CUBA
Report finds fewer dissidents in prison
HAVANA - (AP) -- The number of political prisoners held in Cuba dropped
in the second half of last year, but harassment of dissidents continues,
a veteran human rights activist said Tuesday.
Elizardo Sánchez of the Cuban Commission on Human Rights and National
Reconciliation said in his twice-yearly update that his group counted
283 prisoners of conscience, down from 316 in early July.
The commission counted 333 political prisoners in Cuba a year ago.
Sánchez attributed the drop to ''selective'' releases of prisoners, like
Héctor Palacios, an opposition leader who was recently set free on
medical parole.
He was one of 75 dissidents arrested in a crackdown in 2003. Fifteen of
those arrested have since been freed for health reasons.
But Sánchez said that even as some prisoners have been released, Cuba's
communist-run government continues to harass dissidents with short
detentions, interrogations and monitoring.
The rights activist also said he had no hope for a major change under
Raúl Castro, the defense minister named acting president when his older
brother, Fidel Castro, stepped aside in late July after intestinal surgery.
Cuba's government denies holding prisoners of conscience, characterizing
them as common criminals.
Rights activists count on family members and others to bring cases to
their attention.
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/special_packages/5min/16423179.htm
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