Measure was announced by the Trump administration on the four -year anniversary of the July 11, 2021 protests, when thousands of Cubans went to the streets shouting ‘we hungry’ and ‘below the dictatorship’
They announced them on Friday (11) sanctions against the president of, Miguel Díaz-Canel, for participation in “serious human rights violations”. The measure marks the fourth anniversary of the July 11, 2021 protests, when thousands of Cubans took to the streets shouting “we hungry” and “below the dictatorship.” It was the largest popular mobilization since the 1959 Revolution. At the time, a person died, dozens were injured and hundreds were arrested.
On the same day of the protests, Díaz-Canel, in a TV speech, urged government supporters to face protesters, which intensified repression. In a statement, the US State Department reported that it is implementing measures to restrict entry into the country as a “key leaders of the Cuban regime”, in solidarity with the island’s people and the political prisoners. In addition to Díaz-Canel, the defense ministers, Álvaro López Miera, and the interior, Lázaro Alberto Álvarez Casas, were also sanctioned.
The US also imposed visa restrictions on dozens of Judiciary agents and the Cuban Penitentiary System accused of involvement in arbitrary arrests and torture of protesters. The names were not disclosed. The measures are part of the hard line policy resumed by President Donald Trump, who, upon returning to the White House in January, signed a memorandum reaffirming the economic embargo and promised to expand the pressure on the Cuban government.
Cuban chancellor Bruno Rodríguez reacted with criticism: “The US can maintain an economic war against Cuba, but they won’t double the will of our people or their leaders,” he wrote on the X (former Twitter) network. Human rights organizations estimate that between 360 and 420 people are in prison for participation in the 2021 protests. The US government speaks in 700 detainees, many under allegations of torture.
This Friday, Senator Marco Rubio, influential in US foreign policy for Latin America, accused Cuba of torture the dissident José Daniel Ferrer. He demanded a “proof of immediate life” and the liberation of all political prisoners. Ferrer, leader of the Patriotic Union of Cuba (Unpacu), had been released in January after an agreement between Cuba and the Vatican, but was revoked in April. Since then, his family denounces that he has been tortured in prison.
“It’s being taken to the limit. You can die at any time,” wrote her sister, Ana Belkis Ferrer. She reported that during a recent visit, the activist’s wife saw head injuries, bruises, mouth and ear injuries, as well as signs of abuse. According to the complaint, he would have been beaten by others arrested at the behest of prison management and forced to eat spoiled soup under threat of violence.
The US State Department also widened the list of prohibited places for American tourists in Cuba. The new version includes 11 properties linked to the Cuban government, including the luxury hotel “Torre K” in Havana. According to Rubio, the goal is to prevent “US dollars from funding repression.” “Unacceptable that the regime invest millions in hotels while lacking food, water, medicine and energy for the population,” said the senator.
*With information from AFP
Posted by Felipe Cerqueira