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International Movement of Parliamentarians for Democracy
Statement Condemning the Crackdown on Cuban DissidentsMay 2003The International Movement of Parliamentarians for Democracy, a coalition of international parliamentarians dedicated to the defense and promotion of democracy around the world, condemns the arrest and conviction of democracy and human rights advocates by the Government of Cuba. Beginning on March 18, seventy-five democracy and human rights activists, reporters, and opponents of the Castro-government were arbitrarily arrested on spurious charges of crimes against the state, including subversion and treason. Their sentences range from six to twenty-eight years. Among the arrestees are forty activists in the Varela Project, twenty-five independent journalists, and eight independent labor activists. The Varela Project has collected more than 20,000 signatures on a petition calling for a national referendum on political and economic reforms in Cuba. The arrestees include well-known activists, like independent journalist and poet Raul Rivero, economist and political activist Marta Beatriz Roque, and independent labor leader Pedro Pablo Álvarez. Cuba's actions violate the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to which it is a signatory. We specifically refer to the violation of Article 19, which declares that "Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression" and Article 9, which states that "No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention, or exile." The IMPD calls on the Government of Cuba to respect its obligation under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and to immediately release all political prisoners in Cuba. The IMPD also commends the adoption of a resolution by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, sending a personal representative of the Commission to Cuba to investigate human rights conditions in the country, and calls upon Cuba to facilitate her investigation.
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