| Swedish-Cuban
Association
Press release
2004-07-21
Swedish
hunger strike continues!
FIVE HUNGER STRIKERS DEMAND:
FREE THE FIVE CUBANS POLITICAL PRISONERS
IN THE USA! |
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Carolina
Salinas, Daniel Maidana, Toni Lappalainen,
Tomas Widén and Brenda Ortiz |
Tomas
Widén and Toni Lappalainen began
their hunger strike the 4th of July. In
the morning Saturday the 17th of July, Daniel
Maidana joined them. Late evening the same
day Toni experienced a complicated condition
of high blood pressure and broke his hunger
strike. But on Sunday the next day after
new measurements of his blood pressure,
he decided to continue. Sunday evening Carolina
Salinas and Brenda Ortiz joined the hunger
strike.
The
scene is a big green round tent next to
the Solidarity Movement Building in inner
Stockholm. Many visitors come. "Free
the Five Cubans, political prisoners in
the USA!" is written on an enormous
banner with portraits of the Five who are
in jail in the USA. For those who want to
know more, the home page is presented in
big letters on the banner; www.svensk-kubanska.se.
These
five Cubans, Gerardo Hernández, Ramón
Labañino, Antonio Guerrero, Fernando
González and René González,
are sentenced in the USA to altogether four
life sentences plus 62 years.
Their
crime? Risking their own lives they monitored
and infiltrated extremist rightwing Cuban
exile terror groups in Miami such as Alpha
66, Brigada 2506, Omega 7,
They
obtained information about terrorist attack
plans against Cuba and also against other
parts of America. Thanks to this Cuba has
been able to stop many terrorist actions.
Cuba also gave the information revealed
to the federal police authorities of the
USA, the FBI, who promised measures to be
taken. However, instead of stopping the
terrorist groups, the FBI arrested the Five
who had collected the information. In the
middle of the night the 11th of September
1998 they were abruptly waken up and arrested.
For months, in breach of the law, they were
locked up in isolation cells.
Two
of the Five have been refused visits by
their wives and small children. The trial
in mafia-infected Miami has been put into
question by the American National Lawyers
Guild and by the International Association
of Democratic Lawyers. In the USA, Latin
America and in many other countries protests
are increasing. In Great Britain over one
hundred Members of Parliament demand that
the Five are given a new trial. Noam Chomsky
says, "The thing with the Cuban Five
is such a scandal, it's hard to talk about
it".
"All
politicians talk about the importance of
stopping terrorism", says Tomas Widén.
"Putting these five Cubans in jail
is hypocrisy. The US Government ought to
praise them for what they have done to unmask
the terrorist groups in Miami. Our drastic
hunger strike is a protest and call to the
media and politicians to act! We in Sweden
also have a responsibility! These Five must
be set free immediately!"
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E-mail
directly to the hunger strikers:
los.cinco@home.se
Swedish-Cuban
Association, Box 450 65, SE-104 30 Stockholm.
svensk.kubanska@swipnet.se www.svensk-kubanska.se
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INFORMATION
ABOUT THE SOLIDARITY ACTION
The
hunger strike demanding "Free the Cuban
Five, political prisoners in the USA!"
commenced on the 4th of July, the anniversary
of the day 1776 when 13 states in Northern
America signed their Declaration of Independence.
The hunger strike will conclude on the 26th
of July, the day in 1953 when Fidel Castro
together with 171 others attacked the Batista
dictatorship's fortress Moncada, signalling
the rebellion to gain true independence
for Cuba.
As
its base the hunger strike has a big tent
on the grass outside the Solidarity Movement
Building, situated in the district Soeder,
street address Tegelviksgatan 40, in inner
Stockholm. From this base activities are
organised in the City every day to spread
information about the five jailed Cubans,
and also about the imperialists' aggressive
plans against Cuba and Venezuela. Leaflets
are spread. People sign the petition to
Free the Five! Saturday the 10th of July
in the hall of the Solidarity Movement Building
there was a public meeting in which Eva
Bjorklund, editor of the magazine Kuba,
who was just back from Cuba, spoke about
Cuban Society today and about the U.S.A.'s
most recent threats against Cuba.
Luis Quintanilla spoke at a similar event
the 17th of July about the U.S. government's
attempts to crush President Hugo Chávez
and the people's movemnet in Venezuela.
Friday the 23rd of July, Carolina Amador,
representative of the Cuban Federation of
Women FMC will be speaking in the Solidarity
Movement building. At lunch time Saturday
the 24th of July in the Sergel's Square
in the centre of Stockholm, there will be
a public meeting in defence of Cuba's sovereignty
against foreign interference. Music and
speeches. Saturday afternoon at 4 o'clock
a big festivity for Cuba Solidarity at Eggeby
Gaard, in the Stockholm suburbs of Rinkeby
and Tensta. Monday the 26th of July a public
meeting in Sergel's Square celebrating Cuba's
National Rebellion Moncada. Tomas Widén
leader of the hunger strike will be one
of the speakers.
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