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Cuba Requests Reactivation of Cuban Five's Case

CUBA, Mar 11, 2010. -  Cuba requested before the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) in Geneva the reactivation of the case of the five Cuban antiterrorists, the detention of which in the United States was termed as arbitrary in that city, where the organization’s headquarters is located.

Cuba considers it necessary to recall that the case of the five Cuban antiterrorists unjustly incarcerated in the United States is still pending, the imprisonment of which has been classed as arbitrary, said Anayansi Rodriguez, director of the Cuban Foreign Ministry’s Department for Multilateral Affairs.

The diplomat clarified that, in its Opinion 19/2005, the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention stated the illegality of the measure, the Granma newspaper reports on Thursday.

While participating in an interactive debate with the Rapporteurs of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detentions and Enforced Disappearances in session 13 of the HRC, Rodriguez made reference to the ruling around the file of the Five Cuban heroes.

Although this pronouncement was made five years ago in May, the US authorities have not yet adopted the necessary measures to put an end to the situation that determined the conclusion of the Group, she argued.

She pointed out that, at that moment, UN experts stressed that taking away the freedom of Rene Gonzalez, Ramon Labañino, Gerardo Hernandez, Antonio Guerrero and Fernando Gonzalez was arbitrary and contravened international law.

These patriots were arrested in the United States in 1998 and condemned in Miami to harsh sentences ranging from 15 years in prison to two life imprisonments, for monitoring the activities of Florida-based criminal anti-Cuban groups (Cubaminrex - acn)

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