Oscar Espinosa Chepe: Difference between revisions
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On March 19, 2003, Espinosa was arrested during the [[Black Spring (Cuba)|Black Spring]] after security agents reportedly spent 10 hours searching his apartment.<ref name=NYT326 /> At a trial on April 3, 2003, Espinosa was accused of "activities against the integrity and sovereignty of the State".<ref name=PEN /> The authorities also alleged that Espinosa had been receiving money from abroad, collecting press clippings about meetings between representatives of the United States and Cuban dissidents, and other activities. The government alleged that it found US$13,600 sewn into the lining of a jacket while searching Espinosa’s home and that the money came from the U.S. government. Espinosa was subsequently convicted and sentenced to 20 years in prison.<ref name=PEN /> He was one of approximately 75 dissidents arrested and tried.<ref name="Amnesty-2003 crackdown"/> |
On March 19, 2003, Espinosa was arrested during the [[Black Spring (Cuba)|Black Spring]] after security agents reportedly spent 10 hours searching his apartment.<ref name=NYT326 /> At a trial on April 3, 2003, Espinosa was accused of "activities against the integrity and sovereignty of the State".<ref name=PEN /> The authorities also alleged that Espinosa had been receiving money from abroad, collecting press clippings about meetings between representatives of the United States and Cuban dissidents, and other activities. The government alleged that it found US$13,600 sewn into the lining of a jacket while searching Espinosa’s home and that the money came from the U.S. government. Espinosa was subsequently convicted and sentenced to 20 years in prison.<ref name=PEN /> He was one of approximately 75 dissidents arrested and tried.<ref name="Amnesty-2003 crackdown"/> |
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Following a rejected appeal by Espinosa, the Representative of the [[United Nations Commission on Human Rights]], [[Christine Chanet]], issued an appeal to the [[President of Cuba]] urging him to exercise his right of pardon on their behalf.{{cn}} The administration of U.S. President [[George W. Bush]] appealed to Castro on Espinosa's behalf, calling on the government to provide treatment for his liver disease. A spokesman described the Cuban government as "going out of its way" to be inhumane to its prisoners.<ref name=NYT36>{{cite web |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2003/06/03/world/treat-dissident-us-tells-cuba.html |title=Treat Dissident, U.S. Tells Cuba |date=June 3, 2003 |work=The New York Times |accessdate=29 July 2012}}</ref> Espinosa's wife Leiva reported that he had lost forty pounds since his arrest and was kept in a cell with no windows or running water.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://articles.latimes.com/2004/feb/15/world/fg-cuba15 |title=Cuban Dissidents Reportedly Face Harsh Jail Conditions |date=February 15, 2004 |agency=Times Wire Service |work=The Los Angeles Times |accessdate=29 July 2012}}</ref> |
Following a rejected appeal by Espinosa, the Representative of the [[United Nations Commission on Human Rights]], [[Christine Chanet]], issued an appeal to the [[President of Cuba]] urging him to exercise his right of pardon on their behalf.{{cn|date=July 2012}} The administration of U.S. President [[George W. Bush]] appealed to Castro on Espinosa's behalf, calling on the government to provide treatment for his liver disease. A spokesman described the Cuban government as "going out of its way" to be inhumane to its prisoners.<ref name=NYT36>{{cite web |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2003/06/03/world/treat-dissident-us-tells-cuba.html |title=Treat Dissident, U.S. Tells Cuba |date=June 3, 2003 |work=The New York Times |accessdate=29 July 2012}}</ref> Espinosa's wife Leiva reported that he had lost forty pounds since his arrest and was kept in a cell with no windows or running water.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://articles.latimes.com/2004/feb/15/world/fg-cuba15 |title=Cuban Dissidents Reportedly Face Harsh Jail Conditions |date=February 15, 2004 |agency=Times Wire Service |work=The Los Angeles Times |accessdate=29 July 2012}}</ref> |
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Leiva became active in the [[Ladies in White]], a group of wives of political prisoners which marched through Havana each Sunday protesting their husbands' detention. She continued to march even after Espinosa's early release.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://articles.latimes.com/2007/jul/15/news/adfg-cuba15 |title=A dose of free speech, Cuba-style |author=Will Weissert |date=July 15, 2007 |work=The Los Angeles Times |agency=Associated Press |accessdate=29 July 2012}}</ref> |
Leiva became active in the [[Ladies in White]], a group of wives of political prisoners which marched through Havana each Sunday protesting their husbands' detention. She continued to march even after Espinosa's early release.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://articles.latimes.com/2007/jul/15/news/adfg-cuba15 |title=A dose of free speech, Cuba-style |author=Will Weissert |date=July 15, 2007 |work=The Los Angeles Times |agency=Associated Press |accessdate=29 July 2012}}</ref> |
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Revision as of 22:27, 29 July 2012
Oscar Espinosa Chepe | |
|---|---|
| Born | November 29, 1940 |
| Nationality | Cuban |
| Occupation | economist |
| Known for | reform activism, 2003-2004 imprisonment |
| Spouse | Miriam Leiva |
Óscar Manuel Espinosa Chepe (born November 29, 1940) is a Cuban economist and dissident.[1] He was one of approximately 75 dissidents arrested, tried and convicted in 2003 as part of a crackdown by the Cuban government nicknamed the "Black Spring". He was given a twenty-year sentence on a charge of "activities against the integrity and sovereignty of the State", causing Amnesty International to declare him as a prisoner of conscience.[2]
Background
Espinosa is married to independent Cuban journalist Miriam Leiva.[3]
Arrest and trial
On March 19, 2003, Espinosa was arrested during the Black Spring after security agents reportedly spent 10 hours searching his apartment.[3] At a trial on April 3, 2003, Espinosa was accused of "activities against the integrity and sovereignty of the State".[1] The authorities also alleged that Espinosa had been receiving money from abroad, collecting press clippings about meetings between representatives of the United States and Cuban dissidents, and other activities. The government alleged that it found US$13,600 sewn into the lining of a jacket while searching Espinosa’s home and that the money came from the U.S. government. Espinosa was subsequently convicted and sentenced to 20 years in prison.[1] He was one of approximately 75 dissidents arrested and tried.[2]
Following a rejected appeal by Espinosa, the Representative of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, Christine Chanet, issued an appeal to the President of Cuba urging him to exercise his right of pardon on their behalf.[citation needed] The administration of U.S. President George W. Bush appealed to Castro on Espinosa's behalf, calling on the government to provide treatment for his liver disease. A spokesman described the Cuban government as "going out of its way" to be inhumane to its prisoners.[4] Espinosa's wife Leiva reported that he had lost forty pounds since his arrest and was kept in a cell with no windows or running water.[5]
Leiva became active in the Ladies in White, a group of wives of political prisoners which marched through Havana each Sunday protesting their husbands' detention. She continued to march even after Espinosa's early release.[6]
Release
Espinosa was released from prison along with fellow writer Raúl Rivero on November 29, 2004, after serving just over 19 months of his prison sentence;[7] It was his sixty-fourth birthday.[8] The authorities granted him medical parole because his already poor health had declined seriously during his incarceration.[1]
After his release, he called on the government to release the remaining Black Spring prisoners, stating, "The government really committed a very big error with us. We are completely peaceful and we want only the reconciliation of Cuban society."[8]
In 2006, Espinosa stated his opposition to U.S. funding for the Cuban dissident movement, calling it "counterproductive" and stating that the Cuban people must solve its own problems.[9] Following Raul Castro's assumption of the presidency, Espinosa expressed his hope that Castro could be the Deng Xiaoping of Cuba, improving the economy and the standard of living.[10]
References
- ^ a b c d "Oscar Espinosa Chepe". English PEN. Retrieved July 29, 2012.
- ^ a b "Cuba: One year too many: prisoners of conscience from the March 2003 crackdown". Amnesty International. March 16, 2004.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|accesdate=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ a b Miriam Leiva (March 26, 2003). "EU and Havana : Too close to Castro". The New York Times. Retrieved 29 July 2012.
- ^ "Treat Dissident, U.S. Tells Cuba". The New York Times. June 3, 2003. Retrieved 29 July 2012.
- ^ "Cuban Dissidents Reportedly Face Harsh Jail Conditions". The Los Angeles Times. Times Wire Service. February 15, 2004. Retrieved 29 July 2012.
- ^ Will Weissert (July 15, 2007). "A dose of free speech, Cuba-style". The Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. Retrieved 29 July 2012.
- ^ "Writer Raúl Rivero and journalist Oscar Espinosa Chepe released from prison". Committee to Protect Journalists. December 1, 2004. Retrieved July 29, 2012.
- ^ a b "Cuba frees political dissidents". BBC News. November 29, 2004. Retrieved July 29, 2012.
- ^ "US approves Cuba "democracy" plan". BBC News. 11 December 2006. Retrieved 29 July 2012.
- ^ Anthony Boadle (August 11, 2008). "Letter from Cuba: With Castro sidelined, hope mixes with fear - Americas - International Herald Tribune". The New York Times. Retrieved 29 July 2012.