•HRES 536 IH 
every loss of life of those, who as Jan Palach and Jan 
Zajı´c, sacrificed their lives for values as human rights, 
personal dignity and political freedom’’; 
Whereas the Foreign Ministry of Slovakia condemned Villar 
Mendoza’s murder and called on the regime to respect 
basic human rights stating, ‘‘What happened again 
points to the necessity for Cuba to guarantee human 
rights to its citizens and enable them to express all their 
non-violent political thoughts freely’’; 
Whereas the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Poland expressed 
its condolences to Villar Mendoza’s family and announced 
that, ‘‘Poland reiterates its plea to Cuban authorities to 
stop acts that violate human rights’’; 
Whereas Amnesty International Special Advisor Javier 
Zu´n˜iga declared, ‘‘The responsibility for Wilman Villar 
Mendoza’s death in custody lies squarely with the Cuban 
authorities, who summarily judged and jailed him for ex-
ercising his right to freedom of expression. His tragic 
death highlights the depths of despair faced by the other 
prisoners of conscience still languishing in Cuban jails, 
who must be released immediately and unconditionally. 
The Cuban authorities must stop the harassment, perse-
cution, and imprisonment of peaceful demonstrators as 
well as political and human rights activists’’; 
Whereas Jose´ Miguel Vivanco, the Americas Director at 
Human Rights Watch, condemned the inhumane treat-
ment of Villar Mendoza and other dissidents by saying, 
‘‘Villar Mendoza’s case shows how the Cuban government 
punishes dissent. Arbitrary arrests, sham trials, inhu-
mane imprisonment, and harassment of dissidents’ fami-
lies—these are the tactics used to silence critics’’; 
VerDate Mar 15 2010 
01:59 Feb 03, 2012
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00003
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6300
E:\BILLS\HR536.IH
HR536
jbell on DSK7SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
•HRES 536 IH 
Whereas the Cuban Commission on Human Rights and Na-
tional Reconciliation reports that repression in Cuba in-
creased dramatically as there were a total of 4,123 ar-
rests in 2011, which is about double the 2,074 arrests in 
2010, and there was a reported total of 786 political ar-
rests in December 2011 alone; 
Whereas international human rights groups such as Amnesty 
International and Human Rights Watch have called on 
the regime to end its violent arrests and brutal crack-
down on Cubans for simply expressing their views, with 
Human Rights Watch summarizing conditions in Cuba in 
its 2012 report stating, ‘‘In 2011 Rau´l Castro’s govern-
ment continued to enforce political conformity using 
short-term detentions, beatings, public acts of repudi-
ation, forced exile, and travel restrictions’’ and declared 
that the regime ‘‘increasingly relied on arbitrary arrests 
and short-term detentions to restrict the basic rights of 
its critics, including the right to assemble and move 
about freely’’; 
Whereas the regime’s increased repression has grown not 
only in the number of arrests, but in the intensity of its 
brutality; 
Whereas in the last two years, the regime has murdered other 
prisoners of conscience in addition to Villar Mendoza, in-
cluding activists Orlando Zapata Tamayo, Juan Wilfredo 
Soto Garcia, and Laura Pollan, the inspirational leader 
of the Ladies in White; 
Whereas these brave martyrs are just a few examples of 
Cuba’s burgeoning dissident movement which has bravely 
increased its activism and deepened its resolve in the face 
of unrelenting, vicious attacks; and 
VerDate Mar 15 2010 
01:59 Feb 03, 2012
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00004
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6300
E:\BILLS\HR536.IH
HR536
jbell on DSK7SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
•HRES 536 IH 
Whereas Villar Mendoza forever will be remembered as a 
symbol by the Cuban people in their struggle against tyr-
anny, and his sacrifice must never be forgotten: Now, 
therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) deeply mourns the tragic loss of Wilman 
Villar Mendoza and expresses its condolences to his 
family, the Cuban people, and the victims of repres-
sion throughout Cuba; 
(2) commends the Cuban Patriotic Union, the 
Ladies in White, the Orlando Zapata Tamayo Na-
tional Front for Civic Resistance and Civil Disobe-
dience, and other pro-democracy activist organiza-
tions in Cuba for their courage and commitment to 
achieving fundamental liberties despite the tremen-
dous personal risk to them and their families, and 
the acts of state repudiation that such heroism en-
tails; 
(3) pledges solidarity with the people of Cuba 
as they struggle against totalitarianism and brutality 
to achieve fundamental rights such as freedom of ex-
pression, association, political parties, and respect 
for human dignity; 
(4) condemns the repression and egregious 
human rights abuses perpetrated by the Castro re-
gime against its own people; and 
VerDate Mar 15 2010 
01:59 Feb 03, 2012
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00005
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\HR536.IH
HR536
jbell on DSK7SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
•HRES 536 IH 
(5) affirms that Villar Mendoza, and Cuba’s 
other martyrs in the cause of freedom, forever will 
be a symbol to the Cuban people in their struggle 
against tyranny and that their sacrifices will not be 
forgotten. 
Æ 
VerDate Mar 15 2010 
01:59 Feb 03, 2012
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00006
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6301
E:\BILLS\HR536.IH
HR536
jbell on DSK7SPTVN1PROD with BILLS