20 journalists, 20 heroes
In Cuba, there can be no free press because there can be no freedom.
Freedom is against the law, for if Fidel Castro allows it, the failure of his revolution will be exposed, and he will fall.
Some of the most heroic outlaws are Cuba’s independent journalists.
Each day, and with none of the protections that I and other journalists working in the United States enjoy, they seek to tell the truth about Cuba and Castro, stories that when told to Cubans and, via the Internet, to the outside world, chip away at the dictatorship’s myths and lies. These reporters and editors have a definite point of view — a desire that Cuba be free — which is why so many of them are in serious trouble with Castro.
The Castro regime has reserved some of its worst treatment for Cuba’s independent press. About a third of the members of the Group of 75 arrested and imprisoned during the “black spring” crackdown on Cuban dissidents in March 2003 were reporters and editors who tried to tell the truth about the nation. That is a truth Castro cannot allow, for over time it would undermine his hold on power.
But Castro’s bad acts cannot compare with the courage and heroism displayed by both the imprisoned journalists and their colleagues who continue their work on the outside, despite the obvious peril.
Over the past few months, I have used this blog — specifically, “The March 18 Project,” after the date the “black spring” began — to try to raise awareness about Cuba’s independent press, especially the journalists languishing in the gulag. I have profiled several of the imprisoned journalists and plan to write about the others in the coming weeks and months.
The March 18 Project is my small way of showing my solidarity with my fellow journalists, and my fellow Cubans.
One of the best online sources of information about the imprisoned journalists is Reporters Without Borders (RSF, for its French appellation), which has pages dedicated to each journalist. A handful of the journalists arrested in March 2003 have been released because of their poor health, but 20 remain in prison. Other journalists have also been arrested in the past three years.
RSF also has an online petition campaign demanding that Castro free the journalists.
The journalists in Cuban prisons, according to RSF, are:
José Ubaldo Izquierdo Hernández
Héctor Fernando Maseda Gutiérrez
Henry Gomez has a moving tribute to Cuba’s imprisoned journalists at Babalu.
Henry writes:
That's right these men are rotting in Cuban prisons, as we speak, because fidel castro can't bear to have the truth about his Cuba reported. I mean what's the point in having "journalists" on your payroll spreading propaganda around the world if a handful of people are daring enough to tell the truth. So there you have it. Look at these faces and think about them tonight when you go to sleep.
(Henry also produced and shared with me the poster of the journalists’ pictures.)
To find out more about these 20 heroes and other prisoners of conscience in Cuba, read PayoLibre, CubaNet and the March 18 Project.
Sign petition for release of Cuban political prisoners
