Laura Pollán

Laura Inés Pollán Toledo ( born February 13, 1948 in Manzanillo, Oriente, † October 14, 2011 in Havana ) was a Cuban teacher and a prominent human rights activist who died under mysterious circumstances yet. Opponents of the regime are based on a political murder. Laura Pollán 2003 was co-founder of the women's group Ladies in White, who publicly protested for the release of political prisoners in Cuba.

Life

Laura Pollán worked in the public school system as a high-school teacher until she gave up her job in 2003. Her husband Héctor Maseda, a nuclear engineer who had been active as a government independent journalist, had just been arrested along with 74 other people in a wave of arrests against Cuban government critics who became known internationally as the "Black Spring". Until the arrest of her husband to Pollán had never been interested in his own words in politics. Outside of the institutions in which her ​​husband was arrested, Pollán learned more wives and members of the "Group of 75 " to know and consulted with them on ways of joint protest. First, she joined the little-known but active for several years, " Mothers' Committee Leonor Pérez for the freedom of political prisoners " whose members frequently visited Sunday Mass in the Catholic church of Santa Rita in Miramar district and made there attention to their concerns. As soon gathered several dozen representatives of the arrested dissidents in March to regular silent marches outside the church and this established as a permanent form of protest, the women's group " Ladies in White " Thus arose.

Pollán was especially after they left with Miriam Leiva and Blanca Reyes, taken place in November 2004 premature release of their husbands Óscar Espinosa Chepe and Raúl Rivero two leading members of the inner circle of the group to one of the most prominent spokespersons of the Ladies in White. When the European Parliament awarded the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of zusprach the Ladies in White in 2005, Pollán was one of five selected from the group representative, who should travel to the award ceremony in Strasbourg. However, the government refused them exit visas. In the following years, she was not authorized to be present at the invitation of the European Parliament later ceremonies of the price.

In all controlled by the government of Cuba Laura Pollán media was repeatedly attacked and presented as one of the most dangerous enemies of the state. These attacks increased after Pollan's husband in February 2011 as one of the last members of the "Group of 75 " had been released on parole from prison - without accepting as the vast majority of former inmates departure into exile. Pollán inter alia as " ringleader ", " manipulative " and was " involved in illegal business " means. Particular mention their contacts with U.S. diplomats and acceptance of financial support from abroad. These were not denied by Pollán that since giving up their teaching activity had no income in Cuba, in the Cuban media, the payments were, however, represented as Pollan's main motivation and as evidence of their alleged activities as a " mercenary ", also she was with directed against Cuba brought terrorism. Despite the clear convictions in the press and the electronic media Pollán was indicted at any time because of any specific criminal justice through.

Pollan's centrally located apartment in Centro Habana neighborhood became a frequent meeting place for the Ladies in White from other parts of the country. The apartment has been repeatedly the target of intimidation by the Cuban authorities, so-called Actos de Repudio, where large crowds of government supporters were drawn together immediately before the house and with the approval of the security forces desisted loud slogans and insults for several hours, sometimes including the use of violence. On 24 June 2011, just three weeks before Pollan's death, there had been the most severe incident of its kind in front of her house, creating a gathered at her house and led by her group was prevented by the Ladies in White from leaving the house and as previously announced to visit the church of Nuestra Señora de la Merced, to pray on the day of the patron saint of prisoners.

Disease and death

A week before her death, Laura Pollán was admitted with acute respiratory complaints to the ICU of the Calixto García Hospital in Havana. In the following days, a combination of several disease was diagnosed factors, including next to a previously known diabetes suffering a dengue infection, but the main problem was a rare, respiratory attacking virus infection. Pollan's family had rejected a proposed government officials laying in an otherwise provided only for foreigners and high-level government representatives hospital. Pollan's family and the " Ladies in White " believe that Laura Pollán not died of natural causes, but has been vacated as unpopular regime critic of the way. Your request according to the exact circumstances of death until today ( August 2013 ) unanswered.

Honors and Awards

Among the personalities who commented on the death of Laura Pollan and the bereaved uttered their condolences, belong, among others, U.S. President Barack Obama. Posthumously Pollán was honored by the parastatal U.S. National Endowment for Democracy 2011 with the "Democracy Service Medal ".