Dear friends of the European solidarity with Cuba

We would like to present you a letter to the people of the US and their representatives in congress in support of the Cuban Five. On August 9 it is exactly one year ago that the Court of Atlanta suspended the sentences of the Five. But still they remain in prison. They are kidnapped by the US government. It is urgent to demand their release.

The text of the letter is based on a similar letter that was presented by the European Conference of Solidarity with Cuba in Vienna in September 2002 and approved by the 35 organizations of 21 counties that attended the conference.

We actualized the text because of the important decision of the Court of Atlanta, consulting the family members of the Five.

This letter will be presented in an international press conference which we organize on August 9 2006 in the International Press Centre in Havana in presence of the families of the Five and international personalities who support the case.

We present it to you and invite you to work with it in your country, gathering a maximum of signatures of personalities and organisations. On October 6, the 30 th anniversary of the terrorist attack against a Cuban civil airplane, we will collect all the signatures to send the letter to the people of the US.

Katrien Demuynck
European Coordination of the Free the Five Campaign

To the people of the US and their representatives in Congress

Dear friends,

Five years ago the events of September 11 th shocked us all very deeply. We feel sincere sympathy for all the victims and their families. We condemn without reservation these acts of terrorism. That is why we, citizens and organizations of Europe, ask for your attention in the case of five Cubans: Gerardo Hernández, Ramón Labañino, René González, Fernando González and Antonio Guerrero.

We understand very well that American people and all peoples of the world find it necessary to protect themselves against terrorism. Therefore we hope you will understand the necessity for the Cuban people to do the same.

It is well known that since the 1960·s anti-Cuban terrorist groups have been operating in Miami with the aim to attack Cuba. These groups use all methods, including murder of civilians, bomb explosions and other terrorist acts against the Cuban people. Even American citizens have been the victim of their acts. Of course Cuba tries to 2avoid such attacks on its territory. In the past the FBI resisted all cooperation with the Cuban government on the issue. That's why Cuba sent people to these terrorist groups in Miami to get information so as to be able to prevent attacks on its own territory. The US reserves the right to do this in other countries.

On September 12 1998 five Cubans were arrested by the FBI. They were sentenced and received penalties from 15 years to double life imprisonment, while their only crime was to protect the Cuban people against terrorist atrocities.

The trial was unfair. The case was held in Miami where a neutral and just trial was impossible for the “Cuban Five”. High ranking US military personal testified that at no time the five did present a threat to the security of the US. The government could not present evidence on the main charge: conspiracy to commit murder. It tried without success to have this charge dropped. Nevertheless, the five were found guilty on all charges. Their severe sentences and treatment are inhuman. For two of them, the wives and child are denied the right to visit them.

On August 9 th 2005 the court of Atlanta decided the Miami trial to be invalid and cancelled the sentences. Nevertheless today, one year later, the five remain incarcerated in five different US high security prisons.

The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detentions asked the US government to take measures to release the five.

In Europe ten thousands of people signed petitions to free Gerardo, Ramón, René, Fernando and Antonio.

We ask you, the American people and elected representatives, to support our demand to the government of the US to immediately release these five Cubans.

We are confident that you will sustain this just demand.