He noted that one of the biggest advocates of the campaign is the Miami-based Center for Study of a National Option, which is fighting for an end to Castro's communist regime. Supporters of the library movement say they do not have political motives. Instead, they say they are merely trying to supplement the collections of state-run libraries, where texts critical of communism are almost nonexistent. In the past year, police have detained several independent librarians, and supporters say that at least a dozen more have been threatened and harassed. In December, political activist Julia Cecilia Delgado was sentenced to one year in jail for ''disrespect,'' which supporters say is punishment for opening a library in her home.
Cuban officials say there is no connection between the arrests and the independent libraries.
We're in the presence of a carefully disguised campaign, which has a big appeal in the world today under the guise of free access to information,'' said Acosta. Critics note that the fact that a book is listed in the catalog at the National Library does not mean it is available to the public. The library benefited from a visit in January by Massachusetts State Representative Jarrett Barrios, a Cuban-American who directed the donation of 4,000 children's books and medical texts. We have strong feelings about politics, but we also want to encourage democracy from within,'' he said in a telephone interview. US officials in Cuba take a different attitude.