Go Obama! ;))
Cuba Frees 53 Political Prisoners Identified During U.S. Talks
By Angela Greiling Keane Jan 12, 2015 7:53 AM ET
The Cuban government has released 53 political prisoners that they pledged to free during talks with the U.S., a senior administration official said.
The political prisoners had been identified by human rights organizations as being held by the Cuban government for advocating political and social reforms or engaging in other political activities, said the official, who requested anonymity because the announcement wasn’t yet public.
U.S. officials shared the names of the prisoners during negotiations prior to announcing in mid-December that they would restore diplomatic relations with Cuba for the first time in more than a century.
The Cuban government notified the White House of the prisoner release, and the U.S. Interests Section in Havana was able to verify that they were freed, the official said.
President Barack Obama said restoring relations with Cuba will speed change on the island, in a defense of his new policy. That country’s president, Raul Castro, said the move wouldn’t change the politics of the nation.
To contact the reporter on this story: Angela Greiling Keane in Washington at agreilingkea@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Joe Sobczyk at jsobczyk@bloomberg.net
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