Febrero 26, 2009
HAVANA, Cuba - February 26 (Reinaldo Cosano Alén, Sindical Press / www.cubasindical.org) - The historic date of February 24, when the War of Independence against Spanish colonialism in 1895 was started, has become a tragic day and another reason yet for repression, since l996.
On February 24 of that year, Cuban dictator Fidel Castro ordered the downing of two civilian planes over international waters, both piloted by Miami-based exiles from the group Brothers to the Rescue, killing its four crew members.
Some days before, more than three hundred activists from pro-democracy groups that formed Concilio Cubano -which had convened a grand assembly unit in Havana for February 24- had been imprisoned.
As it has been happening since 1996, this year there were many repressive actions against activists members of the opposition and dissident organizations.
According to a report by the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions of Cuba (CONIC) released to this agency, there were several arrests and intimidations of independent trade unionists throughout the island.
Between February 18 and 24, 14 activists were arrested or intimidated at their homes and at the offices of the Department of State Security (DSE).
On February 24, in Nueva Gerona, Isla de la Juventud, two members of the independent trade union “William Le Santé”, Vladimir Arana José Rosas, director of the Independent Cooperative of Ceramists and Oviedo Sergio Santacruz, were arrested by officers of the DSE, reported Lazaro Ricardo Perez, a delegate of the CONIC in the territory.
On February 24, in Santiago de Cuba, Raudel Avila, CONIC delegate in the province, left his home to visit his father and had not yet returned at the time his wife gave the information to CONIC, fearing that her husband was detained.
In Isla de la Juventud, on February 19, Lázaro Ricardo Pérez González, CONIC delegate in the territory, was cited by the DSE official Angel Gonzalez Romero to the Department’s office, and was threatened with being prosecuted if he was part of any of the day’s activities, even at his home.
In the same province Rafael Angel Pagés, Ramón Salazar Infante, Raisa Campanioni and Raydel Pérez Diéguez, all members of the independent trade union “William Le Santé”, were contacted at their homes on February 21 and notified by the DSE that they were banned from initiating or participating in any activities on February 24.
In Havana, María Elena Mir Marrero and Reinaldo Cosano Alén, members of the CONIC national executive, were visited on the early morning on the 18th and warned that they could not initiate or authorize any activity in the days following the aforementioned date, stating openly that they were under closed surveillance.
On the 24th two other members of the CONIC executive, Emilio Sherry, general secretary of the Independent Union of Workers of Light Industry (SITIL), and Antonio Rizo Rizo, member of the SITIL, were visited in the early hours by officers of the DSE, who warned them that they will not tolerate any remembrance of the events of February 24, and that they could be prosecuted.
At Perico, Matanzas, Osvaldo Antonio Castillo, CONIC’s provincial delegate, reported that on the 22nd Security agents visited him at home and harshly cautioned him that they will not allowed any activity, and that he was not permitted to leave town until after that day.
