Prensa Latina
4/8/09
RIO DE JANEIRO, April 5th. The Brazilian group No More Torture, at the proposal of the Our America organization, granted the Chico Mendes Resistance medal 2009 to the five Cuban antiterrorist fighters unfairly imprisoned in US jails for a decade.
The Cuban Consul in the city of Sao Paulo, Vladimir Martínez, who received the distinction on behalf of Gerardo Hernández, René González, Antonio Guerrero, Ramón Labañino and Fernando González, said he appreciated the solidarity of Brazilian people and their efforts to break the silence around the injustice committed against these men.
According to PL, the diplomat also highlighted that the granting of this medal to the Cuban Five was a recognition for all the Cuban people for defending the principles of a socialist society and its right to sovereignty and self-determination.
At the award ceremony, which took place in the Aula Magna of the Institute of Philosophy and Social Sciences of the General University of Rio de Janeiro, were the Special Minister for issues of Human Rights in Brazil, Paulo Vannuci, as well as representatives of organizations and social movements, students and other members of the Brazilian civil society.
The Chico Mendes medal was instituted in 1989 in memory of the dead and disappeared people by the Brazilian military dictatorship. It was named after a Brazilian trade union leader and environmental activist, who was murdered in 1988. It also pays homage to the people and entities that stand out in the defence of the Human Rights. In 2009, in addition to the five Cuban antiterrorist fighters, 11 Brazilian personalities were honoured with this award.
