Opposition cleric freed after 15 months of prison

Opposition cleric freed after 15 months of prison

HAVANA, October 31 (Shelyn Rojas / www.cubanet.org) - The vicar general
of the Roman Catholic Orthodox Byzantine Church of Cuba, Ricardo
Santiago Medina Salabarría, was freed last week after 15 months in
prison and told to ask the U.S. Interests Section for a visa to go into
exile in the United States.

Political security police shortened Medina Salabarría's indefinite
sentence after receiving an appeal from his wife, Katia Sonia Martín Véliz.

A political security agent said that the file on the cleric remained
open and that he could be imprisoned again if he continued opposition to
the government. The agent told him he should seek exile in the United
States.

He was arrested under Law 88 which considers as a near treasonable
offense contact with foreign governments like that of the United States.

During his imprisonment, Medina Salabarría refused to wear a prison
uniform, going instead in shorts and a shirt worn inside out as a
protest. After his release, he said he would continue his efforts on
behalf of political prisoners.

http://www.cubanet.org/CNews/y06/nov06/02e4.htm