Madrid, Spain, Jan 18, 2008 / 21:42 pm
The more than 200 political prisoners being held in Cuba received the support this week of the Spanish association Cuba in Transition which, together with Reporters Without Borders, analyzed the state of human rights on the island at a recent conference.
During the event, Hector Palacios, one of the main dissident leaders released in 2006 after three years in prison, said the situation facing political prisoners and prisoners of conscience remains “dramatic.” He warned that 34 of the 234 political prisoners will die in prison if they are not released.
“If there were a minimum of justice, there would be no political prisoners in Cuba and most of the others would be freed,” Palacios said, stressing that political prisoners in Cuba or anywhere else “should be granted freedom.” He called on Spain to collaborate because “to speak about Cuba and Spain is to speak about distinct lands that share the same blood.”
Regarding the changes that need to happen in Cuba, Palacios said they are essential and that “the policy that has been imposed at gunpoint upon such a kind and hardworking nation should be radically changed.”