Some might call it a rift; others, a plurality of opinion. The fact is
that the letter sent Thursday to Barack Obama by Ladies-in-White
co-founder Miriam Leiva Miriam2 and her husband, former prisoner Oscar
Espinosa Chepe, differed in emphasis from a letter sent the same day to
the Democratic candidate by the dissident group as a whole.
While the group's letter asked Obama to "contribute to the immediate and
unconditional release" of political prisoners in Cuba, Leiva's letter
went farther, praising Obama for his "responsible initiatives to
eliminate the [U.S.-imposed] limitations on the travel of
Cuban-Americans and their remittances of economic aid to relatives and
friends. Also, we hope that the other prohibitions may be gradually
suspended," her letter said. "We trust that your election as President
next November will begin an era of political realism toward Cuba,
through increased contact in all spheres and with all representatives of
[Cuban] society, including the rulers and the ruled. A creative policy
[...] would give excellent results and, although we Cubans are first and
foremost responsible for the changes in Cuba, [such a policy] would be
an important aid to the transit toward democracy."
The Ladies' letter did not touch on the subject of restricted travel and
limited remittances. Nor did it mention contacts between an Obama
administration and the Cuban government. The difference in stress
between the two messages was eye-catching.
To read the Ladies' letter (in Spanish), click here;
http://www.cubanuestra.nu/web/article.asp?artID=12025
for Leiva's letter, click here.
http://www.cubanuestra.nu/web/article.asp?artID=12016
---Renato Pérez Pizarro.
May 26, 200
http://miamiherald.typepad.com/cuban_colada/2008/05/letters-differ.html
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