Letter From Daughter of Prisoner of Conscience Antonio Sanchez

Hello, my name is Yenysel Díaz Sánchez, daughter of Antonio Díaz Sánchez (Tony), a prisoner of conscience in Cuba. My father was imprisoned during the repressive wave known as the Black Spring of Cuba during March 2003. He is one of the original coordinators of the Liberation Christian Movement (Movimiento Cristiano Liberación). Tony, Oswaldo Payá Sardiñas, and Regis Iglesias Ramírez were the individuals responsible for submitting to the Cuban National Assembly the signatures collected as part of the Varela project. This act of courage, which took place in May 2002, gave the Cuban people a glimmer of hope that a peaceful transition to democracy would be possible on the island. As a reward, the Cuban government condemned Tony to 20
years in prison in a facility located more than 700 km from his home.

Eight months ago, Tony was transferred to the Carlos J. Finlay
Military Hospital (located in the city of Havana and less than a mile from his house) for treatment of a case of ulcerative colitis contracted as a consequence of the precarious conditions of his confinement. In the last few months, Cuban State Security officials informed my father that, should he agree to wear the uniform of a common criminal, he'd be transferred to a nearby prison with better living conditions. As my father was unwilling to submit to this blackmail, he was punished by being sent instead to Canaleta prison in Ciego de Ávila prison (500 km from his home).

The most worrisome aspect of this situation are the deplorable conditions of Tony's confinement. He has been placed in a humid punishment cell with the dimensions of a cage and with a hole for his basic bodily functions. He has a slab for a bed and doesn't get enough light. Tony has no communication with the outside world and is subject to what can be described best as a concentration camp diet--notwithstanding the strict diet prescribed by the doctors. The inhumane nature of Tony's imprisonment is the source of his deteriorating health and chronic pain and discomfort. It is both physical and psychological torture, inflicted on an individual for
attempting to defend his human dignity under the most disadvantageous of circumstances.

It has been 25 days since my father was transferred to Canaleta and his family has received no news of his current status.

The Cuban government has canceled all family visits. We have no idea whether he is dead or alive. I ask all persons of good faith, on my behalf of my ten-year sister Lázara Massiel Díaz Sánchez, to prevent the death of our father in a Cuban dungeon at the hands of persons incapable of respecting the rights of a man that has dedicated his life to the defense of the human rights of an entire nation. Thank you for your consideration.

The King of Pop Has Died!!

It is with great saddness, that I write this. According to the Los Angeles Times and the news agency Associated Press, Michael Jackson has died at age 50.

Michael was rushed to L A Medical Center and suffered a cardiac arrest.

May our beloved "King of Pop", rest in peace........

Her Name Means, "The Voice"

The artist Salvador Dahli used to say that if you didn't take a picture of an event, it would be as if it never happened.

In one instant Neda Soltani became the symbol of the Iranian resistance. Neda was attending a rally with her father Saturday afternoon and was shot in the chest, while talking on her cell phone. The horrific image of her death was filmed with a cell phone that made it to Youtube within minutes.

The grizzly images of Neda's murder are probably the biggest threat the Iranian regime has seen in decades.

I have been watching in aw, the events since the Iranian election and I have to admit that though I have no ties to this country I've felt proud of their courage to stand up for their rights. Perhaps due to my own desire to see the Cubans stand for their rights and stop bowing their heads before a tyrant.

The images coming out of Iran, through any means necessary have been powerful, but none like the image of Neda. This movement brought on by the people's discontent with the election results can be summed up by the image of this beautiful and brave woman who's name interesting enough means "the voice.

May she rest in peace and may her murder not be in vain and her memory stand as a symbol for freedom all over the world.

Demonstration Against the Closure of Globovision in Venezuela

" ALL FOR ONE, AND FREEDOM FOR ALL " JUNE 25th: JOIN US to unmuzzle the world.

1) On June 25th, in as many countries as we can possibly organize, we will protest in front of the respective Venezuelan embassies or consulates, or in front of international organizations connected with the issue of Human Rights.

2)The protest consists of gagging our mouths with red muzzles as a symbol of violations of freedom of expression.

3) During the manifestation a document, rejecting the closure of Globovision and of any media in the world, will be presented

AN UNMUZZLED WORLD JUNE 25th: WORLD WIDE PROTESTS FOR THE FREEDOM OF SPEECH. Freedom of speech is established as a fundamental human right and in a system of democratic government it ought to be promoted and defended by the government as well as by and the citizenry.

We wish to speak out against the closing of any communication medium in whatever country. Let us join our voices that they may be heard throughout the world. Unmuzzled we speak!In Venezuela freedom of speech and democracy have been in danger for quite some time. The most obvious attack was the closing of RCTV, a television channel that had been operating for 50 years.

Their license was revoked and its equipment stolen outright under the sad excuse that its concession had expired.Once again, Venezuelans are being threatened with the closing of Globovisión, the only 24 hour news channel in the country.

This might happen any moment! There is no valid legal explanation; it is a political fact that the powers-that-be simply want to silence the channel whose opinions are not the same as those of the government. Should the closing of this communication medium materialize, then the only television window left in Venezuela for denouncing human rights violations would be closed off.

We want to raise our voices against the closure of any media anywhere in the world. We want you to be part of this campaign and to play a role in this manifestation that shall allow our voices to be heard everywhere without Muzzles!

Remembering the Tiananmen Square Massacre

Twenty years ago, the people of China tired of not having their voices heard, flooded the streets in protest against China's Communist Regime. The response was unthinkable as thousands of brave man and women were murdered without mercy, by the Chinese army.

One lone man stood in front of the tanks, putting his life in danger for the sake of freedom. His identity is not known and he has earned the name of "Tank Man". A symbol of freedom forever immortalized. The photograph was taken by Jeff Widener, a photographer from the Associated Press, from the sixth floor of the Bijing Hotel, at a distance of 800 meters and through a 400 mm lence.

Other famous participants of the event in 1989:

• Wang Dan, Wei Jingsheng, Wuerkaixi, Chai Ling. Student leaders of the protests.
• Zhao Ziyang, former General Secretary of the Communist Party of China
• Li Peng, former Premier of the Communist Party of China
• Wen Jiabao, current Premier of the Communist Party of China
• Liu Xiaobo, famous Chinese dissident
• Yu Dongyue, former Chinese journalist who threw paint-filled eggs onto the Mao Zedong portrait on the Square
• Bei Dao, poet (ideological influence, during the protests was participating at a conference in Berlin)
• Cui Jian, the so-called "father of Chinese rock," whose song "Nothing To My Name" was considered an unofficial "anthem" for students and protesters there.
  

If there is anything to learn from so much bloodshed and injustice is that it showed the world the true face of communism. The "Great Farce", once again showed it's evil nature for the whole world to see.