Washington, January 12, 2015 – Days before completing service of 404 months in prison, and with intensifying pressure for his release, Puerto Rican political prisoner Oscar López Rivera is convinced that president Barack Obama will make a decision before leaving the White House, but he doesn’t want to sow “false hopes.”

With the holiday season underway and Eric Holder on his way out the door as Attorney General, many Puerto Ricans are stepping up their calls for President Barack Obama to pardon 71-year-old political prisoner Oscar López Rivera, who has spent the last 33 years behind bars for seditious conspiracy. The holiday season is a common time for Presidents to use their power to grant clemency, but this does not appear likely in 2014 for the President who has granted the fewest pardons in modern times. For Puerto Ricans, dismissal of their political demands is emblematic of their subjugation as colonial subjects.

Puerto Rican Political Prisoner Norberto Gonzalez Claudio continues to be in solitary confinement and can't contact family and lawyers in the federal prison in Coleman, Fl.

La Respuesta is proud to announce a new page titled “Oscar’s Corner“, where we will provide news on the campaign to free political prisoner Oscar López Rivera. We are also excited to share with you our direct correspondence with Oscar from inside prison, facilitated by Dorian Ortega and the National Boricua Human Rights Network.