Yesterday, we brought you the story of 4-year-old Cuban Dario De La Cruz. He was being smuggled into the US by his grandmother, when Belizean authorities arrested them along with some other Cubans for illegal entry. Dario and his grandmother were separated when she was sent to the Belize Central Prison, and he was taken into the custody of human services.
After the parents - who are already in the US - were unable to locate the child, they turned to attorney Orson "OJ" Elrington. Elrington wrote the the Human Rights Commission, stating that separating Dario and his grandmother was a breach of the human rights of the child, since Belize is a signatory to the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
The convention states, quote, "States Parties shall ensure that a child shall not be separated from his or her parents against their will, except when competent authorities subject to judicial review determine, in accordance with applicable law procedures, that such separation is necessary for the best interests of the child." End quote.
Elrington then states that there is no evidence that any such judicial review was done. However, as we told you last night, Dario is diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome, and as such, his parents decided to pay the Gradnmother's fine for the safety of the child, since they feared for his health.
The parents maintain that their lives may be in jeopardy if they return to Cuba because of their political beliefs.
