05 December 2003
U.S. Notes
Anniversary of Cuban Dissident's Arrest
Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet was first victim of recent Cuban crackdown
The United States is noting the one-year anniversary of the arrest of Cuban
dissident Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet, says State Department deputy spokesman
Adam Ereli.
In a December 5 statement, Ereli noted that Biscet and nine other members of
his opposition group were arrested on December 6, 2002, for attempting to
organize an event in Cuba to commemorate Human Rights Day.
Ereli indicated that Biscet was the first victim in the March 2003 crackdown
on dissidents by the regime of Cuban dictator Fidel Castro.
Following is the text of Ereli's statement, with further details:
(begin text)
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesman
December 5, 2003
STATEMENT BY J. ADAM ERELI, DEPUTY SPOKESMAN
U.S. Notes One-Year Anniversary of the Arrest of Cuban Dissident Dr. Oscar
Elias Biscet
The United States notes the one-year anniversary of the arrest of Cuban
dissident Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet, who was detained December 6, 2002, along
with nine other members of his opposition group, for attempting to organize
an event to commemorate Human Rights Day. We again call for the immediate
release of Dr. Biscet and the hundreds of other political prisoners in Cuba.
Like so many other leading members of Cuba's nascent civil society, Dr.
Biscet has been subjected to systematic harassment and abuse by Cuban state
security. After having served three years in prison on trumped-up charges of
public disorder, he was released a year ago, then was again arrested. Biscet
was held until April, when he was charged and tried with the 75 prisoners of
conscience convicted in regime show trials.
Biscet's real "crime" was to attempt to teach others about international
human rights practices in a country where such fundamental rights are
routinely ignored by the government. Recently, he was forced to serve 21
days in a punishment cell for assisting both common prisoners and other
political prisoners in demanding recognition of their fundamental rights. We
applaud Dr. Biscet's courage in the face of overwhelming odds and extreme
adversity.
Sadly, Dr. Biscet turned out to be only the first victim of one of the most
severe crackdowns the Castro regime has unleashed on civil society since the
beginning of the revolution. In March of this year, another 75 independent
journalists, librarians, and human rights defenders were arrested, subjected
to sham trials, and sentenced to lengthy prison terms for exercising
fundamental, internationally protected rights.
We express our admiration for the wife and family of Dr. Biscet, and the
families of all Cuban political prisoners, for their courage in keeping the
world aware of the plight of Cuba's pro-democracy activists. Their
activities, such as obtaining thousands of signatures for the Varela
Project, which calls for a referendum on political and economic reforms,
demonstrate the capacity of the Cuban people to overcome fear and promote a
peaceful transition to democracy.
(end text)
(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov) |
