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Liberty & Justice for all?

12/11/08

September 12 2008 marked the 10th anniversary of the arrest in the US of five Cuban intelligence officers.

The Miami 5, as they are known, had infiltrated US-based terrorist organisations intent on launching attacks against Cuba. Throughout the 50-year history of its Revolution, Cuba has suffered at the hands of these groups on a constant basis, suffering repeated attacks and the loss of over 3,000 lives as a consequence.

For working to undermine these groups and defend the people of Cuba, Gerardo Hernández, Ramón Labañino, Antonio Guerrero, Fernando González and René González, were sentenced in 2001 to four life sentences and 75 years collectively.

Noam Chomsky has commented on how the recent US presidential electoral ‘contest’ and the capitalist economic meltdown “presents one of those occasions where the political and economic systems starkly reveal their nature”.

Whilst there are many, many instances in the realm of international relations and politics that clearly expose the true nature of the epoch we live in, there is probably no other case that so clearly and starkly reveals the true and totally hypocritical nature of the supposed ‘war on terror’ as does the case of the Miami 5. Their case is exemplary in that it is a microcosm of much that defines the nature of global politics at the beginning of the 21st century - they defended their country by giving the FBI details of the activities of terrorists who are resident in the United States and for this they were arrested and sentenced to spend, in effect, the rest of their lives in US prisons.

Their case reaffirms the fact that in world politics the ‘terrorist’ is always the one who is acting against your interests. The terrorist organisations in Miami are acting in the interests of the US in their 50-year-old war against Cuba and therefore need to be assisted and protected; those that would seek to disrupt their activities are seen as the real threat. The Cuban Mafia in Miami are a very powerful force, owing to the service they have given in the interests of US imperialism and the objective of destroying the example Cuba represents and returning it to its former state of being a playground for wealthy north American gangsters and sex tourists.

Such is the hypocrisy that underlies all of the declared and undeclared wars for ‘liberation’ that the US has repeatedly embarked upon at one time or another throughout its history.

These men have consistently confronted the hardships of prison life and separation from family and country with courage, dignity and an unshakeable belief in the righteousness of their cause. They have carried themselves as committed revolutionaries who answered Fidel’s call of “Patria o Muerte” (Homeland or Death).

While the US imperialist hypocrites may continue to physically detain these men, they cannot, however, break or keep them silent. The most eloquent defenders of the actions of the Miami 5 have been the Miami 5 themselves. They have been prolific writers in the cause of their own defence, and their writings generally are infused with determination to overcome and an inspiring commitment to the continued advancement of the Cuban revolution. Below is a statement from Gerardo Hernández on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of their imprisonment. It behoves all who claim to believe in justice to do all they can to assist with the campaign for these men’s release. For more information on the case and what you can do to aid the campaign to ‘Free the Five’ visit: www.freethefive.org

A Message from Gerardo Hernández on the tenth anniversary of the unjust imprisonment of the Cuban Five:

“Dear compañeras y compañeros:

We arrive at the 10th anniversary of the arrest of the Cuban Five at a crucial moment of our legal process (That is what they call it, although perhaps "illegal process" would be more appropriate.) The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, based in Atlanta, has just ended our appeal.

That is to say, if it were up to them, things would stand as is, and some day my bones would be sent to Cuba, after death frees me from two life sentences.

The court in question has given unmistakable signals of the type of "justice" that the Five can aspire to in this country. When there was a decision 3-to-0 in our favor, with 93 pages of solid arguments in which the three-judge panel characterized our trial as "The Perfect Storm," the full panel, against all predictions, not only agreed to review the decision, but reversed it without much explanation. The "perfect storm" quickly became simply a drizzle.

Yet, this time, when the decision was 2-1 against the Five, with obvious legal errors, with a judge arguing in 16 pages that the prosecution presented absolutely no proof that sustains the charge of conspiracy to commit murder, and with a judge who, although voting against us, recognized that it is a "very close case," and with several defense arguments were not even seriously analyzed, the 11th Circuit categorically refused to review it.

As we say in Cuba: "Not even water is as clear." We have said time and again that this is a political case, and those who do not see it as such, choose not to see it.

Someone recently mentioned that now the Supreme Court has the last word. I would say, the second-to-last word. The final word in the case of the Cuban Five rests with you, our sisters and brothers of Cuba, the United States and the whole world, who throughout all these years have been our principal source of encouragement. Our hopes are not placed in any court. Ten years are more than enough to have cured us of any such naïve notion.

You are our hope, who through sacrifice and swimming against the current, have succeeded in making people on all continents aware of the injustice committed against the Five. You are the ones who are not taking time out or resting in your homes but instead are honoring us with your presence in different activities, commemorating the 10th anniversary of our imprisonment. You continue struggling to unmask the double standard of a government that invades other countries to supposedly fight terrorism, at the same time that it harbors and protects infamous terrorists, and imprisons those who are trying to stop those criminal acts.

We have confidence in you to expose the hypocrisy of the corporate media and of certain international organizations, which portray mercenaries, who betray our people for a handful of dollars or a visa, as suffering political prisoners. Yet they are disgracefully silent in the case of two women who have been deprived for a decade of the basic right to visit their husbands in prison.

We know that right is on our side, but to win true justice we need a jury of millions of people throughout the world, and we need you, defenders of just causes, to make our truth known.

The injustice committed against the Five has kept us away from our homeland for ten years, but it has not kept us from accompanying our people through joyful times and also the suffering. A few days ago Hurricane Gustav caused great damage in Cuba, mainly on the Isle of Youth and in Pinar del Río, two territories from where we have received a multitude of support and love all these years.

We are certain that all the people of Pinar del Río and Isle of Youth, together with local and national leadership, with the solidarity of all dignified Cubans and many friends of the world, will become stronger in these difficult moments and, as is characteristic of revolutionaries, will convert the setbacks into victory. Although it is not possible for us to be there physically, today more than ever the Cuban Five are with you in our hearts, with our brothers and sisters in the Isle of Youth and Pinar del Río, who have done so much to support the struggle for our liberation.

Compañeras y compañeros: Ten years after that September 12, 1998, we thank you once again for walking this long and rough road together with us. We know, that to continue this march, we can keep counting on you, and you can also always count on our firm determination to resist, with our heads held high, for as long as it takes.

¡Hasta la Victoria Siempre!”

Gerardo Hernández Nordelo
Victorville Federal Prison, California
September, 2008

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