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Mob attacks on Castro's critics are increasing (Rapid Response Brigades)***……..Fariñas was a victim of an old-time Cuban government tactic that's back with a vengeance: ''acts of repudiation'' -- mob attacks by Castro supporters against critics of the government, first used in 1980 during the Mariel boatlift, which brought more than 125,000 refugees to South Florida. Dissidents on the island say they have logged more than 50 such attacks in the past six months alone.

While the government paints them as spontaneous acts by committed socialists, Cuba-watchers say they are part of a concerted campaign by the Cuban government to quell opposition. Dissidents also have reported evictions, detentions, random acts of violence, 40 arrests and some confrontations with semi-official groups of tough men known as Rapid Response Brigades.

The flood of incidents against dissidents underscores a tenuous time in Cuba, as the government openly struggles to combat corruption and grapples with a fragile economy and a rising number of migrants headed to sea. Experts say it may also be a response to an increase in dissidence. A December report by the International Republican Institute recorded 1,805 acts of civil disobedience in 2004, up from 959 in 2002.

''We are seeing levels of oppression we haven't seen in 20 years in Cuba,'' said Caleb McCarry, the U.S. State Department's Cuba transition coordinator. ``It's a clear indication that the dictatorship fears the Cuban people.'' ………***