One of the serious shortcomings in the arrangement between the Castro dictatorship and the Cuban Catholic Church to improve conditions for some political prisoners is that it is a deal between a morally offensive regime and a church so compromised that it has been afraid to offend it.
Both sides are difficult, if not impossible to trust, so skepticism is definitely required in evaluating how the arrangement is implemented.
In fact, if the case of Diosdado González Marrero, one of the seven prisoners initially affected by the deal to transfer some prisoners to jails closer to their homes, is any indication, outright cynicism is entirely appropriate.
Alejandrina García de la Riva told Cuban Democratic Directorate that her husband, who is serving a 20-year sentence handed down during the "black spring" of 2003, has been transferred from the Kilo 5 1/2 prison in Pinar del Rio to Agüica prison in Matanzas. Officials there, however, have not allowed García to visit González, according to the Directorate's report.
Wasn't that the point of the widely praised deal between church and state, to improve conditions for at least some prisoners?
Not only are husband and wife being barred from seeing each other, an official at Agüica told García that González was being held in a punishment isolation cell because he was refusing to wear a prison uniform, and at Agüica that sort of intransigence is not allowed.
"In these moments when they should be improving conditions, the transfer is worsening Diodaso's condition," García said. "I told them that if they take these steps against my husband, he would likely go on a hunger strike."
It remains to be seen whether the details of the church-state deal will betray all the optimism the arrangement has already sparked.
But as the González case reveals, the church may be unable to verify that the good that its partner Raúl Castro says he is willing to provide, is actually delivered.
It also has shown why only acceptable outcome of the new cordiality between the dictatorship and the church is the unconditional release of all political prisoners.
Anything less leaves too much to two institutions not deserving of trust.
UPDATED, June 4, 2010 — Radio Martí has more.
Recent Comments