Cuban human rights activist in maximum security prison must be released

Cuban human rights activist in maximum security prison must be released
26 February 2010

Amnesty International has adopted its 55th prisoner of conscience in
Cuba and urged President Raúl Castro to release him immediately and
unconditionally.

Darsi Ferrer, Director of the 'Juan Bruno Zayas' Health and Human Rights
Centre in Havana, has been detained since July 2009 on spurious charges
of receiving illegally obtained goods, an offence usually immediately
bailed.

He has not been brought to trial and he's being held in a maximum
security prison in Havana intended for inmates who have been convicted
of violent crimes.

"The accusation against Darsi Ferrer is clearly a pretext. We believe he
was detained as a punishment for his work to promote freedom of
expression in Cuba," said Gerardo Ducos, Cuba researcher at Amnesty
International.

Although the offence with which Darsi Ferrer is charged would normally
be reviewed by a local magistrate, his case is being handled by the
General Prosecutors Office, fuelling the argument that this case is
politically motivated. The activist has been detained many times before
in connection with his protest activities.

"Anyone charged with this crime would normally be awaiting trial on
bail, not held in a maximum security prison. This is yet another attempt
by the Cuban authorities to hinder the work of human rights activist in
Cuba," said Gerardo Ducos.

On Monday, Amnesty International's prisoner of conscience Orlando Zapata
Tamayo died after reportedly being on hunger strike for several weeks in
protest at prison conditions. He was arrested in March 2003 and was
serving a total sentence of 36 years.

Darsi Ferrer and his wife Yusnaimy were arrested without a valid warrant
in Havana on 9 July 2009, hours before they were due to participate in a
demonstration to promote freedom of expression.

They were interrogated for several hours and Darsi Ferrer was handcuffed
and beaten by eight police officers. They were released without charge
several hours later.

On 21 July 2009 Darsi Ferrer was arrested again and told he was being
taken to a police station to answer questions about building materials
the police had confiscated during their previous detention. However, he
was falsely detained, driven to a maximum security prison on the
outskirts of Havana and charged with receiving illegally obtained goods.

Darsi Ferrer claims the building materials, two sacks of cement and some
iron girders, were given to him by a colleague who had left the country
and had not finished refurbishing his own house. The materials had been
on the porch of the house in full view from the street months before the
authorities came to confiscate them.

Cuban human rights activist in maximum security prison must be released
| Amnesty International (26 February 2010)
http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/cuban-human-rights-activist-maximum-security-prison-must-be-released-2010-02-26