of 2,868 in FY2007. In
FY2008, the U.S. Coast Guard reported 2,199 Cuban interdictions. Similarly, U.S. Border Patrol
apprehensions of Cubans peaked at 4,295 in FY2007 and slipped to 3,351 in FY2008. Cubans
who arrived at ports of entry without documents exhibited a comparable pattern, reaching a high
of 13,019 in FY2007 and falling slightly to 11,278 in FY2008.
http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/R40566.pdf
PRISONS: Number of prisons and correctional facilities thought to be in Cuba: more than 500.
Last year the UN described food and hygiene levels as "sub-standard" and medical care as "either unavailable or inappropriate".
According the Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation, thousands of young Cubans are in prison on the charge of "peligrosidad predelectiva" (that is, they are considered likely to commit a crime).
Cuba is one of the few countries in the world to deny the International Committee of the Red Cross access to its prisons.
Castro himself served two years of a 15-year sentence handed down after his failed attempt to topple President Batista. After a period of exile in Mexico he achieved his goal in 1959.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/the-castropedia-fidels-cuba-in-facts-and-figures-432478.html
Mr. Manfred Nowak, then United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture, expressed his enormous disappointment that he could not agree on a date with the Cuban Government for his fact-finding mission before the end of his mandate, on October 30, 2010. Added to this, observation of the human rights situation in Cuban prisons continued to be prohibited and was viewed as an act of “treason” or an “attack on Cuban sovereignty”.
The above is particularly alarming taking into account the difficult situation in Cuban prisons. Excessive and abusive imprisonment is one of the main reasons for the massive overcrowding which currently exists in around 200 prisons and labour camps on the island, added to ill-treatment, beatings, humiliation and inadequate nutrition to which prisoners are subjected5. Political dissidents, human rights defenders and common prisoners all found themselves in this situation without distinction, and the health of some prisoners was badly affected. This situation causes the death of a number of political prisoners every year in Cuba, due to ill-treatment, illnesses which were not treated and suicides6. The indifference with which prisoners’ protests or illnesses are treated, was demonstrated by the death, on February 23, 2010, of Mr. Orlando Zapata Tamayo,
http://www.omct.org/files/2011/10/21443/obs_2011_uk_ameriques.pdf
On August 1 in this Parliament, I publicly addressed the issue and stated that we were working toward implementing an updated migration policy and advancing in reformulating and drafting the regulations, in line with present and foreseeable future conditions. Today, I guarantee each and every one of the proposals made on that occasion, while reaffirming our unchanged will to gradually introduce the changes required in relation to this complex issue, while continuing to comprehensively assess the positive and negative effects of each step we take.
His full remarks may be found here, where he explains the matter of the prisoners in detail
http://www.granma.cu/ingles/cuba-i/26dic-01r-discur.html
or here:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CubaNews/message/129455
The section of his speech on the prisoner releases:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CubaNews/message/129456
Socio-Economic Conditions in Pre-Castro Cuba* Introduction
In the 1950's Cuba was, socially and economically, a relatively advanced country, certainly by Latin American standards and, in some areas, by world standards.
Cuba's infant mortality rate was the best in Latin America -- and the 13th lowest in the world.
Cuba also had an excellent educational system and impressive literacy rates in the 1950's.
Pre-Castro Cuba ranked third in Latin America in per capita food consumption.
Cuba ranked first in Latin America and fifth in the world in television sets per capita.
Pre-Castro Cuba had 58 daily newspapers of differing political hues and ranked eighth in the world in number of radio stations.
Health:
Cuba's infant mortality rate of 32 per 1,000 live births in 1957 was the lowest in Latin America and the 13th lowest in the world, according to UN data. Cuba ranked ahead of France, Belgium, West Germany, Japan, Austria, Italy, and Spain. In 1955, life expectancy in Cuba was among the highest at 63 years of age; compared to 52 in other Latin American countries, 43 in Asia, and 37 in Africa.
http://ctp.iccas.miami.edu/FACTS_Web/Cuba%20Facts%20Issue%2043%20December.htm
YOUTUBE : CUBAN Documentary - "Wishes on a Falling Star"- Cuba, in the 50th year of the Revolution. While the Castro brothers face their certain end, an uncertain future hangs over the island. Some people are afraid, many cannot wait, but all shudder and hope that the changes will be positive. This documentary leads the audience through the discovery of this hope, through a tourist's camera which looks to be turned off and oblivious to the conversation at hand, yet is focused on candidly capturing each person's wishes.
Castro's supporters and dissidents, young and old -- none deceive themselves that the star of the revolution will shine on for much longer. And this is what this project focuses on: the wishes on a falling star.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Afnx7j1m6eA&annotation_id=annotation_725071&feature=iv
Cuba is a land where people say what they want all the time. The only "political" prisoners are the ones trying to overthrow the government.
Jan 07, 2012 10:15 am, Hyatt Regency, Skyway 269, Chicago, IL Association for the Study of Cuban Economy
The Cuban Economy (P2)
Presiding: Deirdre McCloskey (University of Illinois-Chicago)
Recession and Policy Transmission to Latin American Tourism: Does Expanded Travel to Cuba Offset Crisis Spillovers? Rafael Romeu (International Monetary Fund)
Cuban Household Consumption: An Update; Luis Locay (University of Miami).
Cuba's Evolving Output Gap; Andy Wolfe (International Monetary Fund)
Discussants:
Deirdre McCloskey (University of Illinois-Chicago); Oscar Mitnik (University of Miami); Luis Locay (University of Miami)
while holding to ease travel restrictions on Cuban citizens. 11 millions Cubans can't travel without permission but the release of common prisoners will make the Pope very happy. The Pope and
Raul Castro will becoming good friends so the Pope will have his permission to say hello to Fidel.
I hope the people of Cuba and everywhere else in the world are able to free themselves of authoritarian rule. I'm with you, Ms. Sanchez!
You can't be short sited as to the bigger picture. You want bigger, faster reforms in Cuba? Get our politics out from under the thumb of the blanco cubanos in Miami who want a return to the old days whites on tops, darker skinned Cubans out in the fields or being servants. Ms. Sanchez never discusses how her own skin color would give her and advantage under the old Cuba.
HAVANA TIMES : The (Non) Right of Cubans to Travel -Haroldo Dilla Alfonso-February 1, 2010-
Above all, travel for Cubans is not a right, but a legal privilege. It is a condition that can be granted or rescinded. It is a revocable concession by an unappealable power and is without a defined judicial framework.
In all cases, the departures of these people imply considerable fees that can end up in well excess of US $500, an immense sum for a population with exceedingly depressed wages that average $20 a month. In short, to leave, each person must be able to pay for a letter of invitation, a passport and an exit permit.
On top of this, once in the destination country, the traveler must make payments to the Cuban embassy in that country a sum that varies each month they remain in that country, which is a highly uncustomary practice. This sum fluctuates between $40 and $150 a month.
There are no laws or clearly written regulations covering these processes; rather, there are arbitrary and discretionary practices that mix starkly fascist reins of political control with mercurial motivations of the worst kind. In this way, the Cuban government denies a right that it alternately sells to those who can afford it.
CLICK LINK FOR ENTIRE ARTICLE!
http://www.havanatimes.org/?p=18972
YOUTUBE : DOCUMENTARY - "Soy la Otra Cuba" - Pierantonio Maria Micciarelli / Realizador Italiano (Documentary "I am the Other Cuba") -Documentary that exposes the current Cuban reality.
"When I was young I was fascinated by the myth of the Cuban revolution, but being now in Cuba and saw another face reality. They are people of great valor and courage despite the fact that Cubans are imprisoned in their own home. I knew it was a project dangerous but it was my story, real and proper, that I should continue it " - Pierantonio Maria Micciarelli
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ga-gcUoFwsA
YOUTUBE : Cuba Hospital Calixto Garcia Hospital Emergency Room - Poor state of the main Emergency Room in central Havana, right in front of the University of Havana, Cuba. Notice the bloody head of the man in the hallway. Even worse, the nurses/doctors in the last room showing lack of hygiene, no gloves, the family member holding back the old man but the hospital staff won't touch the patient.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MK3AnxSgdxA&feature=share
YOUTUBE : Patients in Hospital for Cubans part 2 - More videos showing patient's rooms at the 10 de Octubre and Miguel enriquez hospitals in Havana. Notice how some of the beds have bed sheets that are not the typical white sheets used in most hospitals. This is because many patients have to bring their own bed sheets, pillows and towels.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8T4SinsfWQ&feature=related