2004 Steps to Freedom Report Released at IRI

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 8, 2005

Washington, D.C. --The Cuban Democratic Directorate released its 2004 Steps to Freedom report at the International Republican Institute (IRI) on December 8, 2005. The publication, supported by IRI, chronicles actions taken by Cuban citizens as they continue to struggle to bring freedom and democracy to their island. The Steps to Freedom report serves both to encourage Cubans as they take personal risks to ensure democracy's future in their country, and to make their struggle for freedom known to the international community.

During the event, IRI President Lorne Craner said, "The report we are releasing today is an indicator of just how alive and well the pro-democracy movement is in Cuba. This year's report shows that acts of nonviolent resistance in Cuba are on the rise as citizens are increasingly willing to take risks in order to bring about an end to political repression and dictatorship."

In 1997, 44 acts of resistance were chronicled in the first Steps to Freedom report. This year, more than 1,800 acts of nonviolent resistance were reported.

Craner praised Cubans for not waiting for the end of the Castro regime to continue their work to bring about democracy in Cuba and prevent another dictatorship. Craner urged the international community to support Cubans as they continue their nonviolent acts of resistance. "A peaceful and democratic Cuba must come from within, and the international community must stand united to provide support through this transition [to democracy]," said Craner.

Caleb McCarry, Cuba Transition Coordinator for the U.S. Department of State; and Adolfo Franco, Assistant Administrator for Latin America and the Caribbean for the U.S. Agency for International Development, spoke at the event. Franco said of the report, "It is a document of hope for the people of Cuba. The sense of inspiration, the sense of hope that this document provides is recognition that what they're fighting for is indeed worth the struggle and worth the sacrifice - which is for the freedom of Cuba."

Javier Decespedes, President of the Cuban Democratic Directorate; and Dr. Orlando Gutierrez, National Secretary for the Cuban Democratic Directorate, presented the findings of the report, concluding that the Cuban people are struggling against a dictatorship that violates basic human rights - as demonstrated in the Steps to Freedom report.

IRI began working to support a peaceful transition in Cuba in 1993. The first program distributed educational materials to activists inside Cuba, an effort that continues today. Since 1993, programs supporting the pro-freedom movement have been carried out in cooperation with IRI's partner, the Cuban Democratic Directorate, based in Miami, Florida. Through this partnership, literature on lessons learned from recent democratic transitions in the former Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, and Latin America is being provided to Cubans on the island. In addition, leaders, activists and the general public throughout Latin America and Europe generate valuable international support and solidarity for activists in Cuba. IRI's program assists in channeling this support to these activists and ensuring that the international community is aware of their courageous efforts.

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