Campaigning on wider freedom of expression issues

Article 91/Law 88
The legal instruments most often utilised by the Cuban authorities to silence journalists and writers on the island are Article 91 of the Penal Code used in conjunction with Law 88 (see explanations of both below).

The measures are wide-ranging and ominously vague, and serve as catch-all legislation designed to cover almost any form of deviance from the official government line.

The following summary of Article 91 and Law 88 is taken from the Amnesty International website:

Article 91 of the Penal Code
Article 91 of the Penal Code, which was the sole charge for 26 of the 75 dissidents and was used in conjunction with Law 88 (see below) for another six, provides for sentences of ten to 20 years or death against anyone convicted of "acts against the independence or territorial integrity of the state"(73). Under this article, "he who, in the interest of a foreign state, commits an act with the objective of damaging the independence or territorial integrity of the Cuban state, incurs the penalty of ten to twenty years imprisonment or death"(74).

Law 87 of 1999, which modifies the Penal Code, changes the provisions regarding sentencing to provide for life imprisonment.

Law 88
In February 1999 Cuba's National Assembly passed tough legislation (Law 88), called the Ley de Protección de la Independencia Nacional y la Economía de Cuba, Law for the Protection of the National Independence and Economy of Cuba. The law calls for seven to 15 years' imprisonment for passing information to the United States that could be used to bolster anti-Cuban measures such as the US economic blockade. This would rise to 20 years if the information is acquired surreptitiously. The legislation also bans the ownership, distribution or reproduction of 'subversive materials' from the US government, and proposes terms of imprisonment of up to five years for collaborating with radio and TV stations and publications deemed to be assisting US policy.

Every single one of the writers, journalists and librarians sentenced in April 2003 were found guilty on charges relating to Article 91, Law 88 or both.

The full Spanish text of Law 88 can be viewed at: www.cpj.org/Briefings/2003/cubacrackdown/law88_spa.html

Internet Access
However, Article 91 and Law 88 are not the only two repressive measures regarding freedom of expression in Cuba. A new law passed in January 2004 severely restricts internet access to Cuban citizens. Under the legislation, only officially recognised businesses and government offices are allowed internet access.

Brought in by the government under the guise of thwarting rogue internet access providers, the law's intent is clearly to prevent further the flow of information to and from ordinary Cuban people. It thus violates their freedom of expression and hits particularly hard those non-government journalists filing reports via e-mail.

It is believed that before the law came into place, up to 40,000 Cubans enjoyed unofficial internet access. Pre-existing laws had made the unofficial nature of their internet connections a necessity since the vast majority of Cubans did not qualify to have a legal internet connection.

The Cuban government was also reported in January 2004 to have called on Etecsa, the sole legal internet service provider, "to deploy all technical means to detect and block Internet access" to unauthorized users.

State of the Media
This summary is taken from the BBC website's Cuba profile.
The Cuban media is tightly controlled by the government. Journalists must operate within the confines of laws regarding anti-government propaganda and the insulting of officials which carry penalties of up to three years in prison. Private ownership of electronic media is prohibited by the constitution, and foreign news agencies must hire local journalists only through government offices.

In May 2000 the journalists' organization, the Committee to Protect Journalists, put Cuba on its list of nations where press freedoms are severely restricted. It said the Castro government continued to interrogate and detain independent journalists, monitoring their activities and preventing their free movement. [This remains true today.]

The US makes concerted efforts to reach Cuban listeners and viewers; government-backed stations Radio-TV Marti (www.martinoticias.com) say they provide "balanced, uncensored" news for the Cuban people.

The stations beam programmes to Cuba from high-power transmitters, some based in the Florida Keys. The effectiveness - or otherwise - of the services has been debated in US government circles.

• Calling for the immediate repeal of Law 88 and a thorough review of the Cuban Penal Code in order to ensure that Article 91 meets international standards for the protection of freedom of expression;

• Urging the Cuban authorities to repeal all laws which restrict the ability of Cuban citizens to gain access to the internet. Such laws are clear violations of their right to freedom of expression and information.

Please contact ftw@pen.org if you have any questions.