Finally, Cuba Is Harboring a Terrorist!
Dawn Gable
HAVANA TIMES — After 40 years, the FBI has arbitrarily labeled Assata Shakur a terrorist. The former Black Panther was convicted of murder in 1973, for her involvement in an altercation with New Jersey police that left one officer dead.
She was sentenced to life plus 30 years, but subsequently escaped prison. Nearly a decade later, she was granted asylum in Cuba, where she is suspected to still reside.
It seems unlikely that the announcement of her transformation from criminal to terrorist coincidently occurred the day after the State Department was supposed to release its annual report “justifying” the continued inclusion of Cuba on its list of countries that “provide critical support to non-state terrorist groups and repeatedly provides support for acts of international terrorism.”
The publication of this report has been delayed; perhaps to update it with this new information.
What does Assata’s new status have to do with Cuba being designated a State Sponsor of terrorism?
In the past several years, the State Department’s stated reasons for keeping Cuba on the list have dwindled. The most recent reports seem more like attempts to demonstrate why Cuba should be taken off the list. The rationale last year was reduced to: members of the ETA and the FARC, as well as fugitives from U.S. justice reside in Cuba.
Because these arguments were easily discredited, it was widely believed that Cuba’s days on the list were quickly coming to an end. For example, it is well know that the presence of Basque ETA members in Cuba is the result of a 1984 agreement with the Spanish and Panamanian governments and that Cuba is currently hosting peace talks between the FARC and the Colombian government, at the behest of the later.
Regarding the fugitives from U.S. justice, many have pointed out that Mexico harbors dangerous U.S. fugitives partially due to its refusal to extradite any individual who may face the death penalty, yet it is not labeled a supporter of terrorism. Moreover, the fugitives referred to were wanted on criminal charges, not terrorist charges, and so these cases should not bear upon the listing.
Well, not any more. Since Cuba refuses to support real terrorists, the FBI, with or without the State Department’s collusion, has taken it upon itself to invent one! With no new evidence, no retrial, and indeed no change to the FBI’s description of her crimes and convictions, Assata Shakur was upgraded to terrorist at the agency’s whim, just in the nick of time. The anti-Castro, Cuba lobby has just won an enormous victory and one can hardly keep from admiring such deviously effective maneuvering.
Too bad they did not succeed!
Afrikans desc are called terrorists, brown people are called terrorists but what was Tim Mcveigh called? Assata, was accused and no one saw a darn thing other than those who violated her rights and murdered others
No Xcuba is not harboring a terrorist My sister Assata is only a terrorist to white amerkkka Noone knows who shot who but we know the police tried to kill her
i agree
Not just ignored, Cuba considers them illegal, since where signed under military invasion threats and US only respects treaties when they are the ones benefiting from them.
Is the same with the naval base in Gitmo, permanently leased for $2000 a year, money that Cuba refuses to accept.
The US and Cuba have an extradition agreement. It is mostly ignored by both sides, but it does exist.
Those who were present that night on the New Jersey turnpike, are the only ones who knows exactly what happened. Under other circumstances, places and blacks in the United States well documented experience the police, FBI and all repressive forces, any reasonable individual must look at this murky accussation with suspition to say the least.
In May 1985 in Philladelphia, less than 100 miles from the scene of this crime, the Mayor, Police Chief, Fire Department Chief, the Press, clergy etc., watched in complicit silence, as a police helicopter dropped a C-4 bomb on the home of members of the MOVE, incinerating 11 people, including five children. No was accused of this crime.
In 1984, Illoner Bumpers, an 84 year old grandmother sitting in her living room, was shot and killed in her living room by 4, 250 New York city police. No one was found guilty.
In February 1999, as emigrant Amadou Diallo attempted to open the front door of his apartment in the Bronx, 4 NYC police fired 41 shots hitting him 19 times. All four were acquitted.
In August 1999, Haitian emigrant Abmer Louima was detained, punched, beaten with police night stick and hand-held radio, taken to the 70th Police in Brooklyn where he was beaten, kicked on his testicles and sodomized with a toiled plunger by officer Volpe, who walked around with the excrement, bloody plunger. Volpe was sentenced to 30 years in prison, but not sodomized in return.
In Tallahassee Juvinile Detention Center, a 14 year old autistic inmate, was choked with a night stick by 4 security guards in front a nurse. No one was accused of excessive use of force.
Sixteen year old Trayvon Martin visiting his father’s home, was shot by vigilante George Zimmerman and all efforts by the judicial system are, to demonize, tarnish the victim in order to acquit the murderer.
Luis Posada Carriles, Latin American best know terrorist, lives a life of celebrity in Miami, holding arts exhibit, notwithstanding extensive documentation proving his participation in shooting a bazooka against a freighter in the Miami river and at the UN building, of blowing-up in mid air a Cubana airliner, of torturing hundreds of detainees in Venezuela, El Salvador and Guatemala……and the FBI only accused him of illegal entry to the US and lieing to authorities.
With this partial description of the United States Judicial System vs Blacks without including decades of lynching, its support/cover-up for the KKK, its past relations with Giancana, Lucky Luciano and other Maffia godfathers in numerous attempts against the life of Fidel Castro, should reasonable people not take with a large dosis of doubt, this timely, theatrical and lavish 2 million dollar ransom, knowing the exact location of the person they seek to apprehend or this has something to do, with a possible change of attitute in the US State Department towards Cuba?
They were given shelter BECAUSE of an agreement with the SPANISH government to end the violent struggle and find a peaceful solution to the Basque conflict.
From wikipedia:
“Several ex-militants were sent from France through Panama to reside in Cuba after an agreement of the Spanish government (under Felipe González) with Cuba.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ETA#International_links
Also, there is no evidence whatsoever that the ETA members living in Cuba are actively engaged in any activity whatsoever in Spain or anywhere else.
As of Puerto Rican nationalists, please show that they are actually terrorists as opposed to alleged criminals (like the ex-black panther mentioned in the article) and remember that US and Cuba do NOT have an extradition agreements, so the Cuban government is NOT under any obligation whatsoever to return wanted criminals.
Even if what you said is true, both governments have to sit in the table and negotiate a formal extradition agreement, and regardless of the terms, the Cuban government will demand reciprocity, meaning the extradition to Cuba of well known terrorists living freely in the US. And we all know the political cost of doing so is way too much for both the president or the political party pushing for such agreement so it won’t happen until either last terrorist dies peacefully of old age in Miami or the Cuban government collapses and the US successfully install a puppet government.
In case you:
– ETA may have renounced terrorism, but the ETA terrorists in Cuba have “branched out” aiding and abetting the FARC and others
– None of the ETA terrorists have been extradited to Spain. They are still given shelter.
– Cuba shelters other terrorists (Puerto Rican nationalists, ..)
If you understand Spanish:
“El cobijo a etarras frena la salida de Cuba de la lista de patrocinadores del terrorismo”
http://www.rtve.es/noticias/20130504/cobijo-etarras-frena-salida-cuba-lista-patrocinadores-del-terrorismo/656101.shtml
Claims of a trail is empty. Did this lady received a fair trial like the one Posada got in El Paso and the Cuban Five in Miami? She may be a bank robber and implicated in a political crime that is still a question. What is unquestionable is Cuba does not harbor ETA nor FARC terrorist as is falsely claimed. Ask Spain or Colombia. You want terrorist look in Miami not Cuba.
Shakur was given life plus 30 years, though she was shown by the medic to have been incapable of firing (a policeman shot her first, and the entry wound showed she hand her hands in the air when she was shot). The police were routinely assasinating black activists at the time, like Fred Hampton. This is why they say ‘involvement’. I think the FBI have made a huge mistake doing this, because it will simply drag up their shady past, and the illegal activities of COINTELPRO.
In case you have forgot, ETA has re-nounced so called terrorism and if you want to look at country that harbor terrorist’s Miami, Dade and Broward counties( to name a few) harbor many death squader’s from all over the America’s.
Actually not “finally”. Cuba is still harboring US domestic criminals / terrorists and has done so for years.
It also shelters ETA terrorists that were active in Spain and Latin America.
On US criminals in Cuba:
“Chesimard, one of about 70 U.S. fugitives who live protected in Cuba, escaped from prison in 1979 while serving a life sentence for the murder of a police officer in New Jersey.”
See:
CUBA | FBI MOST-WANTED LIST
Fugitive a curiosity in Cuba
A woman on the FBI’s most-wanted list who fled to Cuba after escaping from a U.S. prison is starting to arouse curiosity among islanders.
Posted on Tue, Dec. 18, 2007, BY WILFREDO CANCIO ISLA, El Nuevo Herald
Some names:
Victor Manuel Gerena (Puerto Rico nationalist)
Frank Terpil (weapons charges)
William Lee Brent (Black Panthers)
Nehanda Abiodun (Black Liberation Army)
Charlie Hill, (The separatist Republic of New Afrika)
Guillermo Morales (Puerto Rico nationalist)
More see:
The Miami Herald
March 10, 2001
People on run finding selves at home abroad with Castro”
http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/us-cuba/fugitives.htm
Clear article.The US forgot to put themselves as No.1 of terrorism on the list. Last but not least, let the US list as long as they want. Who really cares about US lists.. The Chines put the US on its list.