According to Prisioners Defenders, at least 842 people were in prison on the island at the end of 2021 for political reasons.
Relatives of Cubans arrested as a result of the anti-government protests of July 11 on Monday they asked more than 30 international legations for support in their trials.
The letter, released with the support of the NGO Prisioners Defenders, calls on diplomatic representatives to “accompany as observers” the families of the prisoners in a trial that begins today in Santa Clara (center of the country).
In the event that this is not possible, they urge them to “carry out in their country actions aimed at stopping” the legal proceedings against the July 11 protesters.
The letter is signed by Roxana García Lorenzo, sister of Andy Dunier García Lorenzo, a young man arrested as a result of his participation in the July 11 protest in Santa Clara.
Yúnior García travels to Spain after the demonstrations in Cuba
Among the recipients are representatives of the delegations of more than a dozen European countries, including Spain, Germany, Belgium, Portugal, the United Kingdom and Italy; and from more than ten Latin American nations, such as Mexico, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Peru, Ecuador and Costa Rica; in addition to the legations of the Holy See, the European Union (EU) and the United Nations.
Cuban court gives 10-year sentence to a July 11 protester
According to Prisioners Defenders, a Spanish NGO that defends human rights in Cuba, at least 842 people were in prison on the island for political reasons at the end of 2021, in most cases due to the events of July 11. Among them, the NGO assures that there are 26 children between 14 and 17 years old.
Prisoners Defenders and other NGOs have denounced a lack of guarantees, fabrication of evidence, and very high penalties for defendants in these processes. Cuban judicial authorities ensure that international instruments are strictly complied with.
The Cuban Executive has also denied that they are trials of a political nature. The country’s president, Miguel Díaz-Canel, recently assured that on the island “there are no political prisoners” and that Cubans “can freely demonstrate” against the revolution. He also stressed that in Cuba there are no ordinary prisons under 16 years of age (the minimum criminal age in the country).
The Last July 11, the largest anti-government protests in decades took place in Cuba, spontaneous and massive demonstrations linked to the serious economic crisis that the country is going through. (I)
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