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Video by voanews: dozens arrested in Cuba ahead of Obama's arrival to meet Castro.
Cuban police arrested human rights demonstrators hours before the scheduled arrival in Havana of U.S. President Barack Obama.
Cuban security officials arrested dozens of opposition demonstrators in Havana, cutting short the group's optimism that the imminent arrival of U.S. President Barack Obama would soften the regular police crackdown on their weekly demonstration.
More than 50 people were detained, including the leader of the Damas de Blanco (Ladies in White), Berta Soler. Uniformed and plainclothed police patrolled the area around Gandhi Park from early Sunday morning, as the women arrived en masse.
Most of them were released hours later, Soler told VOA on Monday. But she said the whereabouts of roughly ten activists were still not known.
For more than a decade, the Damas have advocated for an end to arbitrary detentions.
In recent years, the group – comprised of nearly 200 women across Cuba – has broadened to support human rights. They are outspoken opponents of the Castro government.