Though Out Of Prison, Dr. Biscet Is Still Not Free
For 13 years, the Cuban regime’s imprisonment of Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet has robbed him of his freedom, violated his God-given human rights, and deprived his family of a normal life with their husband and father. Dr. Biscet’s return home yesterday is 13 years overdue, and my prayers are with him and his family as they try to make up for lost time.
For decades, Dr. Biscet has been a leading figure of the growing, peaceful movement of Cubans who have courageously challenged the Castro regime and demanded the dignity and freedom that every human on earth deserves. He has also been a leader of Cuba’s pro-life movement, challenging the regime’s practice of coerced abortions. Because of these courageous actions, he has spent the past 13 years in prison.
Even while in Castro’s gulags, Dr. Biscet continued to inspire millions in Cuba and around the world through his non-violent campaign of civil disobedience. And his refusal to be silenced, even while imprisoned, is a heroic example to the world.
The Cuban regime should be ashamed of its treatment of Dr. Biscet. The international community must not be fooled into believing his release from prison is a merciful act, for he should never have been jailed in the first place.
We should also remember that just one month after Biscet was released from prison in 2002 after another unjust 3-year sentence, he was incarcerated again for continuing to demand freedom in Cuba. Because Dr. Biscet has made clear he will never compromise his principles nor stop calling for freedom, we must remain vigilant that he is not re-imprisoned.
And let us not be deceived into accepting the fallacy that Dr. Biscet is now a “free man.” The reality is that no person in Cuba is truly free, so long as the regime denies all basic rights of free speech, free assembly, and free and fair elections. Human rights and liberty are not conditional on where someone is born, but are instead the birthrights of every single one of God’s children.
For every Dr. Biscet that is allowed to return home, there are many other political prisoners like Librado Linares, José Daniel Ferrer and Félix Navarro who remain in Castro’s jails or under house arrest. For every Biscet leaving prison, there is an Alan Gross facing an unjust prison sentence. Or there’s a Yoani Sanchez, whose online writings are met not with responses in her blog’s comments section, but with threats and violence from the government. Or there are millions of Cubans who are denied basic Internet access. For every Dr. Biscet being released, there are many more routine acts of government violence committed against Cubans like Reyna Zapata Tamayo for demanding their rights, or against the Damas de Blanco who peacefully march for their loved ones’ freedom.
The Cuban condition, like everywhere else in the world where human rights are trampled, is inhumane and unnatural. The Cuban government is fundamentally defective and illegitimate, as it is sustained by violence against its people and operates without the consent of the governed. But courageous and principled leaders like Dr. Biscet – as well as recent events in the Middle East – give us hope that a free Cuba is an inevitable destiny.
For Americans, Dr. Biscet’s story should be a familiar one, for he draws his inspiration from great Americans like our Founding Fathers and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who risked life and limb to advance the universal principles of liberty and basic human dignity. These freedoms are derived from our Creator and enshrined in America’s founding documents, the Universal Declaration for Human Rights, and various founding documents of countries around the world.
That’s why America should never be complacent in advocating for freedom around the world. Just as we should be doing in Libya and in other communities clamoring for peaceful democratic change, we have a moral responsibility to highlight the Cuban regime’s continued abuses, to apply change-inducing pressure, and to support the Cuban people’s right to freely shape their destinies, as Dr. Biscet has dedicated his life to doing.