World Ecumenical Body to Continue Pastoral Accompaniment of 'Cuban Five' Relatives

The World Council of Churches (WCC) General Secretary, Rev Dr Samuel Kobia has reported that the organisation will continue to offer pastoral accompaniment to the relatives of a group of imprisoned people known as the 'Cuban Five'.

The global ecumenical body has stated that it will also advocate for the relatives' right to visit them, following Dr Kobia's meeting with two of the prisoners' relatives, Adriana Pérez and Magalys Llort, last week in Geneva.

Dr Kobia explained that the Council's support will be channelled especially through the churches and ecumenical organisations in Cuba.

The WCC Head also praised the work done by the churches in the U.S. in accompanying the five Cubans and their relatives.

He said, "The WCC is concerned that relatives have found it extremely difficult, if not impossible for some of them, to visit the prisoners, and will therefore strongly appeal for them to be allowed to visit the prisoners on humanitarian grounds."

Dr Kobia also recalled the opinion of the UN Working group on arbitrary detentions, which in its 2006 report states that the deprivation of liberty of the five Cubans is arbitrary. The wives of two of the prisoners have been denied US visas for the last six years.

The 'Cuban Five' are five Cuban citizens imprisoned in the US after being convicted by a US Federal Court in Miami on 8 June 2001.

The Cuban Five are Gerardo Hernández, Ramón Labañino, Antonio Guerrero, Fernando González and René González.

They were accused of conspiring to spy on the United States, among other related charges. However, in response to the allegations the five claimed they were involved in monitoring the actions of Miami-based terrorist groups, in order to prevent terrorist attacks in Cuba.

On 9 August 2005, the five won an historic appeal when a three-judge panel in Atlanta's 11th Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the convictions and ordered a new trial outside Miami. Later on, the court agreed to hear the US prosecutors' appeal, and on 9 August 2006 reversed its previous decision.