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Catholic activist jailed
Charged with subversion
Isabel del Pino Sotolongo, who created the Catholic human-rights group “Followers of Christ the King,” has been accused of “rebellion against the State” and will be facing trial before the end of May.
Del Pino created Followers of Christ the King in order to defend human rights against the Communist state’s violations, especially related to freedom of religion. Del Pino also defends the right of religion to be expressed in the public square.
On April 23, del Pino was arrested at her home in Havana and brought to a sudden trial. Claiming that she had no guarantee of a fair trial, del Pino refused to appear before the tribunal and declared herself on a hunger strike. After 72 hours, the State Security agency finally agreed to postpone the trial and allowed del Pino to prepare her defense with a lawyer. On May 6, the Judiciary announced that the trial would take place before the end of the month.
Del Pino has said that her lawyer has found out she has been accused of “rebellion” on the alleged grounds of “making threats against government authorities.”
“Everybody knows that I believe in peace and only in peaceful means, as any Christian who tries to be loyal to Christ’s teachings,” said del Pino. “Besides, what kind of power do I have to make effective any threat? Obviously, the authorities have fabricated this case against me, for political reasons.”