Seven months ago this week, on July 7, the Cuban Catholic Church announced it had struck a deal with Spain and the Castro dictatorship for the release of 52 Cuban dissidents imprisoned since the "black spring" crackdown of 2003.
“This process will be concluded in three to four months from now,” the Catholic Archdiocese of Havana wrote in a statement.
Seven months later, and after the release Friday of Guido Sigler Amaya, 10 of the original 52 prisoners covered by the arrangement, remain imprisoned, because of their refusal to accept forced exile as a condition for their release.
The church and state have played good cop and bad cop with the prisoners to force them to compromise their principles, but they have remained steadfast in rejecting the pressure.
The 10 prisoners are:
Recent Comments