New Actions by the U.S. Government Against Solidarity with the Cuban Five
The U.S. Department of the Treasury has frozen bank accounts belonging to groups of solidarity with the Cuban Five in France and Spain. These funds were collected with much effort and were destined to support among other things an ad in the N.Y. Times that would reveal the truth about the Cuban Five to the North American people.
Ricardo Alarcon, President of the Cuban Parliament, this Tuesday in Havana denounced U.S. government's freezing of the funds the solidarity groups in France were gathering in order to publish a statement in the N.Y. Times on the case of the five cuban anti-terrorist fighters.
It said that "workers, students, employees, humble French citizens have taken on this cause and also the cause of freedom of expression, so that the North Americans can be informed of what is happening today in their country, because one must pay so that this paper publishes something that should be in its pages every day."
Alarcon made the point that this new action is a form of intimidation, to try to demoralize others who want to contribute to the North American solidarity groups who try to divulge the truth about the case of the five cuban political prisoners.
He commented that the U.S. is trying to prevent the North American people from knowing a very sincere truth: "that they are ruled by a terrorist government, international criminals, who also support terrorist groups who were originally created, trained, financed and supported by them for four decades."
Gerardo Hernandez, Ramon Labanino, Fernando Gonzales, Antonio Guerrero and Rene Gonzales embody the dignity and decorum of all their people, who will not tire until they succeed because they know the truth even though all of the media try to obscure their efforts.
At any rate, said Alarcon, it's important to persist with activities, actions, messages and international solidarity, to make clear everything related to the five, and that it is a very difficult and complex battle because we are up against a government that stops at nothing and that collaborates with terrorism.
The president of the Cuban Parliament assisted an activity in the Chancellery, where there was a presentation of a book, "Five Points of a Star," a compendium of cards sent by internationalist doctors from the island and Guatemala to the five Cubans who are held prisoner in the U.S.
And to the friends and family of Gerardo, Ramon, Antonio, Frernando and Rene, there was as representation of students from the Latin American School of Medical Sciences.
***
Through this method the Bush administration extends their punishment to all of us, those of the world solidarity movement, who know the truth, and who cannot accept in silence such perversity against five innocents, their families and the Cuban people, who they represent with such dignity.
Now we are also affected.
What right does the U.S. Dept. of Treasury meddle with our modest savings, in our own bank accounts, gained throughout through the honour and work of all our contributions, of hours of activities in the streets, on the tables and in the marches. To collect penny after penny, to write, to explain, to befriend young and old, workers and intellectuals, parliamentarians and priests, in this necessity to bring a bit of justice to the Cuban people and their five sons so unjustly held in the U.S.?
Why violate the privacy of our bank accounts?
Why does it hurt the Bush administration so much to publish the truth?
Why violate our right to liberty of expression and impede our bringing the truth to the North American People?
Profound indignation for this cowardly act is what we all feel at this moment.
If the government of the U.S. believes for a second that freezing our bank accounts also freezes our solidarity, in the midst of such perversity and cowardliness, is idiotic.
The solidarity of the people does not freeze in a bank account, it is based in the higher values that the Bush administration completely disregards. Never can they impede it, as strong and skilled be the blows against us.
We are stronger. Frozen accounts don't deter us, nor do prison sentences, nor do disappearances, nor does death either by bullet or hunger. We are stronger. We have the infinite strength of ideas, morality, reason and love for humanity that they lack. We begin again after every setback. They are not important, we have reasons to move forward every day.
We will struggle so that the North American people and the world know the truth. The five will return to their country sooner rather than later.
International Committee
Justice and Liberty for the Five.
For more info on the case of the Miami 5 click here