Colombian senators from a variety of political parties, expressed here their solidarity with the cause of the five Cuban antiterrorist fighters unjustly held in the United States, after a rigged and biased trial.
During a visit on Wednesday to the Congressional headquarters, Magaly Llort, mother of Fernando Gonzalez - one of the Cuban Five, as they are known internationally - explained in detail the process which claimed the men as its victims, saturated with legal violations and irregularities.
We have exhausted all the channels of so-called American justice, she added. On one occasion, in 2005, we took the case to the Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit in Atlanta, Georgia, which, after a detailed analysis, decided that the Five had not had a fair trial in Miami and ordered a new one. Three of them received resentencing, said Llort.
My son, Fernando Gonzalez, had his 19-year prison sentence reduced to 17 years and nine months, while that of Ramon Labañino, condemned to life plus 18 years, was reduced to 21 years, 10 months in prison, and five of supervised release.
In regards to Antonio Guerrero, who was sentenced to life plus 10 years, this was reduced to 21 years and another five of supervised release. The prosecutor objected, and the sentences for Gerardo Hernandez, two life terms plus 15 years, and Rene Gonzalez, 15 years, were upheld by the Court of Appeals, Llort stated.
The latter, already out of prison, is being forced to comply with three years of supervised release in Miami.
Llort said that among the violations that have undermined this process are the recent proven discovery, about how much of the explosive propaganda deployed against the Five in newspapers and magazines before, during, and after their trial, was paid for by the United States.
The Five were arrested on September 12, 1998 in the U.S. city of Miami. An irregular trial held there condemned them in 2001 to harsh sentences ranging from 15 years to two life terms, plus 15 years.