International Meeting of Solidarity with the Cuban Five to Be Held in Havana

María Elena Álvarez Ponce

The third International Meeting of Solidarity with the Cuban Five, the antiterrorist fighters who for more than 12 years have been unfairly imprisoned in the United States, will be held in Havana from June 11 through 13, with the participation of delegates from 36 countries.

Among the more than 180 delegates who have already confirmed attendance are the president of the World Federation of Democratic Youth, Portuguese Tiago Vieira, and the secretary general of the Latin American Youth Organization, Argentinean Alejo Ramirez,

"Their participation in this meeting is an example of the growing interest and support of the case of Gerardo Hernandez, Fernando Gonzalez, Antonio Guerrero, Ramon Labanino and Rene Gonzalez around the world," Young Communist League (UJC) National Executive Board member Leira Sanchez told the press.

The program of the gathering includes meetings with relatives of the Cuban Five, where participants will learn up-to-date information about the legal process and the world campaign for the liberation of these men, victims of US imperial hatred towards Cuba.

Workshops on the contributions made by artists to the campaign to spread the truth on the case of the Cuban Five have been also scheduled, with a special emphasis on the works by young artists who have joined the international request for President Barack Obama to put an end to this colossal injustice.

At the Julio Antonio Mella UJC School, which will be the main venue of the gathering, cartoonists Rene de la Nuez and Aristides Esteban Hernandez (Ares) will be displaying their works as a gesture of comradeship to one of the Cuban Five, Gerardo Hernandez, who is also a cartoonist.

Another exhibition including cartoons sent from all corners of the globe as gifts to Hernandez for his 46th birthday can be viewed at www.juventudrebelde.cu.

Sanchez pointed out that that information technology will play a center role at this third international meeting, not only because delegates will be discussing how to make better use of these resources to break the wall of silence built around the case of the Cuban Five, but also because one of the highlights of the gathering will be an online discussion forum.

Under the motto, "Freedom now! Stop this injustice! Free the Five Now!" the forum will be available at http://www.foros.cubava.cu beginning at 9:00 a.m. on June 13. ""Bloggers and users of other social networks will be posting information on the gathering to ensure an ample coverage of these events," Sanchez added.

Representing Cuba at the forum will be students, workers, combatants, religious people and foreign students currently on scholarships on the island, who will be sharing their opinions and experiences with users from other countries.

The La Colmenita children’s theater company will be offering a special performance of their show Hocus Pocus on June 12 for the delegates at the Covarrubias Hall of the National Theater.

The program also includes a visit to the Jaimanitas coastal town where painter and sculptor Jose Antonio Rodriguez Fuster leads a community work initiative, as well as a poetry recital and a concert at the Cuban Pavilion in Havana. (AIN)

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