Gross, 63, and his supporters had asked the Castro regime in March to grant him a two-week furlough to visit his elderly mother in the United States, who is said to be in the final stages of cancer. On Thursday (May 10) an official of the Cuban Foreign Ministry told CNN that because Gross has served only 30 months of his 15 year sentence, and there would be no way to insure that he would return to the island to complete his term, the request for a furlough had been denied. The Cuban government countered with an offer to allow Gross' mother to visit him in Havana, or to engage in a reciprocal exchange of all the prisoners. The State Dept. today said that Gross' mother was too ill to travel to Cuba, and flatly ruled out any possibility of a swap.
Cuban authorities have repeatedly indicated that they want to trade Gross for the Miami Five, who were arrested in south Florida in 1998. The Five were accused of spying for the Castro regime, and all received lengthy sentences for espionage. Four of them remain in prison, but one was released on October 7, 2011 after serving 13 years. He asked to be allowed to return to his family in Havana, but the U.S. government objected, insisting that he serve another 36 months of conditional release (parole) in the United States. In a Sept. 16 ruling a federal judge in Miami sided with prosecutors, although she may reconsider her decision. Meanwhile, the paroled Cuban (right) remains in the U.S.
The Miami Five are national heroes in Cuba. The Castro government has repeatedly demanded their release, arguing that they were not spies. Cuba's parliamentary president implied last year that Gross will not be unilaterally released, and that if the U.S. wants him back it must free the Five. Cuban officials, including Fidel Castro, were infuriated when the judge refused to let the paroled member of the Five return home after his 13 year incarceration in the United States.
According to articles published by two Miami newspapers in February 2012, Alan Gross, a former Maryland resident, was a U.S. agent knowingly involved in illegal activities when he was arrested in Havana almost 30 months ago. Accused of national security offenses, Gross falsely told a Cuban criminal court in March 2011 that he was nothing more than a "humanitarian aid" worker. The articles were based upon a lengthy Associated Press investigation of his trips to the island, and review of reports which he filed (Alan Gross knew USAID mission was illegal and lied to Cuban authorities).
The Alan Gross case reviewed
On Dec. 3, 2009 Alan Gross was arrested at José Martí International Airport as he was preparing to board a return flight to Washington. He was convicted of state security offenses by a Cuban criminal court in March 2011, and was sentenced to 15 years. U.S. officials, including president Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, have called Gross a political prisoner of the Castro regime. Former president Jimmy Carter and ex-New Mexico governor Bill Richardson were unable to secure Gross' release during separate visits to the island last year.
In an article published in May 2011, former CIA agent Philip Giraldi alleged that Gross was paid $500,000 by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), to travel to Cuba "to hand out laptop computers and cell and satellite phones to the local 1,000 strong Jewish community" on the island. The claims have since been confirmed by other sources. Such activities made Gross far more than a humanitarian aid worker, and required government permission under Cuban law.
Gross, who is Jewish, claimed that he had traveled to Cuba "to work with the small Jewish community there to improve their internet access and create an intranet for them." Internet access is tightly controlled by Cuban authorities, and is unavailable to most people. What is not disputed is that Gross made at least five trips to the island in 2009, traveling under a tourist visa. The U.S. has said that Gross' improper visa declaration was nothing more than a "technical violation" of Cuban law, but it was unquestionably one of the factors which contributed to his conviction last year.
According to the Miami newspapers, Gross brought the equipment into Cuba "piece by piece," in small travel bags and carry-on luggage which were less likely to be thoroughly checked at the Havana airport. Included were cell phone chips used by the CIA and Pentagon to evade telecommunications detection. The chips cannot be commercially purchased, and are available only to authorized U.S. government agencies and officials. The ultimate objective was to give the people with whom Gross was working completely unrestricted internet access, and to enable them to communicate with one another, and with persons in other countries, without the knowledge of Cuban authorities.
The Miami papers said that Gross is a technology and communications expert, and owned a company which specialized in wiring remote areas of the world. The papers reported that during his multiple trips to Cuba, Gross sometimes accompanied real humanitarian aid workers whom he enlisted to carry small pieces of electronics equipment in their luggage. On one such trip, he and/or his collaborators smuggled in 12 iPods, 11 Black Berrys, three MacBooks, six external hard disks of 500 gigabytes each, three satellite phones, 18 internet routers, 13 memory chips and three telephones equipped for making internet calls, together with related accessories and peripherals. Gross changed or obscured brand or model names and identification marks on some of the items before arriving on the island, to deceive Cuban customs officials, said the papers. Possession of satellite communication equipment without government permission is forbidden by Cuban law.
On Nov. 28, 2011 the Associated Press identified a Maryland company, Development Alternatives Inc. (DAI), as the private USAID contractor for whom Gross was working when he made his trips to Cuba. According to that AP story, "A spokesman for DAI said that Gross 'designed, proposed, and implemented work' for the company, which had a government contract for a democracy-building project on the Communist island." Although DAI was hired directly by the government, the project was subcontracted to Alan Gross, who is purportedly a technology and communications expert.
There is no evidence that Cuban officials had knowledge of or authorized any "democracy-building" activities or projects, however. Private possession of satellite phones is strictly forbidden by island law, absent government authorization.
In the February articles the Miami newspapers quoted Robert Pastor, a specialist in Latin American affairs at The American University in Washington, who said USAID programs like the one for which Gross worked should be considered covert or subversive operations, because "they're about regime change."
Gross and his attorneys have issued several press releases since his conviction declaring that he was "used, duped and was a trusting fool," without elaborating further. The matter of Alan Gross has further complicated U.S.-Cuba relations, and resulted in a hard freeze of what many had hoped would be a warming trend after Obama was elected in 2008.
Nov. 16 - Alan Gross sues U.S. government and its "subversion" contractor, claiming deception
May 23 - Tribunal Supremo cubano niega que esté considerando permiso de salida para Gross: http://www.elnuevoherald.com/2012/05/23/1210238/tribunal-supremo-cubano-niega.html.
June 15 - Alarma en Washington por la salud de Alan Gross: http://www.elnuevoherald.com/2012/06/15/1228911/alarma-en-washington-por-la-salud.html.
June 15 - Cuba asegura que el estado de salud de Alan Gross es "normal": http://www.elnuevoherald.com/2012/06/15/1229475/cuba-asegura-que-el-estado-de.html.
June 19 - Senadores de EEUU presionan a Cuba por liberación de Alan Gross: http://www.elnuevoherald.com/2012/06/18/1231950/senadores-de-eeuu-presionan-por.html.
The Alan Gross story:
Barack Obama should free Alan Gross: http://mexicogulfreporter.blogspot.mx/2012/05/barack-obama-should-free-alan-gross.html.
Fidel Castro greets Pope Benedict XVI - but no jail pass for Alan Gross: http://mexicogulfreporter.blogspot.mx/2012/03/fidel-castro-greets-pope-benedict-xvi.html.
Two American senators visit Cuba: http://mexicogulfreporter.blogspot.mx/2012/02/two-american-senators-visit-cuba.html.
Alan Gross knew USAID mission was illegal and lied to Cuban authorities: http://mexicogulfreporter.blogspot.mx/2012/02/alan-gross-us-agent-who-knew-what-he.html.
Judy Gross urges Obama, "please bring my husband home": http://mexicogulfreporter.blogspot.com/2011/11/judy-gross-asks-president-obama-to.html.
No Christmas pardon for Alan Gross: http://mexicogulfreporter.blogspot.com/2011/12/cuban-will-pardon-almost-3000-prisoners.html.
Alan Gross y Los Cinco de Miami: http://mexicogulfreporter-supplement.blogspot.com/2011/11/alan-gross-y-los-cinco-de-miami.html.
Alan Gross supporters take their release crusade on the road: http://mexicogulfreporter.blogspot.com/2011/11/alan-gross-supporters-take-their.html.
U.S. double standard on prisoners hurts Alan Gross: http://mexicogulfreporter-supplement.blogspot.com/2011/11/us-shows-revolting-double-standard-in.html.
U.S.-Cuba relations:
Colombia's president Santos calls for normalization of U.S.-Cuba relations: http://mexicogulfreporter.blogspot.mx/2012/04/colombias-president-santos-calls-for.html.
U.S. judge allows Miami Five member to visit dying brother in Cuba: http://mexicogulfreporter.blogspot.mx/2012/03/us-judge-allows-rene-gonzalez-to-visit.html.
U.S. embargo of Cuba turns 50: http://mexicogulfreporter.blogspot.com/2012/02/us-embargo-of-cuba-is-50-years-old.html.
Why the Cuban Embargo should be abandoned: http://mexicogulfreporter-supplement.blogspot.com/2011/11/us-embargo-of-cuba.html.
United Nations condemns U.S. embargo of Cuba (186-2) for the 20th time: http://mexicogulfreporter.blogspot.com/2011/10/united-nations-condemns-us-embargo-of.html.
Newt Gingrich spews the same old Cold War rhetoric on Cuba: http://mexicogulfreporter.blogspot.com/2012/01/gingrich-spews-same-old-cold-war.html.
Hemingway Bar opens at Cuban consulate in Washington: http://mexicogulfreporter.blogspot.com/2011/11/hemingway-bar-opens-in-cuban-diplomatic.html.
What does Che Guevara have to do with Mercedes-Benz?: http://mexicogulfreporter.blogspot.com/2012/01/what-does-che-guevara-have-to-do-with.html.
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