Read the full essay here.
About the Author
Gustavo Arcos Bergnes has been secretary general of the Havana-based Cuban Committee for Human Rights since 1988. Injured at Fidel Castro’s side during the 1953 attack on the Moncada barracks, he later served as Cuba’s ambassador to Belgium until he was arrested on political charges in 1966. He was imprisoned from 1966 to 1970 and again from 1981 to 1988. His remarks were translated by Adelina Reyes Gavilan and delivered at the conference by Professor Luis Aguilar.