CUBAN HUMAN RIGHTS GROUP UNVEILS NEW MAGAZINE

C O N F I D E N T I A L HAVANA 023617 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE DEPT FOR WHA/CCA E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/19/2016 TAGS: PHUM KDEM SOCI CU SUBJECT: CUBAN HUMAN RIGHTS GROUP UNVEILS NEW MAGAZINE Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Buddy Williams for Reason 1.4(d). ¶1. (C) Summary: A new 75-page magazine, "Dawn," has been produced by the Cuban Human Rights Foundation, headed by blind activist Juan Carlos Gonzalez Leiva of Ciego de Avila. A Foundation member shared the first edition with us on December 18. Some of the material is already outdated, but the publication nevertheless represents an ambitious undertaking, and features 87 articles on such themes as prison conditions, independent labor unions, "acts of repudiation" and the GOC's jailing of young people who can't find a job. The Foundation has not yet made clear how many copies it will print or how it they will be distributed. Possession or distribution of the magazine will be grounds for prosecution. "Dawn" is a welcomed addition in a country where newspapers are few and thinner than dental floss. End Summary. ¶2. (C) The Cuban Human Rights Foundation has produced a new magazine focused on, among other things, prison conditions. The first edition contains 28 articles on political prisoners and prison conditions alone. At Las Mangas prison in Granma, it warns, 75er Jose Luis Garcia Paneque is in danger of being killed by common prisoners directed by State Security. At Holguin Provincial Prison, it says, five guards brutally beat inmate Carlos Hernandez Infante, who had demanded medical attention. At Camaguey's notorious Kilo 8 prison, it adds, guards beat political prisoner Leonicio Rodriguez Ponce unconscious. INDEPENDENT LABOR UNIONS -------------- ¶3. (C) Among seven articles on worker rights and the independent union movement is one on an independent librarian losing his job as a barber. Most impressive, however is a lengthy article by labor activist (and probationed 75er) Carmelo Diaz Fernandez, who outlines the independent labor movement, its goals, development and future. Goal No. 1: "Achieve the creation of autonomous labor unions, chosen democratically by the workers without state or party interference." HARASSMENT OF ACTIVISTS -------------- ¶4. (C) Several "Dawn" articles touch on acts of repudiation, threats and other harassment of pro-democracy advocates and human rights activists. One article, belatedly describing an incident in June, notes the detention of two young activists suspected of posting "Down With Fidel" signs in Ciego de Avila. Independent journalists have reported that in the Cienfuegos town of Aguada de Pasajeros on December 8, someone put up more than 300 fliers, some stating, "I Want Change. I Do Not Cooperate." State Security detained one activist but let him go hours later. A "Lady in White" in Cienfuegos, Osleivy Garcia, told us December 19 that word of that incident had spread to the provincial capital. "DANGEROUSNESS" -------------- ¶5. (C) Youth activist Luis Esteban Espinosa addresses the sad plight of the "more than 1,000" young Cubans currently imprisoned on a "dangerousness" charge because they were unable to find work (most because they had been deemed politically "untrustworthy" by Cuban authorities). Espinosa mentions the case of Juan Alberto de la Nuez Ramirez, a Cienfuegos barber who lost his job, and then his freedom, because he decided to open an independent library. COMMENT -------------- ¶6. (C) In a country where newspapers are few and either published or censored by the regime, any new publication is a welcomed addition, let alone one brave enough to focus on human rights violations and the dissident movement. Although many of the contributors, like Carmelo Diaz and fellow 75er Margarito Broche, are respected members of the human rights community, others are less familiar and of less certain credibility. Content will hardly matter, however, if the Foundation fails to print and distribute large quantities of the magazine. WILLIAMS