The Cuban Connection
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When Madrid handed over the EU presidency to Belgium last weekend, it didn't end its involvement in human rights issues overseas. The foreign minister arrived in Cuba yesterday in a bid to convince the Castro regime to release more political prisoners.
Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos' 48hour flying visit comes as the state of high-profile hunger striker Guillermo Fariñas is said to be rapidly deteriorating.
Although the current number of political prisoners is at its lowest since the Cuban Revolution, there are still 167 dissidents behind bars, according to Elizardo Sanchez, head of the Cuban Human Rights and National Reconciliation Commission.
Talks between the Cuban government and the Catholic Church have led to a reduction in the number of political prisoners by 17% during the past six months, signalling a possible breakthrough in a longstanding negotiation process.
Moratinos will talk with his Cuban counterpart Bruno Rodríguez, Habana archbishop Jaime Ortega about the release of yet more political prisoners. It has not been confirmed if he will meet with Cuban leader Raul Castro himself.
Fariñas, a psychologist and journalist, has been refusing food since the death of dissident and hunger striker Orlando Zapata in February. Now said to be close to death, he says the Castro brothers are to be held responsible for his fate.
The EU's policy on Cuba is based on the so-called 1996 Common Position, which states that relations with the island depend on Havana taking steps on democracy and human rights. Spain has taken the lead in negotiations with the Castro government, especially during its EU presidency in the first half of this year.
