[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 23 (Thursday, March 3, 2005)]
[House]
[Page H945]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 FREEDOM FOR JOSE DANIEL FERRER GARCIA

  (Mr. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART of Florida asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute.)
  Mr. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to 
speak about Jose Daniel Ferrer Garcia, a political prisoner in 
totalitarian Cuba. Mr. Ferrer Garcia is a peaceful pro-democracy 
activist in Cuba.
  In January 2002, he was forced from a bus and beaten by the tyrant's 
thugs. In March 2003, 2 years ago, he was arrested as part of the 
dictator's crackdown on peaceful pro-democracy activists and in a sham 
trial sentenced to 25 years in the totalitarian gulag because of his 
support of democracy.
  Mr. Ferrer is a brilliant example, Mr. Speaker, of the heroism of the 
Cuban people. The totalitarian gulag is full of men and women of all 
backgrounds and ages who represent the best of the Cuban nation. 
Thousands languish in the gulag because, like Mr. Ferrer, they refuse 
to accept tyranny.
  Mr. Speaker, we must speak out against the grotesque disregard for 
human rights, dignity, and freedom just 90 miles from our shores. We 
must demand the immediate and unconditional release of Jose Daniel 
Ferrer and every political prisoner in totalitarian Cuba.

                          ____________________