"A Slap in the Face": Pilots' Families Balk at Cuban Prisoner Swap

"A Slap in the Face": Pilots' Families Balk at Cuban Prisoner Swap

Three South Florida families are upset after learning Wednesday that
three of the men in the "Cuban Five" will be free and headed home after
a historic prisoner swap. (Published Wednesday, Dec 17, 2014)
Thursday, Dec 18, 2014 • Updated at 4:04 AM EST
The South Florida families of pilots fatally shot down by Cuba in 1996
are speaking out against the Wednesday release of three members of the
convicted spies known as the "Cuban Five" in a prisoner swap — among
them one who had been convicted of conspiracy to commit murder over the
shootdown.
"For the only person that we had responsible for what happened to be let
go — it's a slap in the face to my dad," Marlene Alejandre-Triana said
at a news conference.

Alejandre-Triana's father Armando Alejandre, a Vietnam veteran, was one
of four pilots killed when Cuban MiGs shot down their two small, private
planes in February 1996 in international waters off Cuba's northern
coast. They had been flying missions for Brothers to the Rescue, an
exile organization that sought to aid migrants at sea and also dropped
propaganda leaflets.
One of the agents known as the "Cuban Five," Gerardo Hernandez, had been
serving a life sentence on a murder conspiracy conviction in the shoot-down.

He and two other members of the Cuban Five — Ramon Labanino and Antonio
Guerrero — were released Wednesday as part of the prisoner swap and
flown back to their homeland, ending what their appeals lawyer called
"an arduous experience."
The families of the pilots said they were given no warning of the release.

"We simply cannot understand how this could have happened, especially in
the case of Gerardo Hernandez. This was the only modicum of justice we
had," said Maggie Alejandre-Khuly, sister of one of the pilots who was
killed.
The Cuban Five were all convicted in 2001 of being unregistered foreign
agents, and three also were found guilty of espionage conspiracy for
failed efforts to obtain military secrets from the U.S. Southern Command
headquarters. Hernandez, meanwhile, had been serving two life sentences
plus 15 years on a murder conspiracy conviction stemming from the Cuban
air force's 1996 shoot-down.
Cuba insists the Five were not acting against U.S. sovereignty, only
keeping tabs on militant exile groups that Havana blames for terror
attacks on the island, including a string of hotel bombings.
But prosecutors argued they also tried to penetrate military bases,
including the U.S. Southern Command and facilities in the Florida Keys.
Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen believes President Barack Obama may have broken
federal law with the prisoner swap and decried it Wednesday.
"This is outrageous. The Cuban regime ordered the murder — the
assassination of these three American citizens, one resident — and what
has been the value of these valiant heroes lives and deaths? An
exchange," Ros-Lehtinen said.
The "Five Heroes," as they are known in Cuba, are fixtures in state
media, and their faces grace billboards across the island.
Schoolchildren are taught their names and take part in public acts
demanding their release. However, the five are reviled as spies by many
exiles in South Florida.
For years, Havana has made them an official cause celebre, rivaling the
case of Elian Gonzalez, the boy rafter who in 2000 was caught in a
tug-of-war between his Cuban father and family in Miami.
The other two members of the Cuban Five had already been released before
the last three walked free Wednesday.
Rene Gonzalez, a dual U.S.-Cuban national, became the first of the
agents to walk free in October 2011 after completing about 13 years
behind bars. He was initially ordered to serve three years of supervised
parole and remain in the United States, but in 2013 a judge allowed him
to return to Cuba and renounce his U.S. citizenship.
Fernando Gonzalez, who is not related to Rene Gonzalez, was released in
February 2014 after serving more than 15 years, and quickly deported to
Cuba. The last three still in American lockups were Hernandez, Antonio
Guerrero and Ramon Labanino.

Source: "A Slap in the Face": Pilots' Families Balk at Cuban Prisoner
Swap | NBC 6 South Florida -
http://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/South-Florida-Families-Upset-Over-Cuban-Five-Prisoner-Swap-286156141.html