In Cuba, being "free" means something much less than in the United States, but there is still plenty of reason to feel good about the news that Cuban punk rocker Gorki Aguila has been released from jail after he was fined 600 pesos for playing his anti-Castro rock and roll too loud, or other such nonsense.
He had gone to trial earlier today on an original charge of "pre-criminal social dangerousness," which can carry a prison term of 1 to 4 years, but the charge was reduced "disobedience," no doubt because of the international attention the case had drawn. For once, the world was noticing, and the Castro dictatorship, veterans of numerous propaganda/public relations battles, always knows how to cut its losses.
The coverage and attention are welcome, but some clarification is needed about what the dictatorship calls "pre-criminal social dangerousness." Reuters says the charge "pertains to people who authorities believe are likely to commit crimes, and can include such things as habitual drunkenness, drug addiction and anti-social behavior."
Maybe so, in part, but the most nefarious use of this bit of Orwellian doublespeak is to silence critics of the Castro regime. (Just click on some of the names on the right sidebar to learn their stories.) Hundreds, if not thousands of Cubans are imprisoned under this law, not because they are criminals, but because, like Gorki Aguila, they choose to live as if they are free.
In Cuba, that, indeed, is a very dangerous thing.
Recent Comments