Unbiased look at the Sint Maarten Elections
WASHINGTON DC--The United States says it's "deeply concerned" about the latest reports of detentions and arrests by Cuban authorities of peaceful civil society members and activists.
On Wednesday, the State Department said the activists included Luis Quintana Rodriguez, Antonio Rodiles, Danilo Maldonado, Reinaldo Escobar, Marcelino Abreu Bonora and Eliecer Avila.
"We strongly condemn the Cuban government's continued harassment and repeated use of arbitrary detention, at times with violence, to silence critics, disrupt peaceful assembly and freedom of expression, and intimidate citizens," said Jeff Rathke, director of the Bureau of Public Affairs in the US Department of State.
"Freedoms of expression and peaceful assembly are internationally recognised human rights, and the Cuban government's lack of respect for these rights, as demonstrated by [the latest – Ed.] detentions, is inconsistent with hemispheric norms and commitments," he added.
"We urge the Government of Cuba to end its practice of repressing these and other internationally protected freedoms and to respect the universal human rights of Cuban citizens," Rathke continued.
The arrests were the most sweeping roundup of dissidents in the two weeks since the United States and Cuba said they would normalise diplomatic relations and President Obama moved to loosen several trade and travel restrictions associated with the five-decade economic embargo.
The New York Times noted on Thursday that President Raul Castro said that Cuba's political system, which limits freedom of expression, will not change.
It said Cuban authorities made it clear that they would not tolerate what they called a "political provocation" by the artist Tania Bruguera and her supporters.
Bruguera, who splits her time between Cuba and New York, had planned to set up the microphone on Tuesday afternoon and allow Cubans to speak for a minute at a time, articulating their visions for the country's future.
Instead, she was detained at her mother's home hours before the event and released Wednesday afternoon, along with several others.
Cuba has made no official statement on the detentions, but the authorities had declined to issue Bruguera a permit for the event. ~ Caribbean360 ~
