Chronicle on Cuba - July 2004

Domestic Affairs

July 1: For Carmelo Díaz Fernández and five other peaceful dissidents who have been released conditionally from prison because of their deteriorated health, the joy of being home with their families is marred by fear and uncertainty. In some cases state security officers have warned the men that they could be arrested again if they rekindle their opposition activities. Some suggested the men leave Cuba permanently. Caught between exile and the possibility of serving out the rest of his 15-year prison sentence, Diaz Fernandez said he, like some others, will seek asylum abroad. Manuel Vazquez Portal, who served one year, three months and four days of his 18-year sentence, said he is deliberating with his family whether to leave Cuba. When Vazquez Portal told a prison authority he would go back to being a journalist, he recalled the captain responded, "If I were you and they freed me I would go into exile." De Miranda, a former teacher, who was released on the same day as Vazquez Portal, said he may seek asylum abroad because he was fired from his job teaching math and geology several years ago and is unable to make a living. De Miranda and others reject the Cuban government's assertion that dissidents are "mercenaries." "If I were a mercenary I would be a masochist to have my house in these conditions," he said pointing to his bare Central Havana living room, where slats are missing from the windows and ceiling tiles are coming loose. (Sun Sentinel, 1/7/04)

July 1: Visually impaired attorney Juan Carlos González Leyva denounced review judge Juan Enrique Balar Claro's refusal to let him make a trip to Havana. González Leyva, a Ciego de Ávila resident and leader of the Cuban Human Rights Foundation, is currently serving a 4-year probationary sentence and needed the review board's approval to travel. (Cubanet, 1/7/04)

July 1: Speaking on behalf of her husband, dissident poet and journalist Raúl Rivero, Blanca Reyes denounced the systematic harassment her spouse is subjected to at the hands of a prison guard named Alexei. According to Rivero, political prisoners share overcrowded cells with ordinary inmates, who are "encouraged" to ignore them, risking punishment if they don't. (AFP, 1/7/04)

July 2: The National Assembly of People's Power --also known as the Cuban Parliament -- began its second day of debates at Havana's International Convention Center concerning the universalization of education on the island. Parliament President Ricardo Alarcón opened the morning session. Fidel Castro, who also serves as a delegate to the island's legislature, spoke from the floor. He recalled how educational programs were negatively affected by the economic problems of what is known as "the Special Period." He noted that the 90s were times of shortages and hardships for the Cuban people -- having severe effects on the social and educational programs of the Cuban Revolution. (Radio Habana Cuba, 2/7/04)

July 3: T he Cuban government's National Centre for Sex Education (CENESEX) has begun publishing on its Internet site a section on sexual diversity, which provides general information, posts public opinions e-mailed to the web site, and gives Cubans the opportunity to consult with experts. According to sexologist Mariela Castro, director of CENESEX, what is occurring ''is the result of an effort of more than 30 years, and now we are seeing its fruits more clearly''. She says that 10 years ago it would have been nearly impossible to introduce a textbook on sex in the high schools. Nor would there have been such tolerance of training on transsexual and transvestite issues. ''In the 1960s, 70s and 80s, the resistance against even mentioning sexual diversity was incredibly strong even amongst that population,'' Castro said. The CENESEX Internet site is part of a broader project of the ministry, which includes a forum to promote reflection and debate about masculinity, relationships, sexual diversity and other issues. (IPS, 5/7/04)

July 4: Havana homeowners who do not abide by the Rent-Control Act are risking expropriation of their house or apartment, according to Tribuna de la Habana. The weekly capital newspaper reported that, between January 2003 and last April, legislation pertaining to landlord expropriation or loss of property rights was enforced in 89 cases, 43 of which were illegally renting out living quarters in foreign, as well as national currency. (El Nuevo Herald, Europa Press, 5/7/04)

July 4: More than one hundred poets from America, Europe and Africa are taking part in the 2nd World Congress of Poetry, hosted in Santiago de Cuba province. This forum is part of the 14th Caribbean Festival, or “Fire Festival”. The international meeting is dedicated to the famous Haitian poets Jacques Roumain, Jacques Stefan Alexis and Jacques Vieux, as well as the Dominican poet Pedro Mir, who recently died. (Prensa Latina, 4/7/04)

July 5: Havana is welcoming scholars from the Caribbean basin and Latin America, in a gathering to shed new light on the works of national poet Nicolás Guillén. The main lecture hall at the University of Havana will host an event focusing on theory, music and documentaries on the life and works by late Cuban National Poet Nicolas Guillen (1904-1989). The event, sponsored by Cuba´s Writers and Artists Guild and the Cuban Music Institute, is also atttended by delegates from France, Canada, Spain and Greece. Participants will also honor Chilean poet Pablo Neruda and Cuban writer Alejo Carpentier. (Prensa Latina, 5/7/04)

July 5: Cuba's ruling Communist party has launched a far-reaching assault on "corruption and illegalities" that could lead to the expulsion of moderate members from the party. The campaign - yet to be reported by official government media - reflects the party's ideological retrenchment and underlines the extent to which the government has renounced its timid market-oriented reforms of the early 1990s. Over the past two or three months members of the party's political bureau have been visiting local party branches to tell militants that they have one last chance to clean up their acts. The new focus on corruption has been accompanied by measures to strip state businesses of their limited operational autonomy and to scrap executive perks such as expense accounts. A prominent voice in the anti-corruption effort has been Raul Castro, defence minister and apparently the man next in line to succeed his brother, Fidel Castro, as Cuba's president, according to party cadres who attended high-level national and provincial party meetings two months ago. The meetings were shown in a video prepared as part of Raul Castro's anti-corruption drive. (Financial Times, 5/7/04)

July 5: María Benítez, a demographics specialist and author of the 2003 book, The Cuban Family, said that, "For every 100 marriages in Cuba, there are almost 70 divorces. It's alarming," she said. The island's severe housing shortage forces many people to live with their in-laws and other relatives, straining even the best of marriages. Economic conditions also create tension that drives many couples apart, Ms. Benítez said. Divorce is usually a simple process, and battles over possessions aren't common because most people have few belongings. "There isn't much property to divide," said Orlando Ramos, 42, an economist. Cuba legalized divorce in 1869 and introduced divorces of “Mutual Consent” by notary public in 1994. "No other country in the world has this kind of divorce," said Ayiadna María Verrier, a notary public in Old Havana. Divorces involving disputes over money, property or children are handled in Cuban courts and usually take several months. (The Dallas Morning News, 5/7/04)

July 5: The oppositionist coalition, Arco Progresista, issued a press release bemoaning the Cuban authorities' refusal to grant one of its members permission to attend the recently concluded 36 th Congress of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party. (AFP, 5/7/04)

July 7: Imprisoned dissident Jorge Luis Garcia Pérez ''Antúnez'' was harshly beaten by prison authorities in front of his relatives, a Cuban American organization based in Miami denounced. In a statement made public to the press, Directorio Democratico Cubano says that several guards from the Ariza provincial prison, Camagüey, attacked Antúnez after he requested from the prison guards that letters of support from different countries were given to his sister. “He was brutally beaten on the floor”. “They handcuffed each hand and dragged him from opposite sides, so he began bleeding and having difficulties breathing”, Antunez’ sister, Bertha, told members of the Directorio. According to Bertha Antúnez, her brother had requested the letters that the State Security had been keeping without having delivered them. (El Nuevo Herald, 7/7/04)

July 7: Fidel Castro attended the graduation ceremony of more than 1,500 social workers. Addressing the newly-graduated young people, Castro noted that there are a total of 21,000 social workers across the island. Norma Barrios Fernández, director of the Social Worker's School in Cojímar, located on the outskirts of Havana, said that this graduation, the fifth, showed better academic results than previous courses. (Radio Habana Cuba, 7/7/04)

July 8: Cuba's most prominent dissident urged exiles in Miami to join Cubans on the island in planning for the nation's future transition to democracy. ''All Cubans have the right and duty to participate,'' Oswaldo Payá said in a telephone call from Havana to a small gathering at Our Lady of Charity Shrine. ``We should all be protagonists…In no way can the transition represent revenge, eviction, abandonment or neglect for any Cuban," he emphasized. "We call on all to reflect, because the future of Cuba will be determined by us, the Cuban people, among ourselves." The pitch was part of a national dialogue taking place on and off the island so that all Cubans can review and give their opinions on the Cuban Transition Project unveiled by Payá in December. Remarks collected from exiles will be forwarded to Havana in November and added to opinions gathered across the island. A final draft will be turned over to the National Assembly as early as February. [Levantemos los corazones and Diálogo Nacional ] (EFE, The Miami Herald, 7,8/7/04)

July 7: In the Havana municipality of Guanabacoa, a family was finally evicted from their home following a previous attempt thwarted by neighbors last March. In a combined operation by the municipal Housing Agency, the fire department and the police, who sealed off the block, Aracelys Gutiérrez Leyva, her husband and their 16-month-old baby daughter were removed from their home. (Cubanet, 7/7/04)

July 8: More than 40% of mailed packages handled by the Cuban National Postal Service so far this year have not reached their intended destinations. Services offered include national and overseas delivery of postal packages, but employees of that state-run agency often steal the assorted items mailed. (Cubanet, 8/7/04)

July 8: Over a month ago, members of the illegal dissident organization Movimiento Liberal Cubano were arrested and sent to Villa Marista, the political police headquarters in Havana, without any notice to their relatives about the charges against them. José Lorenzo Pérez Fidalgo and Alexis Triana Montesinos, both residents of El Diezmero, Havana, were detained by National Police forces and the State Security Department agents. Their relatives have denounced that they still do not know about the charges against their loved ones, nor about their situation. (Cubanet, 8/7/04)

July 8: In Havana, over 160 scholars from 13 countries began debates on the prospects of religion against the backdrop of growing poverty, violence and a worldwide neoliberal crisis. At the opening of the IV Meeting of Social Religious Studies, Belgian theologist Francois Houtart warned that under present conditions, class relations as well as social struggles in favor of resistance to globalization need to be strengthened. The meeting will also address topics such as Africa’s contribution to culture and religiousness, religious plurality, the impact of Eastern spirituality on the West and new religious movements. Academics, Catholic priests, Protestant pastors and practitioners of several religions and rites are attending the event. At the same time, a workshop on religion is taking place sponsored by the Social Sciences Religion Council. (Prensa Latina, 8/7/04)

July 9: Cuba's Olympic team heads to Athens with hopes of another strong showing in the medals standings. Patriotism is key as Cuba prepares its athletes in 16 of 28 Olympic events. Separate ceremonies presenting the red, white and blue national flag to the team for each sport ends with the cry of "Homeland or Death! We will triumph!" -- the slogan President Fidel Castro uses to close his speeches. The baseball team ceremony earlier this month included something else: an oath by players to "fight for victory with dignity, patriotism, simplicity and total surrender." They also vowed to "reject any offer that goes against Cuban principles" -- a reference to sports agents who offer athletes, especially ball players, huge sums of money to defect. This year's Olympics team is comprised of 159 athletes, compared with the 238 who went to Sydney. (AP, 9/7/04)

July 9: Prisoner of conscience Normando Hernandez Gonzalez continues to be held in a punishment cell after having already spent 54 days in it. His wife, Yarai Reyes Marin, spoke via telephone with the prison's chief of internal order, who refused to give his name. He told Yarai that her husband, as well as Diosdado Gonzalez Marrero, Leonel Grave de Peralta and Jose Daniel Ferrer Garcia, will continue in their punishment cells in Kilo 5 1/2 prison in the province of Pinar del Rio for 21 more days, for refusing to be transferred to a cell with common prisoners, where their lives are in danger. (MarporCuba, 9/7/04)

July 9: Former Fidel Castro supporter, later political prisoner, still later Miami exile and now Havana resident, Eloy Gutiérrez-Menoyo said he is taking his time forming partnerships with other dissidents on the island to sidestep government charges that Washington is behind them. ''I'm being very careful to identify dissidents who are completely independent from any foreign influence.'' he said. ``I'm getting to know them and they me and we are finding common ground so we can work together. Transition in Cuba depends on Cubans, not a foreign force.'' ''For a long time, the repression in Cuba was targeted against all those dissidents who are known or had traveled to other nations,'' he said. ``My case is different. I have no links to any government or entity. I represent a totally independent movement, and in Cuba there would be no justification for arrest.'' He also applauded the petition drive known as the Varela Project, which seeks a referendum on democratic reforms. But, he added, ``it served its function, played a positive role in terms of publicity (…) and died at birth.'' Gutiérrez-Menoyo said he will remain in Cuba as long as necessary to continue to push for democratic change, which he said is possible even with Castro in power. ''It's a question of timing,'' he said. ``They dollarized the economy and allowed foreign investment when they didn't want it. Eventually, they will have to accept transition even if they don't want it.'' (The Miami Herald, 10/15/04)

July 10: Cuba´s Villa Clara province will be the venue for the main rally marking the 51st anniversary of the Attack on Moncada Army Garrison, next July 26, Granma newspaper reported. In a front page editorial, the daily said that the Cuban Communist Party Political Bureau selected Villa Clara, some 180 miles east of Havana, for its outstanding achievements in the fields of the economy, health, education, sports and sciences. (Prensa Latina, 10/7/04)

July 10: Omni-Zona Franca represents one of the more extreme examples of Cuba's fast-growing counterculture movement. Seven men, some wearing nothing but bikini underwear, spent time rolling around on the floor, chanting, running in circles and literally banging out tunes using old Soviet typewriters as instruments. Artists, street performers, rappers, reggae singers and others are carving out precious new space in the traditionally rigid socialist society. Some openly criticize the government, complaining about 50-cent-per-day wages, racial discrimination, economic inequality and police abuse. "When you're young, you go against your parents, your teachers. You're against everything," said Ariel Fernández, editor of Movimiento (Movement), a state-funded magazine about Cuban hip-hop. "You want to change society. But no one's suggesting the government be overthrown," he added. (The Dallas Morning News, 10/7/04)

July 11: Cuban scientists have discovered two new breeds of orchids, considered exclusive of the westernmost Cuban province of Pinar del Rio, hidden among the vegetation in Sierra del Rosario and Guanahacabibes Peninsula. The announcement was made by Pedro Pablo Rivero, director of the Orchid Garden of Soroa, who added that the discovery took place while exploring the reservation in search for new species. (Prensa Latina, 12/7/04)

July 12: Cuba's first wax museum is opening in the eastern city of Bayamo and will include life-sized models of Cuban stars, including musical legend Compay Segundo. The museum will be called Cerarte and will house 70 wax models all created by the master sculptor Rafael Barrios Madrigal and his sons Rafael and Leander Barrios Milán. All three artists have spent the last ten years making wax sculptures. (Radio Habana Cuba, 12/7/04)

July 12: The number of political prisoners held in Cuba remained nearly constant over the past six months, according to a report released by a rights group. The Cuban Commission on Human Rights and Reconciliation reported that at mid year there were 317 political prisoners held in Cuba, slightly up from the 315 reported at the end of 2003. "The fact that the total number of prisoners in this category has not significantly dropped shows the government's position of immobility," wrote Elizardo Sanchez, the head of the Havana-based commission. The commission said it did not remove from its list the names of six dissidents paroled for medical reasons in recent weeks because they were not released unconditionally and could be returned to custody if they violate parole. (AP, 12/7/04)

July 13: Cuba's government is reasserting central control of the tourism industry, whose spectacular growth symbolized the communist-run island's market reforms of the 1990s, industry sources said. As part of the move, the government is removing dozens of executives who presided over a boom that turned the industry into Cuba's most-important economic sector and generator of hard currency. The Tourism Ministry has begun merging operations of four big state-owned tourism companies that control 30,000 hotel rooms, industry sources said. One executive of a foreign firm in a joint tourism venture with Cuba expressed displeasure, but said business remained strong. "We are not happy, but have adopted a wait-and-see attitude. We are being kept completely in the dark," said the executive, who spoke on condition of anonymity. The restructuring comes amid a drive by the ruling Communist Party to reverse modest market-oriented reforms that Fidel Castro's government adopted after the collapse of the Soviet Union plunged Cuba into economic crisis more than a decade ago. (Reuters, 13/7/04)

July 14: An electrical plant breakdown left the Cuban capital without electricity for at least three hours, said the state-run electric company. The blackout occurred after the shutdown of the Guiteras, Havana and Carlos Manuel de Cespedes thermoelectric plants in the province of Cienfuegos, an electric company source told the press. The blackout "could be extended until 7:00 p.m.," added the source, but there was no word as to whether that had occurred. Days before, the Electric Union sent a message alerting the population of possible electric service interruptions due to the breakdown in the Cienfuegos plant, which caused blackouts on the communist island. "This situation will continue until the end of this week when repairs to this plant are completed, reinstating electrical energy in the country and reducing inconveniences to the population," the announcement said. (EFE, 14/7/04)

July 15: Two water company employees, a Cuban Interior Ministry official and two firemen died in a sewer accident in this capital, the NTV television news service reported. The two workers were employed by the Havana Water Company (Aguas de La Habana).
Witnesses said that the accident occurred in Havana's Vedado neighborhood when water company and sewer workers were cleaning inside a collector that leads to a portion of the city's aqueduct. The serious drought affecting the country has forced the government to take "special measures" and institute cutbacks in water supply. The weekly Tribuna de La Habana reported several weeks ago that a number of the surface and underground sources of the capital's water had been reduced and, in some cases, exhausted. (EFE, 15/7/04)

July 16: A new documentary chronicling the life of Cuban-Argentinean guerilla fighter Ernesto "Ché" Guevara was released in Cuba. According to the local press, the film shows previously unreleased documents, photos, and footage from the archives of the State's Council and the Cuban Film Institute (ICAIC). The documentary, entitled "Donde nunca jamás se lo imaginan" (Where They Least Expect It), is part of a seven-installment Cuba-Spain co-production series. (Europa Press, 16/7/04)

July 18: Political prisoner Santiago Cutín Aguilera, who is serving a nine-year sentence in the prison Combinado de Guantánamo for an alleged crime of trying to leave the country using illegal means, was brutally beaten by prison guards. Cutín Aguilera protested the poor dietary condition, as well as the abuses perpetrated against the political prisoners at the Guantánamo prison, where three guards brutally punched him on his jaw and his mouth, removing all of his teeth in the brutal beating. (Puente Informativo, 26/7/04)

July 18: A recent book, On the Brink, says that Fidel and Raul Castro have been locked in a power struggle since Fidel Castro fainted during a speech on a sweltering June 2001 day, touching off questions about the socialist regime's future. Ricardo Pascoe, the former Mexican ambassador to Cuba, writes that Fidel Castro decided against turning power over to his brother after the fainting episode because an internal government poll found that most Cubans were against that. So the Cuban president began to delegate much of the day-to-day operation of the government to Vice President Carlos Lage, Mr. Pascoe writes, infuriating Raul Castro and leading him to hide information from his brother. Cuban officials speaking on condition of anonymity disputed the book's findings. (The Dallas Morning News, 18/7/04)

July 19: Relatives of imprisoned dissident Martha Beatriz Roque Cabello have denounced her poor health situation. Roque Cabello has been kept hospitalized at Havana’s military hospital "Carlos J. Finlay", but her situation has become worse. Roque Cabello suffers from a severe condition of the parotid glands. After paying a visit to her aunt, her niece, María de los Ángeles Falcón Cabello, complained about the bad medical treatment Roque Cabello is receiving at this Havana hospital. (Cubanet, 19/7/04)

July 20: Upon his return from Spain, Cuban oppositionist Eloy Gutiérrez Menoyo said in Havana he is confident that his status in Cuba will soon be legalized and did not hesitate to "give thanks" to Fidel Castro's government for allowing him to exit the country and return "without trouble." (El Nuevo Herald, 21/7/04)

July 21: Dolia Leal Francisco, wife of Cuban political prisoner Nelson Aguiar Ramirez, denounced the Cuban government’s attempts to keep her and other wives and mothers of political prisoners, called “Ladies in White”, away from campaigning for the liberation of their loved ones. “After 16 months without any telephone communication, the military command at the Provincial Prison of Guantanamo decided that the call with my husband would be every Sunday at 10 a.m., but every Sunday at that time I go to the Church of St. Rita. It is my obligation and my duty to go and to walk down Fifth Avenue with the wives dressed in white and call for the liberation of all political prisoners, because they are innocent,” said Leal. Laura Pollan, wife of political prisoner Hector Maseda Gutierrez, also said that she was called from the prison La Pendiente in Villa Clara, where her husband is being kept, about changing their phonecalls to Sunday mornings. (Netfor Cuba, 22/7/04) 

July 21: According to information provided by political prisoner Randy Cabrera Mayor, from the prison Combinado de Guantánamo, there are over 200 prisoners in isolation suffering from tuberculosis. Cabrera Mayor said that these prisoners are not receiving proper food or medical attention to combat this disease. (Puente Informativo, 22/7/04)

July 21: Political prisoner Fabio Prieto Llorente, incarcerated in Kilo 8 prison, in Camagüey province, joined a hunger strike initiated by criminal prisoners. The prison population at Kilo 8 was demanding full respect of their rights and the fulfillment of benefits under the prison’s internal regulations. (Cubanet, 21/7/04)

July 22: Cuban scientists have produced the world's first effective human chemically-synthesized vaccine, intended to protect children from the type B Haemophilus influenza. According to an article by researchers from the Center for Synthetic Antigens and appearing in the prestigious magazine "Science," obtaining the vaccine has proved that a synthetic antigen can be produced under good conditions. The article notes that the immunization rate of Quimi-Hib is as good as that of conventional vaccines obtained from bacteria. (Radio Habana Cuba, 23/7/04)

July 22: Osvaldo Payá, dissident leader of Movimiento Cristiano Liberación (MCL) and promoter of the Varela Project, denounced that Daniel Pereira García, MCL’s delegate in Palma Soriano, Oriente, was arrested, after being a victim of a home invasion that lasted three hours. At the time of his arrest, Pereira García was actively participating in a non-stop campaign of recollection of signatures in support of the Varela Project. (Puente Informativo, 22/7/04)

July 22: Fidel Castro said the current evolution and changes shaping the local educational system allow the island to occupy an exceptional and privileged place worldwide. Addressing a graduation ceremony for 1,880 students from Havana City and Havana province Pedagogical Institutes, Fidel Castro noted that these educational achievements are the result of a privatization-free socialist system. "I am totally confident in the future of our revolution," Castro said. (Prensa Latina, 22/7/04)

July 22: Human rights activist in Isla de la Juventud, Rafael Millet Leiva, has been kept in prison for over 18 months without charges. "In spite that he has been in prison all this time, the prosecutor has not presented charges”, his wife, María de los Angeles Cruz Batista, said. “Nobody knows why he is supposed to be judged”, she added. (Cubanet, 22/7/04)

July 22: Cuba freed dissident economist Martha Beatriz Roque, the only woman among 75 people arrested 16 months ago in a crackdown on dissent. Roque, the most prominent dissident to be released this year by Fidel Castro's government, was surprised. "I didn't expect to be let out. I will continue my opposition work. They can't change my ideas," she told reporters at the home of a relative in central Havana. The 58-year-old dissident said she had spent the last year in a military hospital suffering from diabetes, hypertension and heart problems and was released on health grounds. "The government must free all the political prisoners," she said. "This is the government's way of saying it will be more flexible. But until all 75 are in the street we cannot call it a gesture," said Roque, who thanked international efforts to press Cuba to free its dissidents. (Reuters, 22/7/04)

July 22: A coalition of dissidents in Cuba is proposing an alternative ''transition to democracy'' that would be gradual, smooth, and ''without the influence of foreign powers.'' ''For us, Cuba's sovereignty and independence is as important as democratisation,'' Manuel Cuesta Morúa, spokesman for Arco Progresista (Progressive Arc), said in an interview. The coalition is made up of the Social Democratic Coordinator, the Democratic Socialist Current, Women of the Democratic Left, the Democratic Socialist Youth Movement, the People's Party, and the 'Diego Vicente Tejera' Centre for Studies of Democratic Socialism. Cuesta Morúa said the positions taken by the European Union (EU) and the United States towards Cuba are quite different, even if there are similarities with respect to the question of human rights. ''The EU has not broken off diplomatic relations, it does not finance the opposition, and it does not have a design to overthrow the Cuban government, even though it has raised the tone of its criticism as the possibility of dialogue has collapsed,'' said the activist. [Seis pactos y seis pasos para una transición tranquila ] (IPS, 22/7/04)

July 23: Havana´s Revolution Square hosted a mammoth alfresco rendition of Orff´s "Carmina Burana", played by 200 classical-trained musicians and over 150 choir singers. Cuban troubadour Silvio Rodriguez, and composer-conductor Leo Brouwer, brought together pop and classical worlds, to the delight of a highly heterogeneous audience, which included Fidel Castro, as well as by Culture Minister and writer Abel Prieto, among other officials. (Prensa Latina, 23/7/04)

July 23: A former political prisoner whose case was highlighted by President Bush urged Cuba's government to hold a referendum on whether to change the communist island's political system. In a 10-page report called "The Cuba We Want," Leonardo Bruzón Avila and fellow dissident Carlos Rios Otero called for the referendum and laid out a plan for Cuba's transition to a multiparty, democratic system and free-market economy. The report was delivered to the offices of Cuban Justice Minister Roberto Diaz Sotolongo. There was no public reaction by Fidel Castro's government to the recommendations. (AP, 23/7/04)

July 25: Esther Germán Valdéz, wife of Cuban dissisident René Montes de Oca Martija, leader of the Cuban Pro Human Rights Party, affiliated to the Andrei Sajarov Foundation, stated that her husband was arrested in their home. After Montes de Oca's was released from prison back in October of 2003, where he served a three-year sentence for public activities against the Castro regime, he wrote a public letter to Oswaldo Payá Sardiñas, promoter of the Varela Project, where he publicly recognized the popularity the project had achieved amongst the general population, and openly announced collaboration with the Varela Project and with any other effort geared towards the democratization of the island. (Lux Info Press, 25/7/04)

July 26: Cuban authorities have embarked on yet another anti-gay campaign, this time around focusing their efforts on transvestites, who are arrested if found wearing female clothing. Cross-dressers are being taken into custody or summoned and warned by police about their attire, while private clubs featuring transvestite shows have been closed down. (BBC, 26/7/04)

July 26: Political prisoner, Jorge Luis García Pérez 'Antúnez', initiated a hunger strike after prison authorities took away from him all his belongins, including his clothes. He has been kept in an isolation cell, in the Ariza prison, since last September. Last July, the prisoner was harshly beaten in front of his relatives by prison guards during a family visit. (EFE, 26/7/04)

July 28: More than 61,400 Cubans have graduated from the island's 300 Computer Clubs. The centers are equipped with 5200 computers and have Internet access. According to reports, enrollment in computer courses has increased considerably over the past several years. Over the summer vacations, the computer clubs host some 50,000 users, in two-week courses. (Radio Habana Cuba, 28/7/04)

July 28: Cuban dissident Diosdado Gonzalez Marrero, one of the 75 Fidel Castro opponents sentenced to lengthy prison terms a year ago, has spent more than two months in a confinement cell for demanding his "prisoner of conscience" status be respected, his wife said. Alejandrina Garcia de la Riva told the press that her husband, sentenced to 20 years, "has been punished for 64 days in a confined cell, without proper access to food, sun or water fit to drink." Garcia said that prison authorities in Pinar del Rio, west of Havana, told her that her husband will remain in the confinement cell if he refuses to get along with other prisoners. According to Garcia, Cuban penitentiary regulations stipulate that a prisoner can only be confined to these special cells for a maximum of 21 days and "my husband has served that three times over." "He does not wish to be with other prisoners, but rather treated as a prisoner of conscience," Garcia told the press in a telephone interview from her home in Matanzas, east of Havana. (EFE, 28/7/04)

July 30: Cuba's special municipality of the Isle of Youth, located south of Havana, has registered its lowest infant mortality rate on record -- 3.7 deaths for every 1000 live births. (Radio Habana Cuba, 30/7/04)