The century is ending badly for dictators. Gen Augusto Pinochet was arrested in Britain last October, where he still awaits a final decision on Spanish, French and other extradition requests.
The Pinochet example yesterday inspired the French lawyer, Mr Serge Lewisch, to file three lawsuits against the Cuban President, Dr Fidel Castro, for crimes against humanity, murder, torture, illegal detention and drug-trafficking.
Two of Mr Lewisch's clients are Cuban and one is French. The French man, Mr Pierre Golendorff (77), a photographer, was imprisoned in Cuba from 1971 until 1975 for writing a book critical of Dr Castro's regime.
Mr Lazaro Jordana (41) also spent four years in Cuban jails, from 1982 until 1986, as a political prisoner. Mr Jordana lives in exile in France and claims he was held in solitary confinement without light for seven months.
Ms Ileana de la Guardia, the daughter of Antonio de la Guardia, a Cuban army officer who was executed by firing squad in 1989 in a drug-trafficking scandal, is the third plaintiff.
The lawsuits have been filed with Paris's senior investigating magistrate, who must now decide whether there are grounds for prosecution and an international arrest warrant against Dr Castro.
Mr Lewisch admitted that the Chilean and Cuban regimes were dissimilar. "The torture is of a different nature," he told France Info radio station. "Pinochet is considered a butcher, and I think the term is apt considering the kind of torture he inflicted on hundreds or thousands of Chileans at the time.
"Whereas with Castro, the torture was more psychological - imprisoning people in conditions of terrible moral and psychological pressure to force them to confess to the crimes they were accused of, even when they were innocent."
Mr Lewisch said he intends to file further lawsuits against Dr Castro on behalf of other victims.
Two months ago, a Spanish court threw out a case filed by other Cuban exiles against Dr Castro, his brother Raul and Cuban officials whom they accused of genocide, terrorism and torture.
Encouraged by Gen Pinochet's arrest, human rights lawyers made a failed attempt to have Mr Laurent-Desire Kabila, the ruler of the former Zaire, arrested for crimes against humanity during the Franco-African summit last November.
Haitian exiles in France have also initiated legal action against the former dictator, Mr Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier.
