14 July 2004
WiPC TO LAUNCH LETTER-WRITING CAMPAIGN
The Writers in Prison Committee of International PEN (WiPC) is launching a letter-writing campaign this month to focus attention on the plight of 32 imprisoned Cuban journalists, writers and librarians.
Running from 19 July to 15 August 2004, the campaign aims to put pressure on Cuban authorities to release the dissidents, who have been sentenced for jail terms of between 14 and 27 years for "counter-revolutionary activities."
The imprisoned dissidents were sentenced in April 2003 following a crackdown on independent journalists, writers and librarians. (see: http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/57602/). The individuals were accused of conspiring with James Cason, the chief of the US Special Interests Section in Havana, according to WiPC. The U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has formally adopted all 32 cases.
WiPC has produced a campaign kit for PEN Centres and free-expression advocates, which includes information about each of the 32 individuals currently in jail and background details on Cuba's media and political situation.
Visit: http://www.pen.org/freedom/cuba2004.htm
For more details of the campaign, contact: Dixe Wills, Americas Researcher, WiPC, 9/10 Charterhouse Buildings, London EC1M 7AT, United Kingdom; Tel: +44 20 7253 3226; Fax: +44 20 7253 5711; E-mail: dwills@wipcpen.org.
Visit these links:
- WiPC: http://www.internationalpen.org.uk
- IFEX alerts on Cuba: http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/1033/
- Reporters Without Borders:
http://www.rsf.org/rubrique.php3?id_rubrique=367
- Committee to Protect Journalists: http://www.cpj.org/Briefings/2003/cubacrackdown/index.html
- Human Rights Watch: http://hrw.org/english/docs/2003/12/31/cuba7002.htm
- Inter American Press Association: http://www.sipiapa.org/
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