HAVANA: Prominent dissident blogger Yoani Sanchez has been arrested in eastern Cuba, a website with close ties to the Havana government reported on Friday.
"The pro-American blogger Yoani Sanchez was arrested today in the city of Bayamo, where she had traveled with the intention of creating a provocation and a media show," at the trial of Spanish activist Angel Carromero, according to the well-sourced website www.yohandry.com.
Sanchez, 37, began commenting on daily life in Cuba on her Generacion Y blog in 2007, but ran afoul of the regime for criticizing Fidel and Raul Castro.
The prize-winning activist and writer was in Bayamo to attend Friday's trial of the Spaniard, who is accused of vehicular manslaughter in the death of high-profile dissident, Oswaldo Paya, who died in an auto accident on July 22.
Last week, Sanchez filed a complaint against Cuba with the Inter-American Human Rights Commission for repeatedly refusing her permission to leave the country, according to her attorney, who said she has been unable to leave Cuba since 2007 despite some 20 requests for permission.
Her lawyers said Sanchez presented evidence to the commission that she and her husband had been harassed by the Cuban authorities.
Carromero, 27, who runs the youth wing of Spain's ruling Popular Party, and a Swedish activist were injured in the car crash.
Authorities allege that Carromero was driving above the speed limit when the car hit an unpaved section of road outside Bayamo, causing him to lose control of the vehicle and crash into a tree.
Spanish press reports have said that the Cuban government is seeking a seven-year prison sentence for "traffic violations resulting in death", which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison under the country's penal code.
Paya, 60, who was killed in the crash, was a leading opponent of one-party rule under the Cuban Communist Party, and the 2002 recipient of the European Parliament's prestigious Sakharov prize, awarded for defense of human rights and freedom of thought.
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