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Posted on Mon, Jun. 30, 2003 in
The Miami Herald.
U.N. expert says she wrote Castro to request pardon of 50 dissidents
GENEVA - (AP) -- The United Nations expert on human rights in Cuba said
Friday she has written to President Fidel Castro asking him to pardon 50
dissidents sentenced to long prison terms.
Christine Chanet appealed to the Cuban president to use his right of pardon
to free the group of opposition party members, independent journalists and other
dissidents sentenced in a crackdown this spring.
She did not disclose the reasons she gave Castro for making the appeal.
The 50 are among 75 Cuban activists Fidel Castro's government accused of
being mercenaries who worked with U.S. officials to undermine the socialist
government.
The American government and the dissidents denied the charges.
Local human rights groups in recent days announced that Cuba's court of last
resort, the Supreme Tribunal, had upheld the long sentences on the group. The
appeals of the other 25 are still pending.
President Bush visits Little Havana
By Elaine De Valle. Edevalle@Herald.Com
The viejitos were more than ready this morning when President George W. Bush
walked into the Little Havana Activities and Nutrition Center at a public
housing facility for the elderly in Miami.
Some of them -- like Gladys Ramírez, 77, who wore a flag scarf around
her neck -- began waiting outside the comedor, the lunchroom, at 7 a.m. for the
speech that began four hours later.
Salvador Martínez couldn't even sleep Sunday night.
''This is the most marvelous thing that's ever happened to me,'' said Martínez,
who sat on a chair onstage near Bush. "I never imagined being so close to
the president.''
''This is a blessing from the sky,'' said Minerva López, decked out
in red, white and blue with heart-shaped flags dangling from her earlobes. "I
was a fan of his dad, his mother and his brother. I just love him.''
That kind of adoration was common among the 400 or so people at the center,
where Bush made remarks about his Medicare reform plan. The agency -- the
largest Hispanic geriatric health and human service organization in the nation,
with 14 sites that serve more than 55,000 clients -- was founded by Cuban-born
Josefina Carbonell, now the Bush administration's assistant secretary for aging
at the Department of Health and Human Services.
Flanked by Carbonel, Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy
G. Thompson, and Gov. Jeb Bush -- who the president called ''mi grande
hermanito,'' or my big little brother -- the president urged Congress to
reconcile their two different versions of a Medicare reform bill and give him
something he can sign off on.
''It's really a matter of will, a matter of putting aside the politics,''
the president said.
But the president can't stop in the Cuban exile capital of the world and not
talk politics of the international kind. Seeing U.S. Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart
and his brother, U.S. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, gave him an opening.
''I see the Diaz-Balart boys are with us,'' Bush said. "They know what
I know: That under the current leadership in Cuba, there will never be freedom.
''Freedom is the desire of every human heart. We believe in a free Cuba,''
Bush said.
At that, the devoted crowd gave him a standing ovation.
''We also know that a free society is more likely to be a peaceful
society,'' Bush said. "The best way to make America more secure is to find
the enemy before the enemy comes to you and that's what we will do.''
Bush spoke about national security, the economy and how Florida was leading
job growth nationwide, but the bulk of his speech was about providing options
for Medicare patients and prescription drug benefits to all senior citizens.
He also gave his brother a nod in advocating control of medical malpractice,
which Jeb Bush has made a priority in Florida. While recognizing that it is
currently a state issue, the president said it was something he would like to
see scrutinized at a national level.
"Frivolous lawsuits are driving up the costs of medical care. It also
runs up the cost of federal bills. We need medical liability reform all across
America.
The president got glorious reviews from his fans.
''He's doing a fantastic job,'' said Amanda Walker, 28, a teacher at
Plantation's private American Heritage School. "He's not so concerned about
being liked as being safe.''
Basilia Lias, a 71-year-old Peruvian woman, said she was glad to see Bush
address Medicare. "I appreciate him. He has been able to help older people
and we want him to help us more because we need it.''
López, of the heart-shaped flags, admitted she voted for the
president because of his father.
''But now I keep supporting him because I see he is a man. He is doing what
he has to do to ensure this country's liberty and that we continue to enjoy all
the marvelous things this country has to offer,'' she said.
Only one woman seemed peeved that she would have to go elsewhere for her
lunch today. Carmen Ruíz was invited to the event as one of the regulars
at the center's comedor. But she didn't want to see the president -- she just
wanted to eat.
''He is not my president. He is an assasin. He is against all of humanity,''
Ruíz said, referring to the administration's wars in Iraq and
Afghanistan.
But Bush also likely made a few new friends.
''For more than 30 years in Cuba, I never saw the president,'' said María
Teresa Mora, 70, who left the island and came to South Florida in 2000. "After
three years here, I get this opportunity to see the president.
"That is democracy!'' | 
