The life of the political prisoner Eduardo Diaz Fleitas (serving 21 years of detention) is in danger: The head of the prison of Kilo 5 ½ is refusing to allow a kidney analysis

Frankfurt am Main / Havana (11th of April 2008) - There are new deaths in Cuban prisons. At the beginning of March the prisoner Leonardo Delgado Diaz died after he didn't get medical treatment although he had lung pain for months. Andres Vazquez Rodriguez died at the end of March because he also didn't get medical help. The International Society for Human Rights (ISHR) condemns the inhuman conditions in prisons and claims an adequate medical treatment for the prisoners.

The ISHR has information that the police again arrested 42 Cubans and questioned around 70 other civil-rights activists. Some of them were members of the "Ladies in White" who had been threatened during a peaceful protest march on the 15th of March by a mob that was revolutionized by the police.

The two deaths in the prisons of Guanajay and Ariza show how bad the supply of the prisoners is. Because of the insufficient nutrition, hygiene and the cold and wet cells a lot of prisoners are sick. But the necessary medical treatment is often refused. So that harmless sicknesses often lead to grave sicknesses or even to death. At the moment the head of the prison of Kilo 5 ½ is refusing to allow a kidney analysis for the prisoner of conscience Eduardo Diaz Fleitas.

Re-education through strokes in prisons

A shocking report about "re-education measures" emerged from the prison Kilo 7 which were used against two prisoners. Jorge Luis Guerrero Guerra who is 18 years old and Ramon Perez Rodriguez who is 19 years old were handcuffed on the fence of their cells and beaten with an aluminium tube.  Because of that Ramon had a skull fracture and Jorge lost all his teeth. After that they were taken to their cells and were handcuffed naked on the fences of the cells.

There is no end to arbitrary arrests and questioning

Even one month after the signing of two pacts of the UN for the protection of civil and political rights civil-rights activists and human rights activists are arrested, threatened and harassed. The state security attacked ten dissidents when they distributed the general declaration of human rights in Havana. The human rights activists were arrested and captured at the police station for hours.

Peaceful protests of the "Ladies in White" constrained

The attack against the "Ladies in White" on the 15th of March is also alarming. When the mothers and wifes of political prisoners walked peacefully through the capital, they were stopped by the state security and were constrained to walk to the place of the revolution. The "Ladies in White" had to change their route. They were escorted by an angry mob that was apparently revolutionized by the police before. This shows how far the authorities are willing to go against dissidents. The "Ladies in White" - who are laureates of the Sakharov Award from the European Parliament - had been untroubled by such attacks before because the population has a lot of respect for the mothers and wifes of the prisoners.

New channels as a sign of change?

While the arrests of dissidents are going on in Cuba, the state-owned Cuban radio and TV society ICRT will start a new TV channel soon. But if the program will exceed the jubilation statements about Socialism and the uncritical policy programs from the other Cuban channels, can be questioned. There are still 23 independent journalists in prison because of their critical reporting.