WOMEN IN CUBAN OPPOSITION EXPRESS DEFIANCE, HOPE

C O N F I D E N T I A L HAVANA 000228 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE DEPT FOR WHA/CCA E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/08/2017 TAGS: PHUM KWMN KDEM SOCI CU SUBJECT: WOMEN IN CUBAN OPPOSITION EXPRESS DEFIANCE, HOPE Classified By: COM Michael E. Parmly for Reason 1.4(d). ¶1. (C) Summary: Women in the Cuban opposition expressed defiance to the regime and hope for the future in a meeting with COM Parmly on March 7, the eve of International Women's Day. Twenty-two women discussed the emergence of the "Ladies in White" as a powerful force within the opposition, as well as such issues as violence in society, the lack of fundamental rights and the Cuban Government's failure to meet its prison-visit commitments. Female Cuban activists, like their male counterparts, face a barrage of regime-directed abuse, from "acts of repudiation" to physical assaults to petty harassment. But all Cuban women are affected, since repression in Cuba is not limited to the opposition. End Summary. ¶2. (C) Leading women within the pro-democracy movement met with COM Parmly at the PAOR on March 7 and expressed defiance to the regime and hope for a better future. Among the participants were four key "Ladies in White," Liberal Party President Julia Cecilia Delgado Gonzalez, Independent Library Project coordinator Gisela Delgado Sablon and veteran activist Marcela Sanchez. Delgado Gonzalez hailed the Ladies in White, saying the GOC never imagined that the group would become the voice of the opposition. Leading Lady Laura Pollan responded by saying that if the group has managed to connect with the people, it is because the Ladies believe in self-respect and engage in democratic practices. COM Parmly read aloud the Secretary's tribute to women of courage, and said he had only to look around the room to find examples of extraordinary valor. ¶3. (C) Participants thanked the United States for its steadfast support of human rights in Cuba, and expressed concern over the high level of violence in Cuban society, including domestic violence. They condemned the denial of fundamental rights, including the right to legally hold protests, and slammed the GOC for failing to honor its own regulations on visits to imprisoned family members. (Lady Julia Nunez, wife of 75er Adolfo Fernandez Sainz, noted that earlier in the day, authorities at Canaleta prison in Sancti Spiritus kept her waiting for two hours before she could visit her husband, as a form of petty harassment.) Nevertheless, the activists expressed confidence that their cause was just, and that democracy would one day prevail on the island. COMMENT -------------- ¶4. (C) Women in the Cuban opposition, like their male counterparts, face a barrage of regime-directed abuse. Some, like human rights activist Maria de los Angeles Borrego Mir, are in prison for peaceful political activity. Others are assaulted; Nancy Gonzalez Garcia of Villa Clara province says that since communist militants beat her savagely last October, her house has become a late-night target range for airborne bottles and rocks. Other women in the opposition lose their jobs, endure "acts of repudiation," or suffer other mistreatment. Lady in White Barbara Rojo Arias, wife of 75er Omar Ruiz Hernandez, told us March 7 that at 6 pm each evening, the regime vindictively cuts off the supply of water and electricity to her home. None of her neighbors has any such problem. ¶5. (C) A Cuban woman need not belong to the opposition to suffer from repression. The regime insists that Cuban women enjoy full equality, and in a sense we agree. Their right to change their government, to obtain a fair trial, or to speak, assemble or move freely, are regrettably as trampled as the rights of Cuban men. PARMLY