Focus on Cuba at the UN Commission on Human Rights

The US has not been able to get support for its more extravagant human rights abuse claims against Cuba at the UN. Its own State Department report acknowledged that Cuba in 2003 had: "no political killings ... no reports of politically motivated disappearances", no reports of religious repression, little discrimination, compulsory and free schooling, a universal health system, substantial artistic freedom, and no reports of torture. However the US has been persistent and ruthless in building the ground work for its “transition” campaign for Cuba, and “human rights” condemnations are now central to this.

In 2002 the US managed to push through a mild-sounding compromise resolution in the Human Rights Commission, which “invites the Government of Cuba - whose efforts to give effect to the social rights of the population despite an adverse international environment are to be recognised - to make efforts to achieve similar progress in respect of human, civil and political rights”.

The US was pushing to expand the political space for some small groups of Cubans it had been hosting and funding. Rather pretentiously called “civil society” representatives, these people were given 24-hour access to the US Office of Interests (the equivalent of a Consulate in Havana) by the new US Head of Mission, Robert Cason. They received additional backing from conservative groups in Spain, and from the Miami-based Cuban American National Foundation (CANF). The CANF had also been funding Posada and his associates for their bomb attacks. However the main function of the Havana-based, US-sponsored groups was to assist in the preparation of “human rights” reports, through direct liaison with the US Office of Interests and the Miami based exile groups. Cuban authorities, however, were irritated that Cason’s activities went way beyond the bounds of acceptable diplomatic activity.

In 2003 Ms Christine Chanet was appointed as the personal representative of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, but her access to Cuba was blocked.

The Cuban Government regarded her project as an arm of US policy, and refused to co-operate. Then, after a spate of hijackings - which the Cuban Government regarded as incited by Cason - the Cuban police arrested over 70 of the “dissidents”, trying them as mercenaries of a foreign power. Cuban intelligence had infiltrated (and held leading positions in) these small groups. The trials were swift and long prison sentences were handed out.

The US reacted strongly, as many of their agents had been rounded up in one fell swoop. Former CIA agent Philip Agee said the US reaction to the 2003 arrests was: "Hey! Those are OUR GUYS the bastards are screwing!"

At this point the US managed to secure European support for a stronger resolution against Cuba at the Human Rights Commission. The EU countries had opposed the US economic blockade against Cuba, and had refused to adopt the more outrageous US claims against the island. However they remained silent over appalling US crimes in Afghanistan and Iraq, and complied when the US demands over Cuba became stronger. The 2004 UN resolution "deplores the events which occurred last year in Cuba involving verdicts pronounced against certain political dissidents and journalists".

Some of those jailed had been hosted at functions in Europe, particularly through their Spanish sponsors. So there had been a European connection. But two things made the apparently global outrage at the Cuban arrests peculiar.

First, there was virtually no media coverage of the fact that those jailed in 2003 had been charged and convicted of two specific offences to do with collaborating with a foreign power for the overthrow of the Cuban Government. They were referred to as Amnesty USA endorsed “prisoners of conscience”.

Second, the campaigning for these Cuban prisoners came to a head at the very time that the Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib torture scandals were sweeping the world. With several hundred people from several countries held by the US army, without charge or trial, with photographic images of torture and reports of the murder of many prisoners the attention of the UN’s main human rights body was instead directed at a few dozen jailed US agents in Havana.

The US draft resolution on Cuba at the Human Rights Commission in 2005 simply seeks a report from Ms Chanet, and commits to “further consideration” of the matter in 2006. However it is important in justifying US plans for a Cuban “transition”.

Once again, the EU countries are collaborating with the US; Pakistan has been persuaded to abstain; the manoeuvre is opposed by India, China, Malaysia and Indonesia; and all the South American countries are inclined to oppose or abstain. However the US has got Mexico and some Central American countries to support their new motion. Economic pressure on some small African countries has helped the US gather a slim majority.