SPECIAL SESSION OF NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF PEOPLE’S POWER
                   Cuban prisoners in Miami honored as Heroes of
                   the Republic of Cuba, acknowledgement of their
                   mothers and wives

                   • 2002 is named ‘Year of the Heroes Imprisoned by the U.S. Empire’

                   BESTOWING the title of Heroes of the Republic of Cuba on Gerardo
                   Hernández Nordelo, Ramón Labañino Salazar, Fernando González
                   Llort, René González Sehwerert and Antonio Guerrero Rodríguez,
                   Cubans unjustly imprisoned in Miami, is the Cuban people’s
                   recognition of those who fulfilled, with exemplary dedication, dignity
                   and steadfastness, the mission of defending their homeland and
                   protecting it against terrorism.

                   This initiative – like that of honoring the mothers and wives of the
                   arrested compatriots with the Mariana Grajales and Ana Betancourt
                   Orders, respectively – was proposed by Fidel Castro, president of the
                   Councils of State and of Ministers, and was approved by the deputies
                   at the 3rd Special Session, 5th Legislature of the National Assembly
                   of People’s Power, on Saturday, December 29, at the International
                   Conference Center in Havana.

                   These "prophets of the present and the future" – as Deputy Raúl
                   Suárez called the five Cubans sentenced for the "crime" of having
                   loved their country – infiltrated the depths of hatred and injustice, in
                   order to learn of a large number of the activities of the hardcore
                   terrorist groups that operate with total impunity in the United States.
                   They discovered their plans and alerted Cuba, with the goal of
                   preventing the death and damages that would result from such
                   actions.

                   These five men, who have become symbols of universal dignity, also
                   prevented terrorist actions that would have seriously hurt the people
                   of the United States, and their recompense for such noble and
                   generous efforts was to be arrested and forced to live for the last
                   three years in subhuman prison conditions, and put through an
                   arbitrary and manipulated trial. Now, without any legal or moral
                   justification, they have been given disproportionate and unjust
                   sentences.

                   Students from various educational levels and representatives of
                   mass organizations, invited to the special session, expressed how
                   proud they are of the heroism and the profound and irrefutable
                   statements made during the sentencing hearings by Gerardo,
                   Ramón, Fernando, René and Antonio. It was announced that those
                   statements would be distributed around the world in nine languages,
                   and would remain for history as insuperable testimonies of personal
                   bravery, intelligence and dignity.

                   Speaking at the session to propose that the year 2002 be known as
                   "Year of the Heroes Imprisoned by the U.S. Empire," Fidel described
                   the sentences handed down against the five Cuban patriots as
                   vulgar, odious and extremely vengeful. He added that the news of
                   their decorations would make those valiant men the happiest people
                   in the world.

                   He noted that the long sentences, including those of life
                   imprisonment, wrests the United States of prestige and moral
                   authority in the worldwide battle that must be fought against
                   terrorism and for peace, above all today, when the world is living
                   through moments of real danger.

                   He emphasized that the political and moral battle for the release of
                   these Cuban heroes imprisoned in the United States has already
                   begun, and that the political price the United States will have to pay
                   grows with every day, every hour and every second they remain in
                   prison. He reiterated his certainty that one day they will return to
                   Cuba .

                   He explained that among the Cuban people’s battles in the new year
                   is the fulfillment of the Baraguá Oath, which includes the fight against
                   the Cuban Adjustment Act, the Helms-Burton Act and the Torricelli
                   Act, and against the U.S. economic blockade of the island.

                   He also discussed the measures being taken to confront the
                   consequences of the serious economic crisis around the world, and
                   the gravity of the social and economic situation in Latin America.
                   Furthermore, he noted that Cuba’s battle to improve education and
                   cultural knowledge is advancing at an impressive pace.