Uncommon Sense occasionally features a favorite post written by one of the numerous Cuban independent bloggers working on the island. It's a small way that we can lend our support for their efforts, and maybe some protection against the Castro dictatorship. Read previous posts, here.
Links to the featured blog and other sites can be found on the left sidebar, under "Blogs from Cuba."
Pablo Pacheco Ávila
One of the more remarkable stories of the Cuban blogosphere is that from the hellhole that is the Canaleta prison in Ciego de Ávila, jailed journalist Pablo Pacheco Ávila is blogging about life in prison and the Cuban struggle for freedom.
Clearly, Voces Tras Las Rejas ("Voices Behind the Bars") wouldn't be possible without the assistance of others — it's not like Pacheco has access to computers and the Internet so he relies on others to post his work to the Web — but this project is all his, infused with his knowledge and experience as a journalist and with his passion as a Cuban.
In this recent post, Pacheco, 40, writes that he has faith in the Cuban Catholic Church as it negotiates with the Castro dictatorship to improve conditions for at least some political prisoners. Pacheco acknowledged that his may be a controversial position, but "in truth ... this is not something that will rob me of my sleep."
Here is the post, "My Trust":
The conversations between Cardinal Jaime Ortega and the president of the republic, Raul Castro, have already begun to produce its first fruits. It’s possible that this opinion of mine may unleash a wave of criticisms both in and out of the island. In truth, though, this is not something that will rob me of my sleep. The same way that the twenty years of deprivation of freedom imposed upon me on my 33rd birthday by the Ciego de Avila tribunal has not either. In fact, I continue writing about the horrors that are committed in each one of these jail cells as I always try to portray what my conscience dictates. I will not make an exception with the issue of the negotiations between the church and the Cuban government.
According to trustworthy sources, the authorities assured the Cuban Catholic Church that they will put an end to the terrible acts of condemnation- those acts of of intolerance that have no place in today’s civilized world and which gave rise to a national and international campaign in favor of the brave and peaceful Ladies in White. The press reported that some political prisoners and prisoners of conscience- whom have been kept away from their homes in acts of hate and intolerance which have been solely intended punish their family members- were moved closer to their provinces of origin. This situation has been going on for 7 years and 3 months. The distance from their loved ones has been used as a tool by the regime to try to make these men give in and give up (a fruitless attempt) and to try to shatter the stability of their families.
On June 1st 6 prisoners from the cause of the 75 were transported closer to their provinces of residence to penitentiaries of lesser or higher severity. The transfers of some of my colleagues-in-cause makes me happy, but I also know that now we are treading down some very delicate grounds in which any misstep may affect the outcomes. I give all of my trust to the Cuban Catholic Church. It would be ideal if other organizations of our society would follow the example of this institution.
I can’t finish this without mentioning the prisoners of conscience that are currently in worse states of health and that, as a minimum, have acquired certain illnesses during their captivity. I am of the thought that the release of all of the members of the cause of the 75 should be unconditional. For us, prison has not only been unjust but has also consolidated our own political principals. We have learned to be much more human behind these bars.
Read the original, en español, here.
Read my profile of Pacheco, who during the "black spring" of 2003 was sentenced to 20 years in prison, here.
And read more about Pacheco's blogging, again en español, here.
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