Writers and Politicos: Montaner has been defamed.

Writers and Politicos: Montaner has been defamed.

Montaner Writers around Latin America and Europe started a petition in
support of Cuban exile columnist Carlos Alberto Montaner, who says the
Cuban government is after his blood.

Montaner denounced member of parliament and Cuban daily paper Granma
editor Lazaro Barrera, who told the National Assembly that he thought
Montaner should be extradited to Cuba. Seems Montaner busted out jail
there once, and Barrera wants him back.

"Granma's editor has asked for my extradition, because I am allegedly a
fugitive from justice, something that is only halfway true," Montaner
wrote in a column . "Almost half a century ago, in March 1961, when I
was 17, I escaped from jail with another teenage student who was also a
political prisoner. At the time, we were trying -- like tens of
thousands of other students and peasants -- to keep the communist
dictatorship from consolidating."

Some 40 notables, including former Czech president Vaclav Havel, Spain's
Jose Maria Aznar, former political prisoner Raul Rivero and Peruvian
writer Mario Vargas Llosa have signed "manifesto" supporting him. They
say Montaner – whose column appears regularly in this paper – has been
defamed. Download manifesto_mont.rtf here.

- Frances Robles

June 10, 2008

http://miamiherald.typepad.com/cuban_colada/2008/06/writers-and-pol.html