"In recent weeks the world has been reminded once again of the cruelty and deceit of Fidel Castro and his henchmen," stated Mas. "The mass arrests of peaceful dissidents, the harsh prison sentences -- up to 28 years -- imposed on human rights activists, and the summary firing squad execution of three young men seeking to flee the island demonstrate that Castro remains as committed to ruling through fear and intimidation as ever. To have provided a platform for Castro to try to whitewash his sins would have been an unforgivable insult to the thousands of men and women who suffer in his tropical gulag," added Mas.
"HBO is well known for its professional integrity and allowing an aging dictator to distort the truth and go unchallenged would not have been in keeping with that tradition," noted the CANF Chairman.[End]
President Bush is likely to make a public statement soon about the crackdown, which has stirred grave concern among Cuba policy experts here and dampened the hopes of lawmakers and others seeking to ease the current trade sanctions. At the same time, the president is expected to issue a stern warning to the Havana government that the United States will not tolerate another exodus of rafters, the officials said. Several times during Castro's 44-year tenure, most notably in 1980 and 1994, he has relieved internal tensions by allowing mass migrations to Florida. ***