One year ago, the Cuban government began releasing 53 political prisoners that President Barack Obama wanted freed as part of a historic deal to re-establish diplomatic relations between the former Cold War foes.
Obama says he could make the first visit by a sitting U.S. president to postrevolutionary Cuba as early as this spring if he thinks human rights on the island are improving and a presidential trip will help. The fates of the released dissidents show just how hard it will be for the U.S. to push human rights in Cuba in the direction the Obama administration desires.
