Amnesty International reiterates its calls on the Cuban government to:
* Order the immediate and unconditional release of all prisoners of conscience
* Ensure that an independent and impartial inquiry is held into allegations of ill-treatment by prison guards and, that the officials implicated in these allegations are immediately suspended from duty and those responsible brought to justice
* Suspend Law 88 and other similar legislation that facilitates the imprisonment of Cuban citizens by unlawfully restricting the exercise of their fundamental freedoms
* Comply with international human rights standards for the treatment of prisoners
* Ratify both the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
Amnesty International believes that the unilateral US embargo against Cuba contributes to the undermining of key civil and political rights in the country.
On these grounds, Amnesty International calls for its immediate lifting. The organisation also calls on the Cuban government to stop using the embargo as a pretext to violate the human rights of the Cuban people.
The last part is key. The embargo is wrong but not as wrong as using it as an excuse.
You mean an honest democracy like we have in Scotland where over 10% of the votes were considered invalid because of computer errors?
The people will speak when they feel the need - looking at the social conditions of their neighbours in Haiti and Jamaica I doubt they'll be that much interested in 'freedom' for a while yet.
You're relating micro-economics to two different macro-economies and that just doesn't work. You also can't relate a person's happiness to their monetary wealth and expect to get away with it.
True wealth lies in health and education, and boxing.
I think you can relate a persons happiness to whether they have to live in a prison island unable to afford an aspirin to numb the hangover after spending another night trying to pick up tourists to fuck for money in nightclubs.
2) A mobile phone is the equivalent of 6 months wages
3) 100s of thousands of Cubans are now buying them so guess what, it's not an even society or even close to being one. That would be like mobile phones costing £120k in the UK. Like every other 'Communist' society there are a bunch of people at the top just the same as in a capitalist country. Difference is the average person doesn't have a pot to piss in.
Not everyone gets to skinny dip with the leader...
Mobile phones? They're so very important eh? Why do you 'need' a mobile phone? What did you do without one? You're a consumerist controller's wet dream with that kind of attitude.
As far as Costa Rica is concerned - it's basically the 51st state of the USA, yet I'm pretty sure you'll find some locals dropping their knickers for a few yankee dollars in exactly the same way as some Cubans will do the same for citizens from other countries who aren't actually blocked from visiting. Americans face arrest at home if they even visit cuba - well done FREEDOM eh?
Anyway, small political details are not as important in the bigger picture. Cuba is a fantastic success given the pressure it has been under. They make western countries, with their massive economies (now crashing of course), look like bloated beached whales in comparison, even though they suffered a major hurricane disaster during the summer.
Locking up dozens of journalists is a small political matter?
Being a totalitarian dictatorship relying on handouts from other countries is a success?
You choosing Costa Rica is funny because it is an example of exactly why Cuba is shit.
The people of Costa Rica are far richer, have a free press, a proper functioning democracy, welfare spending on par with Scandinavia, and is rated 5th in the world for enviromental performance. It does have a bit of an immigration problem though as tens of thousands of Cubans move there to start productive free lives.
the only reason Costa rica is doing well is because of America choosing to give it lots of aid - mosty likely in a direct attempt to tempt the small minded like yourself who think consumer products equals freedom. Where would Costa Rica be if it didn't have that aid and also suffered American sanctions? You're talking out of your arse.
If you've got nothing postive to say about this thread, which is meant to be a truibute to a great man, then do me a favour and don't bother. This is not a free speech site and I'm getting sick to the back teeth of your negativity about just about everything.
"seshme" what i'm always amazed at is the ignorance of a person or a poster that cuts and pastes MSM diatribe. comparing costa rica and cuba is childs work. MSM media can make friend or foe of any agenda. your case of cuba is excruciatingly ignorant. it seems you've left out all mitigating factors aside. first hand knowledge of both these countries are an important factor that you've left behind in comparing these two nations. you seem a bloke beset to tell an MSM view of reality. costa rica is nothing but an american out post, you speak of freedon of press? freedom of press in costa rica that's been vetted by american money. you need a lesson in freedom, cubans are one of the proudest people i've met. costa ricans seemed to pretend they are free saying we have mc'donalds and that makes us free. the economic embargo on cuba far outweighs any nation that has ever been subjected to, yet you still have the audacity to say castro is against freedom, sorry son your governments idea of freedom is far worse than any of castro's ideals.
