14ymedio, Havana, 28 September 2021 — The initiative of the Archipelago collective is getting more and more support in the main Cuban cities. The last to join the demonstrations called for this coming November 20 (20N) are Cienfuegos and Guantánamo.
In the city of Cienfuegos, a dozen people presented the corresponding notification to Governor Alexandre Corona Quintero and the mayor of the City Council of the city, Mario Liván Abrahantes Quintero, for a march against violence and a demand that the rights of all Cubans be respected.
The demonstration will leave the intersection between Calzada and Gloria until it reaches [José] Martí Park, where it is planned that a wreath will be placed to the hero of national independence. The march will last about three hours, starting at 2:00 pm, and the presence of about 2,000 people is expected.
Like the previous calls, for Havana, Holguín and Santa Clara, the objective is also to demand freedom for political prisoners and the solution of differences between Cubans through democratic and peaceful means. In addition, it is noted in the text that the current Constitution does not prevent demonstrations and that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights considers the right to march without violence a basic right.
The text indicates, as its previous references, that the anti-covid regulations will be complied with and public order will be kept at all times and a response to the request is requested which, if not received, will be considered affirmative.
In Guantánamo they also delivered a similar document addressed to Mayor Yuni Silvente Calderín. The request was signed by nine people and specifies that the demonstration will begin on Flor Crombet and Oriente streets, and will culminate in Mariana Grajales Park. In addition, the participation of around 2,000 people is expected, the document points out.
This movement, which already comes from five Cuban provinces, has been joined by the Cuban Christian Democratic Party (PDC), which released a statement on Monday in which it expresses its support.
The party defends that the march has been “called in evident conformity with citizens’ rights to peaceful assembly and association” recognized by national and universal legislation, and “urges the Government of Cuba to order that the country’s law enforcement agencies provide protesters due protection during the course” of it.
Furthermore, it asks the international community to express itself clearly and firmly regarding the Cuban people “who have been seeking for more than six decades to be able to peacefully exercise their democratic rights” and condemn the “campaign of discrediting and intimidation” that the authorities have been launched in recent days against the organizers of the march, mainly the artist Yunior García , the visible head of the Archipelago group.
The statement is signed by the president of the PDC, Andrés Hernández, and the three vice presidents of the party, among whom is Enix Berrio, the artist’s uncle, and the leader of the San Isidro Movement, Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, in prison since the anti-government demonstrations of July 11.
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