ON August 14, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs exposed before international public opinion rumors circulating in the Miami terrorist mafia media indicating that Mireya Moscoso, president of Panama, was to pardon the terrorists imprisoned in Panama and that such a decision was to be taken August 15 through 30.

Commentaries both in Panama and Miami on the imminence of a pardon for the four anti-Cuban terrorists have increased in the last few hours.

Counterrevolutionary circles in Miami are convinced that Mireya Moscoso is going to fulfill her promise of pardoning the terrorists in the remaining days of her mandate.

Friends in Panama have confirmed the above-mentioned rumors and are certain that the president has already taken the decision to pardon Cuban-born terrorists Luis Posada Carriles, Gaspar Jiménez Escobedo, Pedro Remón and Guillermo Novo Sampol, detained, tried and convicted in the Republic of Panama for the attempted assassination of Fidel during the Ibero-American Summit in that country, in which hundreds of people from that sister nation would also have been massacred.

The Revolutionary government denounces this fresh affront to the Cuban people and reiterates that if the terrorists serving prison terms in Panama should be pardoned, the historical responsibility and consequences derived from such an unworthy decision will fall entirely on President Mireya Moscoso and her government.

The people of Cuba, who have been the victim of the most ferocious terrorism for more than 40 years, the families of the more than 3,000 dead as a result of acts of terrorism, the thousands of wounded, will never be able to understand this infamous act of betrayal by Ms. Mireya Moscoso.

The Panamanian president will face the stigma and immorality of having released self-confessed killers, terrorists of the lowest kind. She will go down in history as a benefactor of terrorism and of those notorious criminals of Cuban origin.

The infamy that is about to be exercised constitutes an aberration from both the political point and legal points of view. It is worth noting that according to Panamanian legislation, a pardon in that country is the prerogative of the president of the Republic, which in order to be exercised, requires that the legal process has been concluded and that a definitive sentence exists. This is not the case with the proceedings against the above-mentioned terrorists, which are still at the appeal stage. Thus, the granting of a pardon in this case would be an act against Panamanian legislation itself.

It is extremely clarifying to confirm that the pretext of age and infirmity utilized from the outset by the terrorists’ defense lawyers is precisely the one the president is trying to use to justify her “humanitarian gesture.” This element should be sufficient to confirm the source of the pressure and political blackmail behind this case.

The perfidy and deceit that went into planning this pardon is an accurate reflection of the ethical and moral putridity accompanying this decision.

The release of the terrorists has been consistently demanded of Mireya Moscoso by the Miami counterrevolutionary mafia and capos of terrorist groups operating from there. It is known that Ms. Ruby Moscoso, the sister of the Panamanian president, is in constant contact with the Miami counterrevolution and has been a key piece in moves for their release.

It is widely known that during the visit by the U.S. secretary of state to Panama for the centenary anniversary of the Republic, he asked for the release of the four terrorists after the ending of their trial in a meeting with President Mireya Moscoso.

In the framework of the current U.S. electoral context the Bush administration is feverishly seeking the votes and funds of the most recalcitrant sectors of the population of Cuban origin in Florida. This administration has increasingly demonstrated that it will not be deterred from achieving its political objectives by any ethical, moral principles, or those of international law.

Unfortunately, openly ignoring the worthy battle against terrorism being undertaken by many governments and peoples in the world, this Panamanian president is turning her back on justice, on the victims of the criminal acts of these terrorists, on the Cuban people, on the Panamanian people and on all those who are fighting with honesty against this world scourge.

We affirm our eternal gratitude to the Panamanian people for having accompanied us all these long years with their solidarity and support. The Cuban people and government will always be able to distinguish between the actions of the heroic Cuban Panamanian people and the perfidy of their rulers.

On behalf of the family members of the victims of acts committed by these killers and the entire Cuban people, the Revolutionary government of Cuba is calling on international public opinion and all governments in the world to condemn and prevent this irrational decision by Ms. Mireya Moscoso.

Finally, we wish to give notice in all seriousness that if the decision made is not rectified, and the pardon of the monstrous criminals mentioned above goes ahead, diplomatic relations between the Republic of Cuba and the Republic of Panama will be automatically broken off at the moment of news to that effect.

Havana, August 22, 2004.

Editor’s note: At the close of this edition, it has been announced that Mireya Moscoso, the president of Panama, has ordered the withdrawal of her ambassador to Havana, who has immediately returned to his country.