Cuban authorities arrested Yoani Sanchez, a dissident blogger, and two others in the eastern city of Bayamo, Cuba on Thursday, October 4. Sanchez, her husband, and another blogger were traveling to cover the trial of a politician accused of killing Oswaldo Paya, a prominent dissident blogger.
Sanchez and other dissidents, people who oppose and challenge official authority, have gained attention for their controversial articles. Sanchez's blog, Generation Y, receives about 1 million hits each month. The communist nation of Cuba limits people's freedom of speech, and journalists are often detained to silence criticism or views different from the government's.
Yohandry Fontana, a pro-government blogger, believed Sanchez wanted to put on a "media show" and would have disrupted the trial.
The trial of politician Angel Carromero began Friday. Carromero is facing a charge of vehicular homicide and up to ten years of prison if found guilty. He is accused of purposely speeding and then losing control of the car he and Paya were in.
The arrest of Sanchez really surprised me. Because she spoke her mind and had different opinions from her government, she was detained! The way Cuba's government suppresses journalists and critics is alarming and something that should be changed. Freedom of speech is one of the things we as Americans are lucky to have, and it is unfair events like this that remind me how fortunate we are to have a constitution and country that gives us this freedom.
I hope Sanchez's detainment is a short one, and she continues to speak her mind.
Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2012/10/05/world/americas/cuba-blogger-arrest/index.html?hpt=ila_c2
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