12-30-2011
The United States is deeply disappointed that the pardon was not
extended to Alan Gross.
The government of Cuba says it has pardoned and will release some 2,900
prisoners held in its jails. President Raul Castro called the
pre-Christmas announcement a humanitarian gesture that would include
women, the ailing, people older than 60, dozens of foreigners and a
small number of political prisoners who have served a large part of
their sentence with good behavior.
The United States is deeply disappointed that this pardon was not
extended to Alan Gross, an American who is unjustly imprisoned in Cuba.
The fact that the Council of State did not consider Mr. Gross's
deteriorating health and the two years he has already spent behind bars
suggests the gesture was a calculated and hollow one indeed.
Sixty-two years old and suffering from arthritis, Mr. Gross is a
dedicated development professional who has a long history of providing
assistance and support to underserved communities in more than 50
countries. He was a subcontractor working on a project sponsored by the
U.S. Agency for International Development in Cuba helping connect
members of civil society to the outside world. For these
well-intentioned activities, he was arrested on Dec. 3, 2009, convicted
of crimes against the state and sentenced to 15 years in prison.
We continue to call on the Cuban authorities to release Mr. Gross and
return him to his family, where he belongs.
http://www.voanews.com/policy/editorials/Cubas-Humanitarianism-Falls-Short-136449808.html
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