Reaction to release of dissidents
(30 Nov 2004) 1. US State Department Spokesman Richard Boucher entering press conference 2. SOUNDBITE (English) Richard Boucher, Spokesman, US State Department: "We think that it's important to remember the pressure from democratic nations has helped contribute to their (Cuban dissidents') release and to remember that these Cubans are brave people who were jailed solely for exercising their human rights. We really don't give any credit to the Cuban government for releasing them since they never should have been jailed to being with. We hope that they can return to their work to build a truly just and open Cuban society. We continue to condemn the unjust incarceration of dozens of other prisoners of conscience and we repeat our call to the Cuban government to release all political prisoners immediately." 3. Wide Boucher STORYLINE The US government has welcomed the release of four Cuban dissidents in Havana on Monday. US State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said pressure from democratic countries contributed to their release, but said the detainees should never have been imprisoned in the first place. Those freed on parole included economics writer Oscar Espinosa Chepe, who has been in a prison hospital for months with a liver ailment, said his wife, Miriam Leyva. Chepe's cause has become well known among some human rights groups outside of Cuba through international campaigns for his release. Also freed on Monday were physician Dr. Marcelo Lopez, and fellow dissidents Margarito Broche and Felipe Mustafa. The latest releases bring the number of dissidents released to 11 of an original group of 75 who were sentenced in April 2003. Their prison terms ranged from six to 28 years. They were charged with working with the US government to undermine Fidel Castro's communist system, something the dissidents and American officials denied. The releases come just days after Cuban Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque announced that his country had resumed formal contacts with Spain, whose new government has been pushing to restart a dialogue with the island nation. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: / ap_archive Facebook: / aparchives Instagram: / apnews You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...
