Peter Deutsch: “many of us here in this Chamber have adopted Cuban political prisoners in order to publicize their unjustified…”

“many of us here in this Chamber have adopted Cuban political prisoners in order to publicize their unjustified incarceration. We have done so in hopes of helping them to regain their freedom and shed light on the numerous injustices and human rights violations of the Castro regime in Cuba. Mr. Speaker, it is my honor today to discuss my adopted Cuban prisoner, Dr. Oscar Biscet. Inspired by Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King, Dr. Biscet's nonviolent resistance to the Cuban government has received international attention. As president of the Lawton Foundation for Human Rights, Dr. Biscet was arrested 40 times in three months for his peaceful opposition and organizing activities. In 1999, he carried out a 40-day prayer fast and organized schools on nonviolent tactics. This soft-spoken physician was condemned to 3 years in prison for hanging a Cuban flag upside down at a press conference. Recognized by Amnesty International as a prisoner of conscience, Dr. Biscet has suffered through solitary confinement, torture, and an appalling lack of medical care. Still his faith in mankind endures, as he demonstrated when he told the policemen who were torturing him with lit cigarettes, God loves you. Mr. Speaker, allowing for political dissent and debate is a fundamental reason why democracy adapts to, and represents the will of the people. I urge the Cuban government to listen to the will of its people, to end its continued human rights abuses, and to release Dr.…”