[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 183 (Thursday, December 1, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2158-E2159]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        REGARDING ALAN P. GROSS

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, December 1, 2011

  Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise to mark the second year 
anniversary of the unjust and inhumane incarceration in a Cuban prison 
of my constituent Allan P. Gross.
  A 62-year-old international development specialist and social worker 
with 25 years of experience helping people in the West Bank, Gaza, 
Iraq, Afghanistan, Haiti and throughout Africa, Alan Gross has devoted 
his career to helping others with a single goal in mind: to improve the 
quality of life of the disadvantaged.
  And, it is as a result of these humanitarian efforts that he has 
spent the last 2 years locked up in a Cuban prison.
  Alan was arrested in Cuba while working on behalf of USAID to help 
the country's Jewish community establish an Intranet and improve its 
access to the Internet. The Jewish community in Cuba is small and 
dispersed, making it difficult to communicate amongst themselves and 
with the wider Jewish community around the world. Neither his presence 
nor his actions in Cuba were meant to pose a threat or danger to the 
Cuban government.
  For the first 14 months of his captivity, Alan was held without 
charge. Then, in February 2011, he was charged with ``acts to undermine 
the integrity and independence'' of the State. After a two day trial, 
he was convicted and sentenced to 15 years in prison. His appeal on 
humanitarian grounds to the Cuban Supreme Court was denied on August 5, 
2011.
  Alan's health has deteriorated tremendously during his incarceration. 
He has lost approximately 100 pounds and he is suffering from a number 
of serious health issues, some of which his family fears may become 
permanent. Additionally, in August 2010, his 26-year-old daughter was 
diagnosed with breast cancer and, this year, his 89-year-old mother was 
also diagnosed with cancer.
  Given the humanitarian nature of his activities in Cuba, and given 
his health and the health of his family, sentencing Alan Gross to 15 
years in prison was inhumane.
  If the Cuban government is serious about improving relations with the 
United States, it must recognize the harm its continued incarceration 
of Alan Gross is doing to that relationship.

[[Page E2159]]

  The Cuban government must act now and release Alan Gross immediately 
and unconditionally--for the sake of the relationship between the 
United States and Cuban people and for the sake of the health of Alan 
Gross and his family.

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