Venezuelans´ Petition: Free the Cuban Five

Caracas, Aug 8 .- The Venezuela-Cuba Solidarity Movement collected hundreds of signatures on Saturday to demand the release of five Cuban antiterrorist fighters unjustly held in U.S. prisons.

Coordinator Carolina Contreras told Prensa Latina that the initiative was part of an anti-imperialist tribune called by the 14th Congress of the Communist Party of Venezuela (CPV).

The party organized the event to demand the immediate release of Fernando Gonzalez, Antonio Guerrero, Gerardo Hernandez, Ramon Labañino and Rene Gonzalez, who were sentenced to lengthy prison terms for crimes they did not commit.

"We maintain our commitment and call on all revolutionaries of the world to support the cause of The Five" (as they are known in international campaigns to demand their release), the activist said.

According to Contreras, the group will send their petitions to Havana on August 14 and then to Spain, where friends of Cuba are promoting a movement to send one million signatures to U.S. President Barrack Obama in support of the Cuban anti-terrorist fighters.

In statements to Prensa Latina, CPV international relations secretary Carolus Wimmer expressed his solidarity with the Cuban Five and their relatives.

"They are a symbol of the Cuban people's determined struggle, anti-imperialist fight, for the defense of their independence and sovereignty under the principles of socialism," he stressed.

The Five were sentenced for defending their country from terrorist acts organized in South Florida which have resulted in over 3,000 people killed and more than 2,000 mutilated.

The meeting held in Caracas is also part of a worldwide campaign that begins in September to demand their release.(Prensa Latina)