By Jim Burns. CNS Senior Staff Writer.
CNS News. February 26, 2001
(CNSNews.com) - In its annual human rights report, the State Department
Monday commended the election of Vicente Fox as president of Mexico, but had
harsher words for Argentina and Cuba's human rights records. The report said
Mexico has made important efforts to improve the human rights situation in that
country. However, problems remain in the Mexican states of Chiapas, Guerrero and
Oaxaca.
On Argentina, the State Department said there had been incidents of police
violence and torture. The department also thinks Argentina could improve its
prison system.
As in the previous year, the report was highly critical of Cuba, saying the
human rights record in that communist nation is still poor.
"It [the Castro government] continued to violate systematically the
fundamental civil rights and political rights of its citizens. Citizens do not
have the right to change their government peacefully. The authorities continued
routinely to harass, threaten, arbitrarily arrest, detain, imprison and defame
human rights advocates and members of independent professional associations,
including journalists, economists, doctors, and lawyers, often with the goal of
coercing them into leaving the country," the report said.
The State Department also accused the Castro government of restricting some
religious activities, but permitting others.
"Before and after the January 1998 visit of Pope John Paul II, the
government permitted some public processions on feast days, and reinstated
Christmas as an official holiday; however, it has not responded to the papal
appeal that the Church be allowed to play a greater role in society. During the
year, the Government allowed two new priests to enter the country [as professors
in a seminary] and another two to replace two priests whose visas were not
renewed," said the report.
The report was also critical of Colombia. It said government forces
continued to commit serious abuses that went largely unpunished. It added that
paramilitary groups and guerrillas were responsible for the vast majority of
political and other killings in Colombia.
Colombian President Andres Pastrana will be meeting with President Bush in
Washington on Tuesday.
All original CNSNews.com material, copyright 1998-2001
Cybercast News Service.
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