REQUEST FOR HRDF FUNDS FOR CUBAN ORGANIZATION

C O N F I D E N T I A L HAVANA 000753



SIPDIS



DEPARTMENT FOR DRL CATHERINE NEWLING

ALSO FOR DRL TERESA FRALISH



E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/12/2013

TAGS: PHUM, EAID, CU

SUBJECT: REQUEST FOR HRDF FUNDS FOR CUBAN ORGANIZATION



REF: HAVANA 613



Classified By: Classified by COM Jonathan Farrar for reasons 1.4 (b) an

d (d)



1. (C) Post requests approval of Human Rights Defender Fund

(HRDF) funds for the following organization:



2. (C) Agenda para la Transicion.



Part I

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(1.) P/E Counselor James Benson

(2.) USINT Havana

(3.) BensonJ@state.sgov.gov



Part II

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(1.) Martha Beatriz Roque and

Vladimiro Roca Antunez

(2.) Cuba

(3.) (Roque) Unknown, but approximately 1944

(Roca) Unknown, but approximately 1942

(4.) Not available

(5.) (For both) Agendaparalatransicion@gmail.com

(6.) (Roque) Luis Estevez 352 e/ Cortina y Figueroa, Apto 3

Santo Suarez, La Habana

(Roca) Calle 36 #105 e/41 y 43

Nuevo Vedado, Plaza, La Habana

(7.) (Roque) (53) (7) 640-6821 (Home);

(53) (5) 290-2212 (Cell)

(Roca) (53) (7) 881-8203 (Home)

(8.) The Agenda para la Transicion

(9.) The Agenda para la Transicion is a collection of

dissident and human rights leaders who have banded together

to develop alternatives for moving Cuba towards democracy.

Recent actions have included providing legal support to the

wife of dissident leader Jorge Luis Garcia Perez (Antunez)

who had been arrested and charged with interfering with a

police officer when she stepped in to stop a beating on the

street. Members also have distributed copies of the

Universal Declaration of Human Rights on the streets of

Havana, and participated in peaceful protests against the

continued imprisonment of prisoners of conscience. Other

members of the organization include former political

prisoners and the head of the Cuban Human Rights Commission,

Elizardo Sanchez.

(10.) None of the members of the Agenda para la Transicion is

known to espouse violence or engage in human rights

violations. Humanitarian assistance to them should be

allowable under OFAC regulations that govern exports to Cuba.



Part III

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(1.) As with other dissident and human rights organizations

in Cuba, the GOC has severely restricted the activity of the

Agenda para la Transicion. Its members are unable to hold

jobs and are able only barely to maintain a living. They

find it increasingly difficult to continue their work as they

cannot fund costs of transportation and communication,

including the printing and distribution of documents.

(2.) Funds provided through the HRDF program would go toward

providing basic office material, provision of intra-city

transportation, provision of emergency funding for arrestees,

including the hiring of legal defense, and the provision of

support to families of detainees and political prisoners.

(3.) Members of the Agenda para la Transicion have received

funding in the past, but we do not have any details as to the

sources or amounts of those funds.



Part IV

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(A) Trial Monitoring by

Agenda para la Transicion and

lawyers contracted by them:

$1,500

(B) Legal Assistance: $1,500



(C) Equipment Replacement:

(1) Digital Cameras (5) $1000

(2) Scanner (1) $200

(3) Printer plus extra toner (1) $800 $2,000





TOTAL: $5,000



Part V

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(1.) Providing funds will be a serious challenge as the GOC

will do everything in its power to block funding. Receiving

funds from foreign sources makes an individual liable to

prosecution and imprisonment under Law 88. It is preferable

that funding be in euros or some hard currency other than

dollars. Whatever funding comes in must first be converted

into Cuban convertible pesos (CuC 1.00 equals USD 0.93) and

then into ordinary Cuban pesos. In addition to the exchange

loss, there is a 10 percent fine levied for changing U.S.

dollars.

FARRAR