"We don't want savage capitalism; we already have savage communism. Please, no more savage things." - Oswaldo Payá, November 20, 2010
Amnesty, Oswaldo Payá Sardiñas and Harold Cepero Escalante
Amnesty International came into existence 52 years ago on May 21, 1961 when Peter Benenson published "The Forgotten Prisoners"in The Observer and within the article announced that an "office has been set up in London to collect and publish information about Prisoners of Conscience all over the world." Nevertheless, as Amnesty International grew and the awards and accolades flooded the organization Benenson never forgot all those innocents who had not been saved. He went on to explain the significance of the candle wrapped in barbed wire:
"The candle burns not for us but for all those whom we
failed to rescue from prison, who were shot on the way to prison, who
were tortured, who were kidnapped, who ‘disappeared'. That is what the
candle is for."
Since July 22, 2012 it also burns for Oswaldo Payá Sardiñas and Harold Cepero Escalante two human rights defenders who died under suspicious circumstances that demand an international investigation.
Oswaldo Payá Sardiñas was a consistent defender of human rights who denounced human rights violations across the ideological spectrum:
Two instances separated by a decade one involving the United States and the second, Iran
demonstrate this courageous consistency in speaking truth to power. It is excerpted from an essay published today by Notes form the Cuban Exile Quarter:
"It's
obviously a matter of shame that our land is being used for that
purpose, having foreign prisoners brought to Cuba. Even if they are
terrorists they deserve respect. Their human rights should be respected."
Ten years later, January 11, 2012, Oswaldo Paya was criticizing the honoring of the Iranian despot Mahmoud Ahmadinejad denouncing both his antisemitism and brutal human rights record:
"Tyrant
lizard on the hill. Currently Ahmadinejad speaks at the University of
Havana. It is an insult to the students and an outrage to the sacred
remains of Father Varela and against the virtue and the homeland of the
Cubans
Mahmoud, why do you deny the Holocaust? Would you repeat it? Never again against any people."
Today, over twitter as the United Nations Human Rights Council's independent expert on extrajudicial executions presented his report and countries and nongovernmental organizations raised questions on killings and atrocities taking place around the world we tweeted the following quotes with the hashtag #HRC23 to draw attention to the plight of Oswaldo and Harold two human rights defenders whose lives were snatched away from their loved ones by state security on July 22, 2012:
Sadly, the case of Oswaldo and Harold was not mentioned by special rapporteur on extrajudicial executions but we did find that the Liberal International, representing a world federation of Liberal and progressive parties from around the world submitted a written statement to the United Nations Human Rights Council to investigate the deaths of these human rights defenders.
It's like we're frozen in time It seems as if we are not interested in nothing The hope of our people, Eskuadrón I think the people needs this message With much love to all my brothers, Fugitive Ciao-I I go my way when the need embraces me Between a decay that the system disguises My verb takes shape and hooks on to the poetry My spirit flows, my words immortalized Again I transform into the voice of a great mass Headless, that moves in empty silent They got tired of crying and now bleeds their soul While they ask themselves: Who controls your hope? And they squirm because it hurts, the wound bleeds, and believe they are dying They want to scream their pain but can not Because the terror imposed tears off what little they have They ask for justice and that can not be seen Why repress those that want to be free? From their offices they can not smell reality The sadness of this country they are not going to understand As my people don't comprehend how to solve it Work, full sweat and you can not free yourself You give everything and in return nothing, total slavery Thats how they control you, I call it lethal conspiracy The message is spread with the seconds, my faith grows They invent abusive laws, you are at their mercy Our opinions are not heard, opining that revolutions are for the people, Not for the one in the power And decadence shocks the conscience and the mind does not awaken and everything, everything is accepted People do not believe and do not see, carried by the inertia They would rather endure anything before breaking the string Decadence How much destruction, how much frustration, how much sadness Decadence How much need to scream, to demand, but fear lurks Decadence All of us like robots accept laundering of conscience Decadence For our children, the family and the generations let us seek answers Decadence They took everything but not the resistance and the word force Decadence Brothers stand up, there is nothing more beautiful than a nation when it awakes Decadence We do not want blood, that any should perish, but raise our heads Decadence As Victor Jar telling his people freedom is close And they confront us, and they separate us into two groups And we live, taking care of ourselves, paranoid, mistrusting The children of the people are tearing themselves apart Because the system manipulates them, and they never see the harm And the police without limit or measure They respond to a doctrine they do not understand but gives them food They abuse, mistreat, They're arrogant, They humiliate you Its not all of them but it is the majority And they forget where they come from, their lives, their family The school they Attended Now living with anger Defenders, their is never hegemony with a cold mind.Of the system you are the puppets on the strings And I wonder if this is a democracy Why is thinking differently an extreme betrayal? Why then are various sectors marginalized and rejected? Failure to respect the criteria, this nation is not advancing But injustice then breaks out And speaking is dangerous and fear paralyzes you Your message of peace transformed into benizista I never spoke of putting a bomb to the Minister of Justice, never And civil society is militarized And education goes directly to chaos in a hurry And all is confusion and there is no love And you feel that you are suffocating And they impose all and your patience unsettles God give resistance and all your compassion Only you know what this heart suffers To see the good of my people and not so much desperation And not be a silent witness to the destruction of my nation Decadence How much destruction, how much frustration, how much sadness Decadence How much need to scream, to demand, but fear lurks Decadence All of us like robots accept laundering of conscience Decadence For our children, the family and the generations let us seek answers! Decadence They took everything but not the resistance and the word force Decadence Brothers stand up, there is nothing more beautiful than a nation when it awakes Decadence We do not want blood, that any should perish, but raise our heads Decadence As Victor Jar telling his people freedom is close Brothers raise our fists and let us join hands And shout freedom, shout freedom because people have the power We are the owners of our destinies From our own freedom, strength, resistance We can't take it anymore, We can't take it anymore In the name of all these generations In the name of the Cuban youthIn the name of all who study, work,Those who strive and sacrifice for this island No more decadence, evolution, satisfaction, joy And fundamentally social freedom for this people Decadence No more brothers, no more, no more Decadence We will see the end of this story in peace and with ours
Decadence Eskuadrón, Eskuadrón I Decadence Once again my mission, freedom is near.
DECADENCIA
Es como si estuviéramos congelados en el tiempo
Parece como si no nos interesara nada
La esperanza de nuestro pueblo, Eskuadrón
Yo creo que el pueblo necesita de este mensaje
Con mucho amor para todos mis hermanos, Prófugo Ciao- Yo
Voy por mi gusto cuando la necesidad me abraza
Entre una decadencia que el sistema disfraza
Mi verbo toma forma y a la poesía se engancha
Fluye mi espíritu, inmortalizo mis palabras
De nuevo me transformo en la voz de una gran masa
Acéfala, vacía que en silencio se desplaza
Se cansaron de llorar y ahora le sangra el alma
Mientras se pregunta ¿Quién controla su esperanza?
Y se retuercen porque les duele, la herida sangra, y creen que mueren
Quieren gritar su dolor pero no pueden
Porque el terror impuesto le arrancan lo poco que tiene
Piden justicia y eso no se logra ver
¿Por qué reprimen al que libre quiere ser?
Desde sus despachos la realidad no la pueden oler
La tristeza de este país no la van a comprender
Como no comprende mi gente como solucionar
Trabajas sudan entero y no te puedes liberar
Entregas todo y a cambio nada, esclavitud total
Así te controlan, yo lo llamo conspiración letal
El mensaje se funde con los segundos, crece mi fe
Inventan leyes abusivas, te tienen a su merced
Nuestras opiniones no se escuchan opinando que las revoluciones son para el pueblo,
No para el que esta en el poder
Y la decadencia estremece la conciencia
y la mente no despiertan y todo todo lo aceptan
La gente no cree y no ve, arrastrados por la inercia
Prefieren soportarlo todo antes de romper la cuerda
Decadencia
Cuanta destrucción, cuanta frustración, cuanta tristeza
Decadencia
Cuanta necesidad de gritar, de exigir pero el miedo acecha
Decadencia
Todos nosotros como autómatas aceptamos el lavado de conciencia
Decadencia
Por nuestros hijos, la familia y las generaciones busquemos respuesta
Decadencia
Nos quitaron todo pero no la resistencia y la palabra fuerza
Decadencia
Hermanos de pie, no hay nada mas hermoso que una nación cuando despierta
Decadencia
No queremos sangre, que nadie perezca, pero alcemos la cabeza
Decadencia
Como Víctor Jar diciéndole a su pueblo la libertad esta cerca
Y nos enfrentan, y nos separan en dos bandos
Y vivimos cuidándonos, paranoides, desconfiando
Los mismos hijos del pueblo se están despedazando
Porque el sistema los manipula, y ellos nunca ven el daño
Y la policía sin límite, ni medida
Responden a una doctrina que no entienden pero les da comida
Abusan, maltratan, arrogantes, te humillan
Esta bien no serán todos, pero si la mayoría
Y se olvidan de donde vienen sus vidas, de su familia
De la escuela que asistía
Ahora viven con ira
Defensores, nunca hay hegemonía con mente fría
del sistema ustedes son las marionetas dirigidas
Y me pregunto si esto es una democracia
¿Por qué pensar diferente es una traición ultranza?
¿Por que a varios sectores se les margina y se les rechaza?
Si no se respeta los criterios, esta nación no avanza
Peo entonces se desata la injusticia
Y es un peligro hablar y el miedo te paraliza
Tu mensaje de paz lo transforman en benizista
Nunca hablé de ponerle una bomba al Ministro de Justicia, nunca
Y a la sociedad civil la militarizan
Y la educación va directa al caos con mucha prisa
Y todo es confusión y no hay amor
Y sientes que te asfixias
Y te lo imponen todo y tu paciencia se desquicia
Dios dame resistencia y toda tu compasión
Solo usted sabe lo que sufre este corazón
Por ver el bien de mi gente y no tanta desesperación
Y no ser un testigo mudo de la destrucción de mi nación
Decadencia
Cuanta destrucción cuanta frustración cuanta tristeza
Decadencia
Cuanta necesidad de gritar, de exigir, pero el miedo asecha
Decadencia
Todos nosotros como autómatas aceptamos el lavado de conciencia
Decadencia
Por nuestros hijos, la familia y las generaciones ¡busquemos respuesta!
Decadencia
Nos quitaron todo pero no la resistencia y la palabra fuerza
Hermanos de pie, no hay nada mas hermoso que una nación cuando despierta
Decadencia
No queremos sangre, que nadie perezca, pero alcemos la cabeza
Decadencia
Como Víctor Jar diciéndole a su pueblo la libertad esta cerca
Hermanos alcemos los puños y unamos nuestras manos
Y gritemos libertad, gritemos libertad porque el poder esta en el pueblo
Nosotros somos dueños de dueños destinos
De nuestra propia libertad, fuerza, resistencia,
No soportamos más, no soportamos más
En nombre de todas estas generaciones
En nombre de la juventud cubana
En nombre de todos lo que estudian, trabajan,
Los que se esfuerzan y se sacrifican por esta isla
No más decadencia, evolución, satisfacción, alegría
Y fundamentalmente libertad social para este pueblo
Decadencia
No más, hermanos, no más, no más
Decadencia
Vamos a ver el final de esta historia en paz y con los nuestros
Decadencia
Eskuadrón, Eskuadrón Yo
Decadencia
Una vez mas mi misión, la libertad esta cerca.
"Where are my warriors for peace?" - David D. Omni
David D. Omni ZF and Raudel (Escuadrón Patriota) hold concert in Miami. One of the theme's was "Action not reaction." Below is an excerpt from the concert. The concert began with the question poised by David: Where are my warriors for peace?
At the same time the message of resistance to tyranny was heard loud and clear throughout the concert. It was a message of nonviolent civic resistance. Resisting evil through action while rejecting hatred and embracing love.
