Vol. 73/No. 45      November 23, 2009

Gerardo Hernández, Antonio Guerrero, René González, Fernando González, and Ramón Labañino have been in U.S. jails for more than 11 years. They were arrested in 1998 while monitoring the activities of several groups in Miami that have carried out armed actions against Cuba. They were convicted on charges ranging from “conspiracy to commit espionage” to "conspiracy to commit murder,” and received harsh sentences.

The Cuban Five's “actions were to defend the people of Cuba,” Freire said. “The political battle [to win their freedom] must go on,” he declared, condemning the U.S. Supreme Court's decision not to review their case and the U.S. government’s denial of visas for the wives of René González and Gerardo Hernández to visit their husbands in prison.

The Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union in Sydney is organizing a two-month tour of the Cuban band JJ Son to build solidarity with Cuba and the Cuban Five. During the day the band will perform on construction sites, in factories, and on the wharves.

The concert was one of several events in Sydney in October that have helped to build support here for the Cuban Five.

The UN Society, a student club on the Macquarie University campus, sponsored an October 15 meeting on the case, attended mainly by students. Gill Boehringer, retired dean of the law school at the university, and Joanne Kuniansky, from the Sydney Free the Five Committee, spoke about the case and how people can get involved in the defense campaign.

The five Cubans “enjoy the respect of their fellow prisoners,” Boehringer said. He pointed out that three of the five served in Angola fighting against an invasion by the South African apartheid regime. “These were men who were asked to perform a duty for their country.”

Pointing out that extensive surveillance of the five men by the FBI turned up no evidence of espionage, Boehringer said that “conspiracy” is “a catchall” when the prosecution “can't get you for anything.”

An October 12 meeting was held at Sydney University, organized by activists in the Sydney Free the Five Committee and cosponsored by the Sydney University Research Community for Latin America (SURCLA). Dr. Fernanda Peñaloza of SURCLA introduced the featured speaker, Dr. Tim Anderson, a lecturer in political economy at the university. Anderson also spoke on the case October 10 at a meeting of 50 people organized by the Latin American Forum, a coalition of several Latin American solidarity groups in the city.
 
 
Related articles:
Cuban library head speaks at N.Y. meeting
Cuban foreign minister answers U.S. gov’t at UN
Georgia students discuss role of Cuban Revolution  
 
 
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