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Havana To Put Attempted Escapees on Trial

Cuba`s communist dictatorial government has announced that it will try seven women for endangering their children`s lives as they tried to escape the country. The official Granma newspaper reports the Cuban coast guard opened fire on the suspected smugglers, killing one and wounding the other two.

Granma says, "Once again it has been exposed how irresponsible and unscrupulous people put the lives of their children in twice as much danger: to drown during their voyage or get sick because of the bad environment chosen by the smugglers." Many Cubans frequently try to escape the island and make their way to the United States.

The state-run Granma daily added that the children, ages 1 to 14, had to endure mosquitoes and lack of food or water for two days before they were scheduled to meet smugglers on April 5. Reports are that the group included 25 other adults who were supposed to leave the island on a 40-foot speedboat. If Cuban escapees reach U.S. soil they are permitted to stay, unless apprehended beforehand and sent back by the U.S. Coast Guard.