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NEWS
Hunger Striking
Prisoners Recall Echeverria’s Fight for Democracy
By Jose Daniel Ferrer Garcia
Directorio Democrático Cubano
“Today, March 13th, 2007, both political
prisoners and common prisoners held at Kilo 8 prison in Camagüey
remember with respect and admiration José Antonio Echeverría and the
other protagonists who overtook the Presidential Palace and Radio Reloj.
Fifty years after those historic events, Cuba continues without the
freedom for which those courageous people gave their lives. The leader
of one of the groups that fought against the dictatorship of Fulgencio
Batista quickly took power and instituted the longest and cruelest
tyranny of the Western hemisphere.
Today, Cuban youth lives without hope, under extreme oppression, and
amid generalized misery. Today, those of us who love Cuba and want the
best for our people are inspired by the example of José Antonio, Pedro
Luis Boitel, Mario Chanes, Guiteras, Agramonte and all those
self-sacrificing countrymen who dedicated their lives to this struggle
for freedom. We work in a peaceful and unselfish manner for the
democratization and prosperity of our country.
To defend human rights, to oppose injustice, and to work toward a free
Cuba ‘with all and for the good of all’ is the best way to pay homage to
Jose Antonio and his friends, and all our heroes.
The following political prisoners are participating in this modest but
meaningful tribute: Juan Carlos Herrera Acosta and Leoncio Rodríguez
Ponce, both of whom are on hunger strike; Nelson Vásquez Lima, Lamberto
Hernández Planas and Carlos Luis Díaz Fernández who are fasting for 12
hours. They had to suspend the hunger strike they were carrying out due
to health reasons. I, José Daniel Ferrer García, have also been on
hunger strike since March 5th.
Humberto Gamboa Suárez, another political prisoner, Francisco Tornidor
Valido – who is also on a hunger strike– Germán Bermúdez Carmona, and
other common prisoners who wish to remain anonymous for fear of
repression, have also joined the tribute to Jose Antonio.
Note: A group of political and common prisoners have been carrying out a
hunger strike in the Kilo 8 Prison in protest for the inhumane
conditions of the prison and lack of medical attention.
Juan Carlos Herrera Acosta and José Daniel Ferrer García have been
declared “prisoners of conscience” by Amnesty International. Both were
among the group of 75 dissidents imprisoned in the spring of 2003.
Collaboration: Puente Informativo Cuba Miami (www.puenteinfocubamiami.org)
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