Cuban singer-songwriter Pablo Milanes has criticized the harassment of a leading Cuban dissident group, saying insults and obscenities hurled by pro-government crowds at the so-called Ladies in White during their protest marches are “vile” and “cowardly.”
In an open letter published on Tuesday in Miami’s El Nuevo Herald newspaper, Milanes said one may not agree with the dissident group, but he disapproves of how they’ve been treated at times by rowdy government supporters. The public comments drew attention for their outspokenness and came just days after the Havana resident and two-time Grammy winner performed his first concert in Miami, before several thousand people.
“When I see that some women dressed in white protest in the street and are mistreated by men and women, I cannot help but be ashamed and indignant,” the 68-year-old singer wrote in Tuesday’s letter, referring to the group.
Milanes, one of the celebrated founders of Cuba’s nueva trova musical movement, has long maintained he is loyal to the Cuban Revolution. However, he has at times advocated for more freedoms on the island and been critical of the government. He publicly backed a dissident hunger striker who was demanding the release of political prisoners last year.
The Ladies in White formed in 2003, following the arrest of 75 dissidents, many of whom have since been freed and left Cuba. The women, who march weekly, are appealing for more political freedoms and the release of remaining dissident prisoners. Usually, the protests are quiet and uneventful, but on occasion large crowds come out and taunt the women with shouts of “Worms!” and “Get out!” Cuban officials insist that the counter-protests are spontaneous.
“The most vile and cowardly thing is for a horde of supposed revolutionaries to ruthlessly attack these women,” Milanes wrote. This “does not mean I disagree with [former Cuban president] Fidel [Castro], nor does it mean I agree with the Ladies in White.”
Milanes also said he was saddened and embarrassed by what he views as a “complicit silence” among fellow artists and others who are afraid to openly criticize the government.
“Upon my return to Havana,” Milanes wrote, “I say to the Cuban intellectuals, to the artists, to the musicians, and to the high-level state officials, don’t whisper in my ear: “I’m with you but ...”
There was no immediate government response in Havana.
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