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World Report 2007
Human Rights Watch
Cuba / Events of 2006
Human
Rights Watch.
Cuba remains the one country in Latin America
that represses nearly all forms of political
dissent. President Fidel Castro, during
his 47 years in power, has shown no willingness
to consider even minor reforms. Instead,
the Cuban government continues to enforce
political conformity using criminal prosecutions,
long- and short-term detentions, mob harassment,
police warnings, surveillance, house arrests,
travel restrictions, and politically-motivated
dismissals from employment. The end result
is that Cubans are systematically denied
basic rights to free expression, association,
assembly, privacy, movement, and due process
of law.
Castro's decision in early August to temporarily
cede power as a result of medical problems
to his brother, Raúl Castro, has
prompted intense speculation about the possibility
of reform in Cuba. As of this writing, it
was unclear whether the older Castro would
be able to return to power and what his
political absence might signal for the island's
future.
Legal and Institutional Failings
Cuba's legal and institutional structures
are at the root of rights violations. Although
in theory the different branches of government
have separate and defined areas of authority,
in practice the executive retains clear
control over all levers of power. The courts,
which lack independence, undermine the right
to fair trial by severely restricting the
right to a defense.
Cuba's Criminal Code provides the legal
basis for repression of dissent. Laws criminalizing
enemy propaganda, the spreading of "unauthorized
news," and insult to patriotic symbols
are used to restrict freedom of speech under
the guise of protecting state security.
The government also imprisons or orders
the surveillance of individuals who have
committed no illegal act, relying upon provisions
that penalize "dangerousness"
(estado peligroso) and allow for "official
warning" (advertencia oficial).
Political Imprisonment
In early July 2006 the Cuban Commission
for Human Rights and National Reconciliation,
a respected local human rights group, issued
a list of 316 prisoners who it said were
incarcerated for political reasons. The
list included the names of 12 peaceful dissidents
who had been arrested and detained in the
first half of 2006, of whom five were being
held on charges of "dangerousness."
Of 75 political dissidents, independent
journalists, and human rights advocates
who were summarily tried in April 2003,
60 remain imprisoned. Serving sentences
that average nearly 20 years, the incarcerated
dissidents endure poor conditions and punitive
treatment in prison.
Travel Restrictions and Family Separations
The Cuban government forbids the country's
citizens from leaving or returning to Cuba
without first obtaining official permission,
which is often denied. Unauthorized travel
can result in criminal prosecution. In May
2006 Oswaldo Payá, the well-known
Cuban human rights advocate, was awarded
an honorary doctor of laws by Columbia University
in New York City in recognition of his work.
However, he was denied an exit visa by the
Cuban authorities and therefore could not
receive the degree in person.
The government also frequently bars citizens
engaged in authorized travel from taking
their children with them overseas, essentially
holding the children hostage to guarantee
the parents' return. Given the widespread
fear of forced family separation, these
travel restrictions provide the Cuban government
with a powerful tool for punishing defectors
and silencing critics.
Freedom of Expression and Assembly
The Cuban government maintains a media
monopoly on the island, ensuring that freedom
of expression is virtually non-existent.
Although a small number of independent journalists
manage to write articles for foreign websites
or publish underground newsletters, the
risks associated with these activities are
considerable. According to Reporters Without
Borders, there are currently 23 journalists
serving prison terms in Cuba, most of them
charged with threatening "the national
independence and economy of Cuba."
This makes the country second only to China
for the number of journalists in prison.
Access to information via the internet is
also highly restricted in Cuba. In late
August 2006 the dissident and independent
journalist Guillermo Fariñas ended
a seven-month hunger strike in opposition
to the regime's internet policy. He began
the strike after the Cuban authorities shut
down his e-mail access, which he had been
using to send dispatches abroad describing
attacks on dissidents and other human rights
abuses.
Freedom of assembly is severely restricted
in Cuba, and political dissidents are generally
prohibited from meeting in large groups.
This was evident in mid-September 2006 during
the 14th summit of the Non-Aligned Movement
in Havana, when the Cuban government issued
a ban on all gatherings that might damage
"the image" of the city.
Prison Conditions
Prisoners are generally kept in poor and
abusive conditions, often in overcrowded
cells. They typically lose weight during
incarceration, and some receive inadequate
medical care. Some also endure physical
and sexual abuse, typically by other inmates
and with the acquiescence of guards.
Political prisoners who denounce poor conditions
of imprisonment or who otherwise fail to
observe prison rules are frequently punished
with long periods spent in punitive isolation
cells, restrictions on visits, or denial
of medical treatment. Some political prisoners
have carried out long hunger strikes to
protest abusive conditions and mistreatment
by guards.
Death Penalty
Under Cuban law the death penalty exists
for a broad range of crimes. It is difficult
to ascertain the frequency with which this
penalty is employed because Cuba does not
release information regarding its use. However,
as far as is known, no executions have been
carried out since April 2003.
Human Rights Defenders
Refusing to recognize human rights monitoring
as a legitimate activity, the government
denies legal status to local human rights
groups. Individuals who belong to these
groups face systematic harassment, with
the government putting up obstacles to impede
them from documenting human rights conditions.
In addition, international human rights
groups such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty
International are barred from sending fact-finding
missions to Cuba. In fact, Cuba remains
one of the few countries in the world to
deny the International Committee of the
Red Cross access to its prisons.
Key International Actors
Cuba's election to the new United Nations
Human Rights Council in June 2006 was contrary
to the Council's requirement that its members
"uphold the highest standards of human
rights promotion and protection." Although
the new body was designed to replace the
discredited Human Rights Commission, whose
membership often included notorious human
rights violators, the election of Cuba and
other countries with poor human rights records
confirmed that the Council has not yet risen
above this disturbing practice. Equally
troubling was the Cuban government's characterization
of the mandate of the High Commissioner
of Human Rights as "spurious"
and its assertion that it would not cooperate
with her office.
The US economic embargo on Cuba, in effect
for more than four decades, continues to
impose indiscriminate hardship on the Cuban
people and to block travel to the island.
An exception to the embargo that allows
food sales to Cuba on a cash-only basis,
however, has led to substantial trade between
the two countries.
In an effort to deprive the Cuban government
of funding, the United States government
enacted new restrictions on family-related
travel to Cuba in June 2004. Under these
rules, individuals are allowed to visit
relatives in Cuba only once every three
years, and only if the relatives fit the
US government's narrow definition of family-a
definition that excludes aunts, uncles,
cousins, and other next-of-kin who are often
integral members of Cuban families. Justified
as a means of promoting freedom in Cuba,
the new travel policies undermine the freedom
of movement of hundreds of thousands of
Cubans and Cuban Americans, and inflict
profound harm on Cuban families.
Countries within the European Union continue
to disagree with respect to the best approach
to take toward Cuba. In January 2005 the
EU decided to temporarily suspend the diplomatic
sanctions that it had adopted in the wake
of the Cuban government's 2003 crackdown
against dissidents. In June 2006 the EU
decided to maintain the sanctions freeze
for an additional year, although it also
issued a statement lamenting the "further
deterioration of the human rights situation
in Cuba" and "several dozen acts
of violent harassment and intimidation"
over the past year. The Czech Republic was
the member country most strongly in favor
of a tougher stance towards Cuba.
Related Material
More
Information on Human Rights in Cuba
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World
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