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Monday, November 12, 2012

Locals protest for jailed man in Cuba

Locals protest for jailed man in Cuba
By Juan Carlos Fanjul / CBS 12 News

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla.-- Judy Gross spilled her heart out to hundreds of
strangers.

"22 days from now marks the 3 year anniversary of Alan's unjust
imprisonment in Cuba," she said.

Most of the people carrying picket signs along Okeechobee Boulevard
don't know her, but they care about her and her husband's plight.

63-year-old Alan Gross was on a humanitarian mission in Cuba, turned
nightmare.

"Gross was doing a contract in Cuba to provide internet access to the
Jewish community. He was detained in December 2009 and now has been
detained for almost 3 years," said Jared Genser, Gross' International
Human Rights lawyer.

The Castro government claims Gross was going to provide the Jewish
minority and dissident groups on the island a way to connect through the
internet and plot an overthrow of the government.

"It has been devastating. He has received a 15 year prison sentence for
'undermining the sovereignty of Cuba' for doing nothing more than
logging on to the internet ," added Genser.

The group showing a united front outside the Kravis Center in downtown
West Palm Beach where the Cuban National Philharmonic Orchestra is
performing.

They wanted to send a message to the government-sanctioned musical group.

"For us this is a gross injustice. This is a humanitarian issue. All of
us have to be for one another, " said Rabbi Efrem Goldberg.

For Judy Gross, it's a painfully personal issue. She's worried her
husband may die in Cuba already having lost already over 100 pounds.

"It's on my mind 24 hours a day. Regular, every day living is hard. I
have to stay on my full time job. So, I have two full-time jobs, my
regular work and my work to free him," added Gross.

http://cbs12.com/news/top-stories/stories/locals-protest-jailed-man-cuba-3075.shtml?wap=0

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