Sebastian Arcos Bergnes

Sebastian Arcos Bergnes (1931 – December 22, 1997, New York City) was a Cuban human rights activist. A prominent Cuban dissident, he was openly adversarial to the dictatorships of Fidel Castro and Fulgencio Batista.

Role in Cuban Revolution Arcos's family had a long history of political action. His older brother Gustavo was maimed fighting alongside Castro at the Moncada Barracks, the first battle of the Cuban Revolution. Another brother, Luis, was later killed in the fighting. Sebastian, a dentist by training, also opposed that Batista dictatorship.

Later in the same year, Arcos was arrested, spending more than six years with Gustavo in Combinado del Este prison.

In 1992, Arcos was again arrested by the secret police. Charged with "enemy propaganda" and "inciting to rebellion," he was sentenced to four years and eight months. He was transferred to Ariza Prison in Cienfuegos Province, more than 130 miles from Havana, where he was imprisoned alongside dangerous criminals and systematically denied medical attention. In 1993 the regime offered Arcos a deal: he would be released immediately if he only agreed to leave the island for good. Arcos rejected the deal, becoming the first political prisoner ever to choose prison in Cuba over freedom in exile.

Release and illness After an international campaign that included his designation as an Amnesty International prisoner of conscience and a request by France Libertés, the organization founded by former French first lady Danielle Mitterrand, Arcos was released in 1995. After his death, US President Bill Clinton described him as "a courageous and tireless activist for human rights, democracy and freedom in Cuba", while Cuban human rights activist Elizardo Sanchez Santa Cruz called him "irreplaceable" to the dissident movement.

Family Arcos had two children, Sebastian and Maria Rosa. He also had a brother named Luis Arcos Bergnes.