Cuba's Hidden Heroes

The American Spectator ^ | 12-30-08 | Jordan Allott and Daniel Allott

[Wolf13]

December marks the 60th anniversary of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Crafted in the aftermath of World War II, the document (the world's most translated) represented the first global expression of rights to which all human beings are inherently entitled.

The Declaration's anniversary comes at a propitious time. January 1, 2009 marks the 50th anniversary of what Cubans call "La Revolución," which culminated in the overthrow of the regime of Fulgencio Batista by Marxist guerrillas led by Fidel Castro. The near concurrence of these historic anniversaries provides an opportunity to consider how far the Cuban government has to go in upholding the most basic rights of its citizens.

When discussing the island nation located just 90 miles from America's border, the Western news media almost invariably focus on the 200 to 300 prisoners at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base. Often overlooked, however, are the 200 to 300 Cuban prisoners scattered across the island, imprisoned not as terrorist suspects but as nonviolent political prisoners whose only "crime" is that of promoting human rights in a nation in which two generations have grown up without them. Arrested and given lengthy, often decades-long sentences for offenses like "dangerousness" and "pre-criminal activity," they are Cuba's prisoners of conscience.

[Tidbit]

I’m sure Sean Penn, having read this article, will get on the horn to Raul and fix everything. /sarc