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NEWS
Cuba: Report
details religious rights abuses in prisons
18/03/2008
 The
religious rights of prisoners of conscience are systematically violated
in Cuban prisons, according to a new report released today by Christian
Solidarity Worldwide (CSW).
The report is being released on the fifth anniversary of a massive human
rights crackdown, now referred to as Cuba’s Black Spring, when 75
members of Cuban civil society, including human right defenders,
independent librarians, pro-democracy activists and independent
journalists, were arrested, subjected to summary trials, and handed down
lengthy prison sentences.
CSW has interviewed the families of prisoners and former prisoners over
the last eight months. According to the research, prison authorities
regularly deny political prisoners the right to religious literature
including Bibles, the right to meet with a pastor or priest, and the
right to meet together with other prisoners for religious study, prayer
or worship.
The report highlights individual cases, including that of Alfredo
Rodolfo Domínguez Batista who is serving a fourteen-year sentence in the
Holguín Provincial Prison. According to Domínguez Batista’s wife, his
Bible and all religious materials were confiscated in the summer of 2007
and have yet to be returned. He has also had to repeatedly request
access to a priest, a right which has only been granted every four to
six months and most recently was denied outright. Another prisoner of
conscience, Normando Hernández González has been denied the right to
pastoral visits altogether.
The interviews indicate that similar abuses take place on a regular
basis in high security prisons across the island, suggesting that it is
state policy aiming to psychologically break down political prisoners.
The practice of denying the basic religious rights of prisoners of
conscience is in direct contravention of the United Nations Standard
Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners which specifies that the
religious rights of all prisoners must be protected.
Tina Lambert, Advocacy Director at CSW, said “While we firmly believe
that these prisoners should be released immediately, in the interim we
call on the Cuban authorities to ensure that all prison authorities are
trained in and are implementing the UN Standard Minimum Rules for the
Treatment of Prisoners. It is unacceptable that the Cuban authorities
should seek to use the religious beliefs of these men and women to
attempt to manipulate them in such a cynical way.
Collaboration: Coalition of Cuban-American Women / LAIDA CARRO
E-mail: Joseito76@aol.com
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