Political Repression in Cuba: Arrests and International Response

The political repression in Cuba is highlighted by the recent case of Daniel Alfaro Fria, who began a hunger strike on November 2nd to protest his unjust imprisonment and the lack of basic rights in prison.

The U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs condemned the Cuban regime for its treatment of Alfaro Fria, who was sentenced to nine years in prison for propaganda against the constitutional order and illegal demonstrations.

Alfaro Fria, detained in March 2024, is reportedly held in inhumane conditions at Guanajay prison, where he has faced torture and solitary confinement. Additionally, in Matanzas, Alina Barbara Lopez Hernandez, her daughter Lilian Borroto Lopez, and writer Jorge Fernandez Era were recently detained by state security.

Borroto Lopez described the arrests as a form of harassment, asserting that her mother, a 60-year-old professor, has faced repeated detentions and violations of her rights. The U.S. government's public denunciation aims to increase the political cost for the Cuban authorities regarding their treatment of political dissidents and prisoners.

This situation underscores the broader context of human rights abuses in Cuba and the international community's ongoing concerns about the state of civil liberties within the country.