CUBAN PRISONER OF CONSCIENCE ORLANDO ZAPATA TAMAYO DEAD FOLLOWING

Miami, February 23, 2010.  Prisoner of conscience, Orlando Zapata Tamayo, one of the 75 prisoners of conscience imprisoned during the wave of arrests of Cuban dissidents in March of 2003, has died today in Havana.  Zapata Tamayo was in the midst of a two month hunger strike in protest of the Cuban regime’s failure to comply with the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners adopted by the first United Nations Congress. 

The death of this prisoner of conscience reveals the subhuman and deplorable nature of the Cuban regime that in direct defiance of International law and norms provoked the slow and torturous death of an innocent man.  The Cuban regime’s refusal to listen to domestic and international pleas to save the life of Orlando Zapata is a clear demonstration of their lack of respect for human life.

 The Foundation for Human Rights in Cuba holds the Cuban regime directly responsible for the death of this prisoner of conscience.  During this difficult and painful time, we not only mourn for the loss of this brave man but call on those who know of his plight to turn his sacrifice into a battle cry so that once and for all we can eradicate the brutal regime that fails to place any value on the lives of its citizens.  Today, more than ever, the Cuban people must find ways to send a strong message to the regime that they are united in their demand for the respect of their most basic freedoms.

Telephone: 305-592-7768  Fax:305-592-7889  web: www.canf.org