HAVANA: Hundreds of people, including dozens of dissident artists and opposition activists, remain detained in Cuba a month after unprecedented anti-government protests, according to rights groups.
Thousands took to the streets nationwide on Jul 11 to protest a dire economic crisis and curbs on civil rights. The government said the unrest was fomented by counter-revolutionaries exploiting hardship caused largely by US sanctions.
Rights group Cubalex has recorded around 800 detentions, a number that has risen daily as relatives come forward. Many are still too afraid to report the arrest of family members, said Cubalex director Laritza Diversent.
While 249 people have been released, many to house arrest, most remain in “preventative jail”, she said. The whereabouts of 10 people is unknown.
Dozens have already been sentenced to up to a year in prison or correctional work in summary trials, with simplified procedures and often without the chance of hiring a defence lawyer on time, said Diversent.
“The government’s aim is to make an example of those who protested, to stop others from doing the same,” she said.
The government did not respond to requests for comment for this story.
Cuban authorities have not given a figure for the total number of detained in the recent unrest but say they have so far carried out trials for 62 people, 22 of which had hired a lawyer. All but one have been deemed guilty of crimes including public disorder, resisting arrest, and vandalism, they said.
The protests were largely peaceful, although state media showed some demonstrators looting and throwing stones at police. One person died and several people, including government supporters, were injured, authorities have confirmed.
Several of those sentenced were not protesting, but were caught up in the unrest, according to their relatives.
Yaquelin Salas, 35, says her husband intervened peacefully in the arrest of a woman, calling on police agents to not treat her so aggressively. Now he is serving a 10-month prison sentence on charges of public disorder after a collective trial in which just two of the 12 detained had lawyers.
“What they are doing is totally unfair,” said Salas.
