BBC News. Friday, 25 February, 2000, 15:36 GMT
A leading Cuban dissident due to go on trial on Friday could be jailed for seven years.
Oscar Elias Biscet, a 38-year-old doctor, was arrested last November after turning the Cuban flag upside down at a rally. He is charged with insulting the national flag, public disorder and inciting crime.
In a speech prior to Biscet's arrest, Castro denounced him by name as a "counter-revolutionary" troublemaker and accused him of acting on the orders of the U.S. government, which opposes communist rule in Cuba.
"There is a rather provocative gentleman and, in my opinion, a bit disturbed, frankly, for the things he does, for the problems he causes, for the disputes he has with his own people," Castro said at the time.
Anti-government
Biscet, a long-standing opponent of the rule of Fidel Castro, has said he represents peaceful opposition to Cuba's one-party socialist system, and speaks for human rights and political prisoners.
He leads a local rights group called the Lawton Foundation.
Two other activists are expected to be put on trial with Biscet.
Human rights groups have also reported the arrest of a number of other anti-government activists ahead of the trial, in what they say is a direct attempt to prevent any protests outside the court.
"Since Tuesday, there have been at least 15 detentions, of which today at least nine are still being held," said human rights activist Elizardo Sanchez.
"We are ready for a rise in the detentions and restrictions of movement."
At previous dissident trials, fellow activists have staged noisy protests outside, or clashed with pro-government supporters who also normally gather at such events.
Sedition
The trial of Biscet is being seen as the most significant dissident case in Cuba since the "Group of Four" opposition activists were tried in March 1999.
They are now serving sentence of between three-and-a-half and five years for "inciting sedition", after calling for political and economic reforms. Their case has brought freedom appeals from around the world, and international groups have also expressed concern at the fate of Biscet.
Conscience
Amnesty International has appealed to Cuba for Biscet's "immediate and unconditional release as a prisoner of conscience."
And the Paris-based journalists' rights group, Reporters Sans Frontieres, also issued a statement condemning the arrest of two dissident reporters, Angel Pablo Polanco and Omar Rodriguez Saludes.
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