| By John Rice, Associated Press |
The action is "coincidental,'' to Pope John Paul II's appeal
last month, said Elizardo Sanchez, head of the Cuban Commission of
Human Rights and National Reconciliation.
In a telephone interview from Havana, Sanchez said he expected
a
larger prisoner release soon.
Sanchez said Cuba dropped jail sentences for six members of the
small, illegal Party for Human Rights in the west-central city of
Santa Clara. Other reports said seven had been released.
All had been on a liquid diet of protest since October, though
one woman, Roxana Carpio, ended her fast some time ago because she
was pregnant.
The dissidents had been sentenced to as much as 18 months in
prison for charges including disobeying authority, abusing an
official and illegal association.
Four had been jailed and three were under house arrest.
Sanchez, whose group monitors political prisoners in Cuba, said
he was told the government had asked the prisoners to leave the
country, but it wasn't clear if that was a condition of their
release.
In Washington, State Department spokesman James Rubin called
the
released "woefully inadequate'' in light of what the pope had
requested.
"These are a very small number. There are dozens of political
prisoners in Cuba, and we would like to see them all released, not
just those who have conducted hunger strikes,'' Rubin said.
Those freed included Carpio and her sister, Daula Carpio, Jose
Antonio Alvarado, Lilian Meneses, Iliana Penalver and Jose Manuel.
The Mexican news agency Notimex reported that Ivan Lemus was also
freed.
The pope called on Cuba to release its "prisoners of
conscience'' during his visit last month. His aides reportedly gave
Cuban officials a list of prisoners who had asked the pontiff to
appeal on their behalf.
Cuban Parliament President Ricardo Alarcon responded by saying
there could be sentence reductions or early releases on
humanitarian grounds for aged or ill prisoners convicted of common
crimes or other offenses.
© 1998
Associated Press