Dear Mr. President,

In light of your current policy shift towards Cuba, I would like to offer the perspective of some of us, Cuban-Americans, who have a great deal of first and second-hand information about the current situation in Cuba. The unilateral move taken by your administration seems to be based on a humanitarian concern, but unfortunately I, as well as many other persons, disagree with this concession to the Castro dictatorship.

My primary concern is that this move is unilateral and what it effectively accomplishes is nothing less then enrich the Cuban government while doing very little with respect to human rights violations in Cuba. In particular, this policy does nothing to help the political prisoners now languishing in Cuban jails simply for expressing their opinions. How will you explain this new approach to Dr. Oscar Elías Biscet, a prominent political prisoner currently serving a 25-year sentence for meeting with human rights activists?

Dr. Biscet has been arrested numerous times for his non-violent protest of human rights violations and for his protest of abortion in Cuba. The last time he was arrested was in December 2002 while going to meet activists that were planning a non-violent protest. He was sentenced to 25 years for “disorderly conduct” and “counter-revolutionary activities.” Since his arrest, he has been beaten, tortured, and kept in special cells called “tapiadas” which are small, humid cells with no light. He was kept in these cells for 8 months. In spite of these hardships, Dr. Biscet refuses to wear the uniform of common prisoners and remains in high spirits knowing that his cause is just. What do we tell him and others like him about what the United States of America is doing to help them?

Replica of Dr. Biscet’s Cell

How can we justify unilaterally easing restrictions on this dictatorship? Why did you not ask for the release of political prisoners as a precondition? Why must those who ask for freedom suffer while the oppressors get to enjoy more economic engagement with the United States?

I hope you will respond and explain your rationale and how it will ultimately help the cause of freedom in Cuba. Hopefully, the answer is not that you simply don’t care.

Sincerely Yours,
AG