The Cuban regime was “Surprised“Due to the spontaneous demonstrations of July 11, to which he responded with”brutality“, so that “it is likely that by November 15 he will be more prepared”Said José Miguel Vivanco, director for the Americas of Human Rights Watch (HRW), in Miami.
The HRW manager warned that in Cuba there are still around 500 people in jail without being legally processed.
“The repression in Cuba has been systematic, it has not been accidental and obeys a State policy to stop at its roots any attempt by the people to organize a peaceful protest.“Vivanco pointed out when presenting a”comprehensive”Report on police arrests and abuses following the July 11 protests.
The report, presented at Miami Dade College, is based on the documentation of at least 130 cases of arbitrary detentions, mistreatment and false trials.
It was made public on the 100th day of the massive protests on the island on July 11 and less than a month after a peaceful march called in Havana by the Archipiélago internet platform, which has been disapproved by the Government as “illegal ”.
On July 11, thousands of people spontaneously took to the streets in the largest anti-government protests in six decades in Cuba, which resulted in hundreds of arrests (more than a thousand, according to activists) and prison sentences.
Vivanco stated that the objective of this report was “visualize and record what nobody is doing”.
He focused, he said, on “document what happened to the peaceful demonstrations and how the regime reacted”.
“We cannot enter Cuba, we were able to carry out all the investigations thanks to the fact that we had access to judicial decisions and testimonies of people.”, He detailed.
At the press conference, the contribution to this investigation of independent Cuban organizations such as the digital newspaper Cubanet and the legal center Cubalex was highlighted.
The repressive machinery of Cuba
“We have done many reports on Cuba since the end of the eighties, we have a book called ‘The repressive machinery of Cuba’ (1999), which I recommend reading, but now the Cuban regime does not allow us to enter“Vivanco pointed out and recalled that he himself was in Cuba years ago”negotiating with Fidel Castro the release of political prisoners”.
“We have been working on human rights for more than 35 years and Cuba has been one of our priorities”, He highlighted.
Among the patterns of repression used by the Cuban regime to quell the July demonstrations and included in the Vivanco report, he listed “constant abusive interrogations”, Sexual harassment, humiliation and sleep deprivation.
He mentioned the case of an activist named María Cristina to whom the agents forced her to shout “Long live Fidel!”.
He also stated that “there are minors detained”, Referring to a 17-year-old boy who he did not identify and who was“ forced to undress in front of the guards and do squats ”.
Vivanco also referred to the activist and artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara as a “special concern“From HRW, as he continues to be detained”for contempt”, As José Daniel Ferrer, leader of the Patriotic Union of Cuba (Unpacu), is also still in prison. “Your criminal case is a complete fraud”, He remarked about Ferrer.
In general, he advocated for the universal right to public protest, and detailed that there were even simple passers-by who were arrested. “They were processed as if they belonged to a criminal organization, just for protesting,” Vivanco emphasized.
“We hold judges and prosecutors accountable” that “they are bureaucrats subject to the executive branch”He added.
Cuban regime is not isolated
On the position of the governments of democratic countries, he emphasized the current Mexican executive. “Countries where there is a free press and democracy, with governments like the case of (President Andrés Manuel) López Obrador had a regrettable position“, he pointed.
“It is unfortunate, sad, scandalous that (López Obrador) has received (Cuban President Miguel) Díaz-Canel. Deserves a conviction“, he claimed.
“We would like the international community to put pressure on the Cuban regime, but that does not happen. The Cuban regime is not isolated, it is irrational that it has not been achieved (isolating it) in 60 years”Vivanco commented.
From his point of view, a possible solution for a change in Cuba is “build a multilateral policy” So what “the whole world condemn the embargo”Commercial from the United States to the island.
“The best thing (US President Joe) Biden can do is gradually dismantle the embargo on Cuba”, He said.
“I have been advocating for freedoms in Cuba for almost 30 years and every time I talk to heads of state, both from the left and the right, the first thing they mention is the embargo”, He stated, and added:“As long as that exists, the discussion and debate will be about the United States sanctions against Cuba, not about the state of human rights ”.
Referring to the United States, he said: “The key here is not held by the Executive, it is held by Congress, which is the one that controls policy towards Cuba “.
“An empirical discussion is needed in the (US) Congress. It is not easy to get out of a dictatorship so consolidated in power. We will see if by November 15 people will be able to exercise their universal right or if fear will prevail”Vivanco alerted.
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