Amnesty International Seeks Review of Case of the 'Cuban Five'

In a report released today,
Amnesty International outlines its concerns with the fairness of the trial
of five men convicted in 2001 of acting as intelligence agents for Cuba,
among other charges. The five men are serving terms ranging from 15 years
to life in US federal prisons.

In a letter sent to United States Attorney
General Eric Holder on October 4, Amnesty International noted doubts about
the fairness and impartiality of the trial which have not been resolved
on appeal. The human rights organization has not taken a position on whether
the five men are guilty or innocent of the charges against them.

The five -- Cuban nationals Fernando Gonzalez,
Gerardo Hernandez and Ramon Labanino, and US nationals Antonio Guerrero
and Rene Gonzalez -- were tried in Miami and convicted on various counts,
including acting and conspiring to act as unregistered agents of the Republic
of Cuba, fraud and misuse of identity documents and, in the case of three
of the accused, conspiracy to transmit national defense information. Gerardo
Hernandez was further convicted of conspiracy to murder, based on his alleged
role in the 1996 shoot-down by Cuba of two planes operated by a US anti-Castro
organization, Brothers to the Rescue, in which four people died.

Amnesty International's report said holding
the trial in Miami, given the pervasive hostility to the Cuban government
in that area, along with media and other events before and during the trial
were factors that made it impossible to ensure a wholly impartial jury.

Other concerns included questions about the
strength of the evidence to support the conspiracy to murder conviction
in the case of Gerardo Hernandez, and whether the circumstances of the
pre-trial detention of the five men, in which they had limited access to
their attorneys and to documents, may have undermined their right to defense.

Amnesty International has called on the government
to review the case and mitigate any injustice through the clemency process
or other appropriate means, should further legal appeals prove ineffective.

Amnesty International has also reiterated
its concern about the repeated denials by the US government of temporary
visas to allow the Cuban wives of two of the prisoners, Rene Gonzalez and
Gerardo Hernandez, to visit their husbands. The organization is concerned
that such a blanket or permanent bar on visits with their wives constitutes
additional punishment and is contrary to international standards for the
humane treatment of prisoners and states' obligation to protect family
life. Amnesty International continues to urge the government to grant the
wives temporary visas on humanitarian grounds.

Amnesty International is a Nobel Peace Prize-winning
grassroots activist organization with more than 2.8 million supporters,
activists and volunteers in more than 150 countries campaigning for human
rights worldwide. The organization investigates and exposes abuses, educates
and mobilizes the public, and works to protect people wherever justice,
freedom, truth and dignity are denied.