I read on this blog how many members of the Cuban Patriotic Union, an organisation whose aims are to promote democracy using non-violent means, have been arrested. More than 60 dissidents have also apparently been arrested, some of them during a vigil being held for political prisoners.
The dissident Ladies in White, meanwhile, urged democratic governments and human rights organizations to “take urgent and coordinated action to stop the violence unleashed by the Cuban regime” against the women and other peaceful opposition figures. Their statement alleged that the Raul Castro government “has stepped up the intimidations, the arbitrary jailings and the cruelty against all those who fight to install a democratic system in our country.
John Suarez asserts that such news from Cuba is not being reported effectively, partly because of fears of having press credentials revoked, partly because some correspondents apparently just aren’t interested in the dissidents’ perspectives, favouring the regime instead. He concludes:
Waiting for Fidel Castro to die in order to cover the story of his death and burial from inside the island at the expense of covering the struggles and realities of the Cubanpeople is not only short sighted and a disservice to Cubans. It is also bad journalism.
Hat Tip: Hillel Neuer