Top Cuba dissidents unhappy with church occupiers

The Ladies in White and other prominent Cuban dissidents said Thursday they disagreed with activists who occupied a Catholic church demanding that Pope Benedict XVI press Havana for political freedom. Thirteen dissidents -- eight men and five women -- with the illegal Republican Party of Cuba (PRC), a previously unknown opposition group, were holed up since Tuesday at the Our Lady of Charity church in central Havana. "The Ladies in White go to churches to pray and to be close to God," said Berta Soler with the leading opposition group, which represents the female relatives of jailed dissidents. "We respect the actions of these people," said Soler, but made it it clear that it was not a tactic that her group follows. "I don't know them," said Guillermo Farinas, a dissident who has been on hunger strike more than 20 times, told AFP by phone. He warned the activists to "beware of carrying out any type of provocative action that could damage the credibility of the peaceful political opposition in Cuba." Both Farinas and the Ladies in White are winners of the European Parliament's Sakharov Prize, in 2010 and 2005 respectively. The archdiocese also condemned the actions. In an unusual move, the leading state newspapers Granma and Juventud Rebelde published the church statement in full. "No one has the right to transform churches into political trenches," the archdiocese statement read. "Any acts that seek to turn places of worship into a place for political demonstration... certainly are illegitimate and irresponsible." Former political prisoner Martha Beatriz Roque, one of the most radical dissidents on the islands, told AFP she "disagrees with using the Catholic Church for political purposes in any manner." But Roque was taken aback by the church statement published in official media. "It seemed that I was reading a Granma editorial," Roque said. Award-winning dissident blogger Yoani Sanchez said in a Twitter message that she had "several criticisms" with the church occupation, but "I have a worse opinion of the note from the archdiocese published in Granma." The church statement said the protest was part of coordinated action that took place in several churches across the country. The other churches, however, were occupied only briefly. Authorities have deployed security agents in civilian clothing near the Our Lady of Charity church, who were observed turning away visitors to the church. The archdiocese said the agents have pledged not to intervene. A spokesman for the protesters said the government had ordered that no food be given to the dissidents. The PRC's website said the Havana church protesters were demanding "the release of political prisoners without conditions," as well as "an end to the suppression and persecution of regime opponents." It also called for "freedom of expression and association" and "censorship-free access to information, including the Internet." Some Cuban opposition members are critical of church cooperation with the Communist state, which has included mediating the release of political prisoners. But the church is the most influential non-state actor in a society overwhelmingly controlled by the government. After decades of official atheism, the Cuban regime now has more cordial relations with the Catholic and other churches. Most Cubans, however, do not consider themselves practicing Catholics. The pope is scheduled to visit Cuba March 26-28, following a visit to Mexico.