July 11, 1997

Leader of Independent Physicians to be Tried for Political "Crimes"

HAVANA, 7 July (BPIC) - The President of the banned Independent Medical Association of Cuba will go on trial, accused of "enemy propaganda, distribution of false news, and illicit associations and gatherings". The date of Dr. Desy Mendoza's trial has not been announced.

According to the information received by BPIC from the dissident Followers of Chibás Movement, Dr. Mendoza is still being held in the provincial offices of State Security in Santiago de Cuba since his arrest by the political police in late June.

Dr. Mendoza was arrested after offering the underground press personal reports on the serious outbreak of dengue fever in eastern Cuba which differed from the officially sanctioned press releases.