One Cuban political prisoner released, many more to go

After the release today of Nelson Aguiar Ramírez, the Group of 75 journalists, librarians, physicians, human rights activists and other dissidents arrested and imprisoned during the Cuban "black spring" of March-April 2003 is now the Group of 54. There are hundreds, if not thousands of other political prisoners locked away in the Castro gulag, but there is little doubt that the fate of these men, each a prisoner of conscience, is pivotal to the future of a free Cuba.

The Group of 54 is:

Pedro Argüelles Morán

Victor Arroyo Carmona

Mijail Bárzaga Lugo

Oscar Biscet González*

Marcelo Cano Rodríguez

Antonio Díaz Sánchez

Eduardo Díaz Fleitas

Alfredo Domínguez Batista

Adolfo Fernández Saínz

Efren Fernández Fernández

José Ferrer García

Luis Ferrer García

Alfredo Felipe Fuentes

Próspero Gaínza Agüero

Miguel Galván Gutiérrez

Julio Gálvez Rodríguez

José García Paneque

Diosdado González Marrero

Jorge González Tanquero

Lester González Pentón

Ricardo González Alfonso

Leonel Grave de Peralta Almenares

Iván Hernández Carrillo

Normando Hernández González

Juan Herrera Acosta

Régis Iglesias Ramírez

José Izquierdo Hernández

Librado Linares García

José Martínez Hernández

Héctor Maseda Gutiérrez

Luis Milán Fernández

Nelson Molinet Espino

Angel Moya Acosta

Jesús Felipe Mustafá

Félix Navarro Rodríguez

Pablo Pacheco Ávila

Arturo Pérez de Alejo Rodríguez

Horacio Piña Borrego

Fabio Prieto Llorente

Alfredo Pulido López

Arnaldo Ramos Lauzerique

Blas Reyes Rodríguez

Alexis Rodríguez Fernández

Omar Rodríguez Saludes

Omar Ruíz Hernández

Claro Sánchez Altarriba

Ariel Sigler Amaya

Guido Sigler Amaya

Ricardo Silva Gual

Fidel Suarez Cruz

Manuel Ubals González

Héctor Valle Hernández

Antonio Villarreal Acosta

Orlando Zapata Tamayo

*Oscar Elias Biscet was arrested in December 2002, and during the "black spring" he was convicted and sentenced to 25 years in prison.