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WHAT IS THE ASSEMBLY TO PROMOTE CIVIL SOCIETY IN CUBA?
The Assembly to Promote Civil Society in Cuba is a coalition of more
than 360 independent groups within the island, which objectives are to
re-establish and strengthen civil society for the instauration of a
democratic system in Cuba.
The Assembly’s Executive Group is headed by Martha Beatriz Roque
Cabello, Félix Bonne Carcasses and René Gómez Manzano, who served three
and one half years in prison for writing “The Homeland Belongs to All”,
an alternative document to Castro’s Communist Party “manifesto”. Roque
Cabello was imprisoned again as a result of the March 2003 wave of
repression unleashed by Castro’s regime, which resulted in massive
arrests, summary trials, long prison sentences to more than 75
democratic leaders, human rights’ activists and independent journalists,
and the executions of three young men for attempting to flee the island.
She was released under an extra penal license for medical reasons after
serving one year.
The Assembly has convened all of its members, as well as all independent
civil society groups, to participate in a General Meeting on May 20th,
2005, which purpose is to set forth the joint work that needs to be
undertaken in order to achieve the goal of a democratic Cuba.
Notwithstanding the risks faced under the repressive system that rules
Cuba, the Assembly believes it is necessary to carry out this event and
solicits international support for this important expression of
self-determination that represents the dignity and the will of the Cuban
people.
The Cuban-American Members of Congress, along with 55 of their
colleagues, presented a Resolution, which was passed in the U.S. House
of Representatives supporting the General Meeting of May 20th convened
by the Assembly to Promote Civil Society in Cuba. The State of New
Jersey also passed a Resolution. The International Society of Human
Rights (ISHR), represented by more than 300 delegates of numerous
countries, in its annual conference held on April 24 and 25 of this year
in Konigstein, Germany, unanimously approved a Resolution in solidarity
with the May 20th General Meeting of the Assembly, and requesting the
immediate and unconditional liberation of all Cuban political prisoners.
Parliamentarians at the French National Assembly expressed their support
to this important initiative for Cuba’s democratic future, as well as
Members of the European Parliament during a Conference held at the EP
headquarters in Brussels on April 27, where some ratified their
intentions to participate in the General Meeting on May 20th in Cuba as
international “observers”.
The Cuban American exile community organizations in Miami that back the
initiative, will have members working as volunteers at the Information
and Support Center, which will open twenty-four hours a day, from May
16th through the 26th . The Center, located at 850 N.W. Le Jeune Road,
will operate as a “liaison” between Cuba and the national and
international community, monitoring and reporting on all the activities
before, during and after the Assembly’s General Meeting on May 20th in
Cuba. Many communities and cities around the world are organizing
solidarity events to coincide with the Assembly’s General Meeting on May
20th. All activities and events will be reported in the Assembly’s
Website:
www.asambleasociedadcivilcuba.info |
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