Cuban Five Parolee Rene Gonzalez Granted a 2-Week Visit with His Family

to attend his father’s memorial service

HAVANA TIMES — Federal Judge Joan Lenard has once again granted permission for paroled Cuban agent Rene Gonzalez to visit Cuba for two weeks, this time to attend a memorial service for his father Cándido, who died on April 1.

Gonzalez still needs to obtain a passport from the U.S. State Department in order to travel. Last year, when he was also granted permission for a 2-week visit to see his terminally ill brother Roberto, the State Dept. took 10 days to issue the passport, and it was only valid for 30 days.

The only “freed” member of the Cuban Five (convicted of conspiracy to commit espionage and other charges) is serving the second of three years on parole in the U.S. after having finished his 13-year prison sentence in October 2011.

His motion to be allowed to spend the rest of his parole in Cuba, which is a common practice for parolees from other countries, has been pending before the Judge for ten months.

Among the conditions placed by Judge Lenard for Gonzalez’s trip home are no contact with Cuban intelligence officials, submission of a detailed travel itinerary and regular communication with Gonzalez’s probation officer in the United States.