Vol. 79/No. 43 November 30, 2015
UK court tells gov’t: ‘Give visa to René González’
In a victory for working people in the United Kingdom and a blow to London’s decades-long effort to slander and isolate the Cuban Revolution, the Court of Appeal Nov. 10 overturned the government’s decision to deny a visa to Cuban revolutionary René González.
González, who from 1977 to 1979 served as part of Cuba’s internationalist mission in Angola, helping to defeat attacks by the white-supremacist South African regime, had been invited to visit with Members of Parliament in 2014 to discuss the fight to win freedom for the Cuban Five. González was one of the Five, Cuban revolutionaries imprisoned in the U.S. for their efforts to keep the Cuban government informed of plans for attacks against the revolution by paramilitary forces in Florida with a long record of bombings and other assaults against Cuba.
González was sentenced to 15 years and returned to Cuba in 2013 after serving out his time. The worldwide campaign to win freedom for the Five was successful and the final three were released as part of Washington’s decision to re-open diplomatic negotiations with Cuba in December 2014.
The Home Office denied González a visa twice in 2014, arguing he was a threat to national security in the U.K. A group of 28 MPs, including Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, appealed the decision as a violation of the European Convention on Human Rights. The appeals court ruled unanimously in favor of the challenge, barring the government from taking their efforts to keep González out of the country to the Supreme Court.
“We hope that this decision means we can now look forward to welcoming Mr. González, the other four heroes — Gerardo Hernández, Ramón Labañino, Fernando González and Antonio Guerrero — and their families in Britain as soon as possible,” Cuba Solidarity Campaign director Rob Miller said Nov. 11.
“I applaud the court’s decision, but it shouldn’t have been necessary,” John Walcott, a carpenter from London and supporter of the fight to win freedom for the Cuban Five, told the Militant. “Why did they prevent him from coming here? The U.S. locked him in prison for so many years, then they let him loose but they’re still afraid of him. I hope he’ll come, anything that promotes the Cuban Revolution advances the interest of working people.”
Related articles:
Celebrations mark Cuba’s role in defense of Angola
Cuban leader: ‘Help fight to lift US embargo’
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