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Friday, March 26, 2010

In Havana, `Ladies' march, feel wrath

Posted on Friday, 03.26.10

In Havana, `Ladies' march, feel wrath
Tens of thousands march for Ladies in White
Gloria Estefan and a huge crowd dressed in white filled Calle Ocho to
show solidarity with the "Ladies in White", human rights protesters in
Cuba who have been attacked by government agents. Tens of thousands
marched Thursday, March 25, 2010 in Miami to call for liberty in Cuba.
Miami Herald Staff
BY JUAN O. TAMAYO
jtamayo@ElNuevoHerald.com

Cuba's Ladies in White, marching to the famed Malecón in Havana at the
same time as the masses in Miami, were harassed without violence by a
mob of pro-government civilians, participants said.

Another group of the activists was reported to have marched in Matanzas,
east of Havana, and a dissident charged that government supporters armed
with sticks and steel bars attacked his home at the same time.

``We wanted to be on the streets simultaneously with all those [Miami]
people who identify with our pain, and show that in a not too-distant
day we will all be together,'' said Berta Soler Fernandez, a Havana
member of the Ladies in White.

The women activists, all relatives of jailed dissidents, marched
carrying flowers and Cuban flags to the Malecón near the Hotel Nacional
and released a flock of white doves, Soler added.

A small group of pro-government university students harassed the women
with chants of ``Viva Fidel!,'' and a larger group of security agents
and civilians joined the counter-demonstration later but there was no
violence, she reported.

The government supporters followed them to the home of Laura Pollán, the
group's spokeswoman, and shouted revolutionary slogans for about 20
minutes before dispersing, Soler added.

http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/03/26/1548108/in-havana-ladies-march-feel-wrath.html

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