For the day October 19, 2007, in the meeting room of the Senate of the Kingdom of Belgium, was appointed the ceremony of the International Human Rights Award Ludovic Trarieux President Stream Agramontista, René Gómez Manzano. Despite having launched in time the steps that require Cuban immigration authorities to grant to any of its subjects, for "exit permit", our President, anticipating the possibility that the Cuban totalitarian regime does not allow him ultimately to travel, he recorded the message reproduced here. This, in view of the failure to grant the "exit permit" was heard by those gathered to celebrate the ceremony. As noted in the text, the final paragraphs of the message appeared in French. In the present version has been included instead of the original passage, the translation into Castilian of those paragraphs, by the same author. * * * * *
Distinguished dignitaries and personalities present at the award ceremony,
Members of the International Jury of Ludovic Trarieux,
Distinguished Colleagues, Ladies and Gentlemen
,
Dear Friends
I feel very honored to be able to address these words. Of course, I would prefer to do it yourself, but if this recording is heard in the award ceremony, it will mean that the possibility I was forbidden by the stubborn inertia of the Cuban totalitarian regime, which boasts of itself as a dictatorship maintains the constitutional provisions that enshrine the party's leading role only on the whole society and the state, not only of their texts supralegality deleted any reference to the right of nationals to enter and leave the territory, but in fact assumes the power to authorize or prohibit any of their nationals traveling abroad implying that behaves as if the citizens were a sort of slaves or serfs who can only do what his master allowed them graciously. Unfortunately, this has happened in my case, for despite the generous support they have given me the President and International Board members and other colleagues, all these efforts have proved barren now, due to the negative new team ruling the country, headed ago just over a year by the younger brother of the historic leader of nearly half a century, to give time "exit permit" was required for me to travel to receive the award personally.
I can therefore say that my absence from this ceremony is further evidence of the sad reality that our country lives today, that despite the worrying developments in recent years on the fraternal Republic of Venezuela, remains in purity the only Western Hemisphere country that enjoys a representative and pluralistic democracy, which does not respect international human rights recognized and which, moreover, finds itself in a profound crisis.
Ladies and gentlemen, these words of mine should not be too long, considering that this award ceremony should take the word in my name Escandell Mr. Juan Ramirez. He and fellow European I should go with the one authorized to accept on my behalf both the prestigious international award has been given me, as well as to receive the certificates of award.
Despite the necessary brevity, I must say that my country is remarkable the work of hundreds of organizations in one way or another struggling for respect of rights humans, despite intense repression unleashed against them by the totalitarian regime, which has turned Cuba, despite its relatively small population, in the western country with the largest number of prisoners of conscience in the world. All of these organizations, in some cases without being aware of it, are followers and followers of the immortal work of Ludovic Trarieux, whose memory is now perpetuated in this prestigious award that has been gaining much from it for more than two decades he was awarded for the first time the courageous anti-apartheid fighter Nelson Mandela. I think it's fair to say that this award was given to me is also a recognition of the remarkable work displayed by all those rebellious Cuban entities, all throughout our archipelago.
I take this opportunity to specifically mention the largest grouping of independent organizations of our country, the Assembly to Promote Civil Society, "that in May 2005 held in our capital's historic first congress of Cuban democrats. I feel honored to have been and remain one of three executive members of that coalition.
also feel honored to have chaired since its inception and until today, one of the more than three hundred and member organizations through the said Assembly: como seguramente ustedes habrán imaginado, me estoy refiriendo a la Corriente Agramontista, una agrupación de abogados independientes de la que forman parte actualmente en suelo cubano una veintena de juristas aproximadamente, a los cuales habría que sumar varias decenas más que se han visto obligados a emigrar por la represión del régimen totalitario. Nuestra pequeña Corriente, cuyo nombre se deriva del apellido del ilustre abogado, libertador y mártir de la independencia cubana Ignacio Agramonte, caído gloriosamente en combate contra las fuerzas colonialistas en 1873, puede enorgullecerse de ser la única agrupación de juristas que lucha expresamente en nuestro suelo en pro del establecimiento del Estado de Derecho en Cuba, independence of the judiciary, the free practice of law, a prosecution to adjust their activities to technical and legal criteria, not political, and the restoration of law schools.
Because I must say that in our country, even though these institutions dating back to 1840, law schools were primarily an object called "revolutionary decision" that allowed to cast aside their policies democratically elected, and were then simply dissolved. After several decades without any institutions that represent them even formally, the men of Cuban laws were able to join the National Union of Jurists, institution that, due to their overtly pro-government, has never been able to count in its ranks all the lawyers in the country, and, although formally independent, in reality was created by the totalitarian regime in his own image and likeness, with the only to institutionalize the course robed class support to the Castro regime. There is also the National Organization of Collective Law Offices (ONBC), which falls to those who practice law, because in today's Cuba is prohibited from 1974 free free exercise of our profession.
The lack of legitimacy of these two institutions so that they can be considered as true representatives of Cuban jurists, is reflected in an objective fact irrefutable: not known a single case where one or the other have raised their voices to defend a friend wrongly prosecuted, and it appears that there have been occasions for this: far as I know, our country has had the dubious privilege of being the only country whose men of law have been subject to a full-scale police operation dedicated especially to them, during which they were arrested, prosecuted and sentenced to years in prison dozens and dozens of lawyers from around the country. This massive attack against our profession was the suggestive name of Operation Dirty Toga.
This Stalinist purge was another facet: in 1984 they were formally "dissolved" the hitherto existing collective firms, and instead was "created" an institution theoretically "new", to which practicing lawyers were forced to "apply for membership" . By this trick, 110 of the approximately 800 lawyers in active at that time were separated from practice. As "justification" of this arbitrary mass layoff is used the argument that "leave" did not meet the requirements established in Decree-Law No. 81 that the applicant had "moral conditions consistent with the principles of our society." In practice, this euphemism out the obligation that is the Cuban lawyer to possess what in slang is called Castro's "revolutionary integration", which is more than the acceptance of government policies and a single party and as belonging to the so-called "mass organizations", which also support the regime that created them, and where citizens are regimented according to criteria of the employment relationship, neighborhood, sex, etc..
The Decree-Law remains in force until today, which has served to ONBC leaders deny the possibility of practicing law to those colleagues that did not agree with the system or simply not to your liking, it is also common for those who are part of that organization and maintain a rebellious attitude, be expelled from it, as 1995 did with them without even talking initiate disciplinary proceedings as mandated under the Act These limitations call more attention if we contrast with the small number of lawyers in business. The paradox is that our country, which has the highest per capita number of doctors and athletes in all of Latin America, is at the same time the least number of lawyers. This is undoubtedly a sequel to the days when the ombudsmen of the current regime, then with much less seniority in their positions of command-flying blithely appalling slogan: "Lawyers for?"
Moreover, the Agramontista have denounced the lack of independence of the unit responsible for administering justice. It is a reality not only in fact but also a situation reflected in the laws and based on theoretical criteria with which we can not communicate: the current Cuban regime explicitly rejected the tripartite powers (which was in force since the birth of our Republic in 1902) and peaks in its place the State monistic, in accordance with Article 121 of the current Constitution of the Republic "The courts constitute a system of state bodies which function independently of any other and are subordinated to the People's National Assembly and the Council of State." There are professional associations of judicial officers.
regard to the legislative policy of the totalitarian regime, it is worth noting that it has demonstrated a remarkable vocation to suppress anyone who disagrees and refuses to admit the party's role only as "highest leading force of society and State "(as appears inscribed in the very Constitution of the Republic). For all these rebellious mood compatriots se dictó la tristemente célebre Ley 88, que de manera certera ha sido bautizada por los periodistas independientes cubanos como “Ley Mordaza”. Ese verdadero engendro antijurídico fue empleado por primera vez por el gobierno castrista en 2003 contra los integrantes del tristemente célebre Grupo de los 75, encarcelados, acusados y sancionados por los tribunales del régimen en menos de tres semanas, en procesos sumarios carentes de cualquier tipo de garantía para los derechos de los acusados. Las “piezas de convicción” ocupadas eran unas pocas computadoras personales, algunas máquinas de escribir de carácter museable, libros impresos en el extranjero, papel, bolígrafos... ¿Los hechos supuestamente litigants? Writing articles criticizing the status quo in the country, holding meetings in private homes, to visit foreign embassies, giving interviews to media located outside of Cuba ...
Around the same time were judged members of a citizens group, led by desperation, seized a boat and took passengers hostage, demanding to be allowed to travel to the United States. Although the fact was no doubt a crime, even of a certain gravity, the fact certainly did not have major consequences, because the incident was cleared in a few hours, and no personal misfortunes than sorry. Despite this, all involved were subjected to a summary process, during which three of them were sentenced to the death penalty. Between arrest and the announcement that these unfortunates had been shot and cultural politics less than a week.
Although these events have more than four years old, deserve to be remembered and criticized yet, as members of the Group of 75 glorious, like other political prisoners and prisoners of conscience remain in detention until now frankly deplorable conditions : mixed with common prisoners of all sorts, getting a bad food and medical care and dental sick poor, suffering at times beatings and other abuses, and in many cases in jails far from their hometowns. Moreover, the totalitarian regime has continued its crackdown: I can cite my own example and other fellow detainees in July 2005, weeks after the historic first congress of Cuban democrats to which I referred to earlier: all of these opponents were kept in prison for a period that in some cases exceeded one and a half, without trial or indictment.
Currently the system uses another form of repression: instituting against citizens who take an oppositional stance called "records of danger" admittedly, these citizens have not committed any crime, since this type of criminal process is, by definition, against people who are not guilty of a crime, but according to the arbitrary discretion of the authorities, "are in danger of committing" . On the basis of that absurdity, many of our brothers have been locked up in prisons for periods up to several years.
Returning to the specific situation of the Cuban jurists, I must say that in economic terms is not much better than can be said of professional labor system implemented by the Castro regime, suffice it to say that many lawyers receive lower wages than administrative workers, and the highest paid received emoluments, changed in homes licensed for this purpose, equivalent to about twenty or thirty dollars a month. Again the data for those who might think I had a slip of the tongue: our colleagues highest paid earn less than a dollar a day.
All this sad reality, and the attitude of the National Union of Jurists and the National Organization of Collective Law (who have never expressed a criticism, but have been limited to applaud and support the actions of the regime) are the raison d'être of our movement Agramontista, which is not organized formally as the request made under the current Law on Associations for over fifteen years to form the Union of Cuba Agramontista not answered until today. This has not prevented us to provide legal advice to those who ask us, nor we have conducted meetings, legal studies and authored several memorials in which we asked the authorities of the country to restore the free exercise of law and independence of Administration of Justice, a broad amnesty for political prisoners and others, legislative reforms, and so on. We have also edited the newsletter, the latest edition of which (6) was released late last August. Of course, those of us in a time or another have been legally fit, we have continued to represent our fellow opponents and human rights activists.
We also had the honor of being the only group of lawyers Cubans in the island that has been requested to cease the persecution of our fellow victims of harassment and repression, especially of those who have been arbitrarily imprisoned. And I must say that do not reach the fingers of one hand to count the current legal Agramontista members who have been detained for years in one or other period.
Allow me, therefore, as a first petition, that directs them to express their solidarity with friends that are currently most in need of it, the lawyer Agramontista Pozada Rolando Jiménez, who remain unjustly imprisoned in the Prison of The Guayabo, in his native Isle of Youth, in April 2003 and who earlier this year , after a rigged trial in which he was not allowed to defend himself (as is allowed by the current Cuban law) and in which he was not even present, was sentenced to twelve years imprisonment. Almost goes without saying that any support you can give him and other Cuban political prisoners will be cause of our deepest appreciation.
Distinguished friends: I would like to allow me to dedicate this award to those who have suffered and are suffering for their peaceful activism in favor of the democratization of Cuba and respect for human rights of its citizens: the political prisoners of conscience. They (the members of the Group of 75 and everyone else) who must be primarily in the minds of us, his fellow peaceful struggle, and for you, foreigners are not insensitive to the suffering of the Cuban people, I would feel comforted if my words serve to reaffirm the solidarity that I know you have stated consistently and continue to express to everyone in the world are victims of persecution and violation of human rights.
Ladies and gentlemen, to conclude my message, I beg you to let me say a few words in French.
First, I want to pay tribute to his beautiful language in this great citizen of France, Europe and the world famous name which carries the prize you just never returned to my agent. The immense work done by Ludovic Trarieux to fight against injustice and racism and to successfully create the first organization of defense of human rights, this truly epic deserves the memory of all men and women of good will, now and forever therefore meet a real duty to pay tribute to their glorious memory.
Secondly, I want to do in order to underline the great honor that the award of the prestigious International Trarieux Ludovic, for me, for my colleagues in the current Agramontista and all my compatriots who are fighting peacefully for the respect of rights human and the triumph of democracy in Cuba.
Thirdly, I would ask once again do not forget the lawyer Rolando Jiménez Pozada or thirty other Cuban prisoners of conscience, who are currently suffering in the prisons of my country in terrible conditions. My friends and I are confident that you will continue giving them your solidarity and your support. Thank
you all!
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