Lady in White released from Cuban prison

Document - Cuba: Further information: Lady in White released from Cuban
prison

Further information on UA: 215/12 Index: AMR 25/024/2012 Cuba Date: 11
October 2012

URGENT ACTION

LADY IN WHITE RELEASED FROM CUBAN PRISON

On 5 October, Lady in White Niurka Luque Álvarez was released from
prison in Cuba pending trial. Fellow Lady in White Sonia Garro Alfonso
and her husband Ramón Alejandro Muñoz González still remain in detention
without charge.

Lady in White Niurka Luque Álvarez was released pending trial on 5
October, having spent almost seven months in prison. She has been
charged with "violence or intimidation" against a state official
("atentado"). She was arrested on 17 March, along with 17 other Ladies
in White, while demonstrating peacefully to commemorate the anniversary
of the 2003 crackdown on dissidents. The other 17 were released a few
hours after Niurka Luque Álvarez.

On 18 March, Lady in White Sonia Garro Alfonso and her husband Ramón
Alejandro Muñoz González were both arrested at home. Sonia Garro Alfonso
continues to be held in Guatao women's prison on the outskirts of
Havana; Ramón Alejandro Muñoz González is still being held in Havana's
Combinado del Este prison. It is believed that neither has yet to be
formally charged.

Niurka Luque Álvarez has not been given a date for her trial. On her
release from prison, she was warned against participating in any
activities with government critics. She suffers from epilepsy and did
not receive any medical attention during her incarceration, and had to
rely on family members and supporters for medication.

The charges against Niurka Luque Álvarez – and the continued
incarceration of Sonia Garro Alfonso and Ramón Alejandro Muñoz González
– appear to be politically motivated, and part of the Cuban authorities'
ongoing campaign to intimidate and silence government critics.

Please write immediately in Spanish or your own language:

Calling on the authorities to charge Sonia Garro Alfonso and Ramón
Alejandro Muñoz González with internationally recognizable criminal
offences or release them immediately;

Asking them to ensure that anyone charged is given a fair trial in
compliance with international standards;

Urging them to cease immediately the harassment and intimidation of
Ladies in White and other citizens who peacefully exercise their rights
to freedom of expression and association.

PLEASE SEND APPEALS BEFORE 22 NOVEMBER 2012 TO:


Head of State and Government

Raúl Castro Ruz

Presidente de la República de Cuba

La Habana, Cuba

Fax: +53 7 83 33 085 (via Foreign Ministry), +1 212 779 1697 (via Cuban
Mission to UN)

Email: cuba@un.int (c/o Cuban Mission to UN)

Salutation: Your Excellency

Interior Minister

General Abelardo Colomé Ibarra

Ministro del Interior y Prisiones

Ministerio del Interior, �Plaza de la Revolución, �La Habana, Cuba

Fax: +1 212 779 1697 (via Cuban Mission to UN)

Email: correominint@mn.mn.co.cu

Salutation: Your Excellency

And copies to:

Attorney General

Dr. Darío Delgado Cura

Fiscal General de la República, �Fiscalía General de la República,
Amistad 552, e/Monte y Estrella, Centro Habana

La Habana, Cuba

Salutation: Dear Attorney General


Also send copies to diplomatic representatives accredited to your country.

Please check with your section office if sending appeals after the above
date. This is the first update of UA 215/12. Further information:
http://amnesty.org/en/library/info/AMR25/018/2012/en


URGENT ACTION

lady in white released from cuban prison

http://amnesty.org/en/library/asset/AMR25/024/2012/en/ced2607e-baab-4e30-8e47-1e5b2a7d6490/amr250242012en.html