CUBA: Internet writers detained and beaten

19 November 2009

RAN 57/09

The Writers in Prison Committee (WiPC) of International PEN is alarmed by reports that renowned internet writer Yoani Sánchez and fellow bloggers Orlando Luís Pardo Lazo and Claudia Cadelo were abducted and beaten by state security agents while on their way to a demonstration in Havana on 6 November 2009. The WiPC is concerned that the attack may signal the beginning of a new wave of repression against the new generation of bloggers who until now have enjoyed relative freedom in a country where writers are commonly imprisoned for their work. It calls on the Cuban authorities to respond to the allegations of the attack and, if they are founded, to bring the agents responsible to justice. The WiPC also continues to call for the unconditional release of the 26 writers, journalists and librarians currently in prison for their writings.

Internet writers Yoani Sánchez, Claudia Cadelo and Orlando Luís Pardo Lazo were reportedly abducted and assaulted while on their way to a peaceful demonstration in the capital Havana on 6 November 2009. According to PEN's information, the three were walking to a march against violence against dissidents when unknown men forced them into an unmarked vehicle. One of the men, whom the bloggers believe were plainclothes state security agents, reportedly warned bystanders not to get involved as the writers were "counterrevolutionaries". The three writers were beaten and threatened before being released.

Sánchez, who says that she was told by one of her assailants that her "clowning around" was over, reportedly needed to walk with a crutch for several days after the assault. There has been no official comment on or independent confirmation of the attacks to date.

Background
Online journalism by Cuban journalists has flourished since the 1990s, according to a recent report by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), but today's bloggers represent a new generation. "Unlike the independent press of the 1990s, which was composed mostly of opposition activists with strong political views, today's bloggers have established themselves as distinct from both the government and the dissident movement [...] Whether by design or not, they have been shrewd in not directly challenging the Cuban regime". To read CPJ's report, click here: http://cpj.org/reports/2009/09/cuban-bloggers-offer-fresh-hope.php

Sánchez has been writing her blog on everyday life in Cuba, Generación Y (http://www.desdecuba.com/generaciony/), since early 2007. The site reportedly receives one million hits per month and is translated into at least 15 languages. It has won Sánchez the Ortega y Gasset prize and the Mary Moors Cabot award from Columbia University for internet journalism, although the Cuban authorities have denied her permission to leave the country in order to receive the honours. Cadelo writes the blog Octavo Cerco (http://octavocerco.blogspot.com/).

Cuba keeps 26 writers, journalists and librarians in prison in violation of their right to freedom of expression. All are serving lengthy sentences - up to 27 years - on ‘anti-state' or ‘social dangerousness' charges in relation to their work. Most are in poor health yet have limited access to medical treatment. For more information, see: http://www.internationalpen.org.uk/flash/index_english.cfm  

Useful links

• Reports on the attack by
  Index on Censorship: http://www.indexoncensorship.org/2009/11/cuban-bloggers-under-attack/
• Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ): http://cpj.org/blog/2009/11/cuban-bloggers-abducted-and-beaten.php
• Human Rights Watch: http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2009/11/07/cuba-prominent-blogger-abducted-beaten?tr=y&auid=5589778  
• Global Voices online: http://globalvoicesonline.org/2009/11/07/yoani/