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La vida en Cuba bajo los Castro

Posted on 02/12/201625/06/2021 by cswpress in Cuba ES, español, Latin America ES

Se puede ver la traducción en ingles, aquí [For the English translation, click here]

Mario Felix Lleonart Barroso es un prominente pastor bautista y activista de los Derechos Humanos de Cuba. Queríamos escuchar a la perspectiva de un nacional cubano de la muerte reciente de Fidel Castro y los efectos potenciales que esto tendrá en la libertad de religión y conciencia en la isla.

¿Cuál es el significado simbólico para los cubanos de la muerte de Fidel Castro?

Desde hace muchos años el pueblo cubano programó su psicología de masas afirmando que nada cambiaría realmente en Cuba hasta la muerte de Fidel Castro. En este sentido se ha cumplido la meta de espera auto impuesta por el propio pueblo cubano. Fidel Castro trató durante todo el tiempo de su poder a Cuba como si fuese su propia finca particular. Revertir la herencia de miseria que en todos los sentidos este hombre llega a Cuba no será fácil. Cortar los lazos de sus familiares y cómplices será un gran desafío todavía. Pero todos sabemos que el plazo que el pueblo de Cuba ha terminado y que a partir de ahora comienza a destejerse la madeja. Con la muerte de Fidel Castro es como si la maldición se hubiese roto.

¿Cuál era la relación entre Fidel Castro y la libertad de religión/los grupos religiosos en Cuba?

Desde que Fidel Castro anunció a principio de los años ´60 su alianza con el imperio estalinista adoptó también su adversidad a todo lo que fuese religión. Aunque su propósito era hacer desaparecer de Cuba todo vestigio de religión, no lo logró. Fusilamientos, campos de concentración, cárcel, fueron algunas de las medidas extremas que su régimen adoptó en los primeros años de su opresión. Con la caída del muro de Berlín en 1989 y la caída del campo socialista Fidel Castro tuvo que cambiar su política de persecución abierta a cierta tolerancia. El cambio más relevante fue la reforma constitucional de 1992 que declaró que el Estado cubano pasaba de confesionalmente ateo, a laico. En este caso su política pasó de tratar de destruir a intentar manipular a la religión y a grupos religiosos. La mayor expresión de esto es la Oficina de Atención a los Asuntos Religiosos del Partido Comunista de Cuba, una entidad en la cúspide del poder político dedicada a decidir qué permitir y que derogar, de acuerdo a los intereses políticos de los castro, en materia religiosa.

LEE MÁS

Life in Cuba under the Castros

Posted on 02/12/201624/06/2021 by cswpress in Cuba, Latin America

This post has been edited for clarity. For the Spanish translation click here. [Se puede ver la traducción en español, aquí]

Mario Felix Lleonart Barroso is a prominent Cuban Baptist pastor and human rights activist from Cuba. In the following interview with CSW, he shares his perspective as a Cuban national, on the recent death of Fidel Castro and the potential impact this could have on freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) on the island.

What is the symbolic significance for Cubans of the death of Fidel Castro?

Many years ago, the Cuban people collectively resolved to accept that nothing would really change until Fidel Castro died. In this sense, the objective which the Cuban people have themselves imposed, has been fulfilled; Fidel Castro treated Cuba throughout all of his time in power as if it was his own land. Undoing the legacy of destitution which this man brought to Cuba in every way will not be easy. To sever the ties of his relatives and accomplices will be an even bigger challenge. However, we all know that an era has ended for the Cuban people and that from now on, the string will begin to unravel. With the death of Fidel Castro, it is as if the curse has been broken.

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Iran: How the Judicial System is used to Target Religious and Ethnic Minorities

Posted on 14/11/201624/06/2021 by cswpress in Iran, Middle East & North Africa

Five Iranian Christians were arrested by Iranian Intelligence (VEVAK) Officers on 26 August while picnicking with their wives in a private garden in Firouzkooh, an area 90 miles east of Tehran. They were not holding a religious service. They were simply enjoying a picnic. Now they are detained in Evin Prison in Tehran.

Since President Rouhani came to office in August 2013 there has been an increase in the number of religious minorities imprisoned on account of their faith. The rise in harassment, arrests and restrictions on freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) are a major concern for non-Muslims, converts to Christianity, members of the Baha’i faith and minority Muslim groups.

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For Some, Yellow Butterflies Symbolise Hope in the Midst of Colombia’s Uncertainty

Posted on 01/11/201622/06/2021 by cswpress in Colombia, Latin America

Yellow butterflies covered every wall in the office of one of our partner organisations in Colombia.

The first butterfly was cut out and hung on a wall immediately following the signing of the peace agreement between the government of Colombia and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) on 26 September 2016 in Cartagena on the northern coast of the country.

In their speeches on this momentous occasion, both President Juan Manuel Santos and Timochenco, the commander and Chief of the FARC, referred to the yellow butterflies from celebrated Colombian author Gabriel Garcia Marquez’ famous novel ‘One Hundred Years of Solitude’: Gabriel Garcia Marquez is remembered for his love of yellow butterflies and flowers, which signify that nothing bad will happen.

“The war is over, we are starting to build peace” – Timochenko, Commander and Chief of the FARC

During his speech, Timochenko, stated, “war is over, we are starting to build peace’’ followed by a reference to a character in the novel, Mauricio Babilonia, who is constantly followed by yellow butterflies wherever he goes, as a symbol of infinite love and hope. Ivan Marquez, the FARC’s lead negotiator stated at a national FARC conference, “Tell Mauricio Babilonia he can release the yellow butterflies,” as a direct quote from the novel.

An Unexpected Outcome

These butterflies were a clear example of the hopeful expectancy that surrounded me in Bogota. Everyone was discussing what the peace agreement would mean for the country, especially for the regions most affected by the 52 year long conflict, especially the more rural areas of Colombia.

During the 53 years of internal conflict, hundreds of thousands of lives have been lost. All actors during the conflict have been responsible for major human rights violations; armed actors have also been responsible for a wide range of violations of religious freedom as hundreds of religious leaders have been the victims of targeted assassinations since 2000 and many have received threats, including death threats, by neo-paramilitary groups and guerrillas. Many churches have faced extortion from armed groups or have been forcibly closed.

However, at this point in time, the national plebiscite which was due to be held on 2 October 2016 had not yet taken place and was the final step required to bring the peace agreement into force.

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NGOs in Partnership with International Parliamentarians

Posted on 19/10/201626/09/2019 by cswpress in International Arenas, UK Government

LONG READ: “NGOs in Partnership with International Parliamentarians” is the speech delivered by CSW’s Chief Executive Mervyn Thomas at the UK’s Foreign and Commonwealth’s (FCO) Conference, ‘Preventing violent extremism by building inclusive and plural societies: How freedom of religion or belief can help’, 19 -20 October 2016.

As we’ve already heard today, the fundamental human right to Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB), embedded in Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights is one that at first can appear daunting and difficult to raise. Professor Heiner Bielefeldt, UN Special Rapporteur on FoRB has said that “it is the most challenging of all human rights, it is the spice in the soup of human rights.” However, although daunting it is extremely important to intensify our joint efforts to promote it.

The latest information from the Pew Research Center stated that in 2014, 74% or roughly ¾ of the world’s population, live in countries with either high or very high restrictions on religious freedom. That means that over 5.1 billion people in this world are not able to fully recognise their inalienable human right to practice or change the religion or belief system of their choice.

Furthermore, FoRB is part and parcel of peace and stability; a cornerstone of democratic societies, and it can provide an important antidote to rising violent extremism. High-levels of discrimination based on religion or belief and FoRB restrictions can undermine peaceful development and in fact increase the grounds for the rise of extremism.

It is clear that some of the most significant foreign affairs challenges the international community are currently grappling with, involve violent extremism, and many of the challenges are deeply rooted in violations of the right to freedom of religion or belief.

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