Political prisoners, Afro-descendants, and chronically ill inmates are identified as the main affected groups.
EFE (via 14ymedio), February 28, 2026 – The NGO Cuban Prison Documentation Center (CDPD) recorded 59 human rights violations in Cuban prisons and one inmate who died due to medical negligence in January 2026, according to its report for that period released this Friday.
In this update on the situation in Cuban prisons, the Mexico-based NGO reported that at least 31 people deprived of liberty (2 women and 29 men) were identified as affected by some of these violations.
The CDPC also lamented the death of political prisoner Lázaro García Ríos, who was serving a 20-year prison sentence imposed in 2022, accused of the crimes of enemy propaganda and sabotage.
It states that García Ríos underwent heart surgery and, although “medical tests indicated that he had not fully recovered,” he was returned to Combinado del Este prison (Havana). He later filed complaints about the deterioration of his health, “without evidence that timely and adequate medical care was granted by prison authorities.”
The NGO indicated that it documented rights violations in 22 prisons across 14 provinces. Among them, the eastern province of Las Tunas recorded the highest number of complaints (10), mainly in the “El Típico” prison.
It again pointed out that the most affected groups are prisoners held for political reasons, Afro-descendants, and those living with chronic illnesses, clarifying that multiple categories of vulnerability may coincide in a single individual.
The report emphasized that poor living conditions are a widespread constant.
It also states that international human rights organizations expressed concern over the health situation of political prisoners and urged authorities to grant their “immediate and unconditional release.”
The report stressed that poor living conditions are “a generalized constant,” characterized by “insufficient, poorly prepared, and spoiled food, severe malnutrition, scarcity of drinking water, deteriorated infrastructure, lack of mattresses, insect infestations, and epidemiological outbreaks without proper treatment.”
As punishment for inmates who report these situations, the report states that authorities have restricted or monitored their communications, placed them in solitary confinement, transferred them to other prisons, and denied them medical care. This is compounded by beatings carried out with impunity and threats.
Testimonies are also cited of “sexual violence perpetrated by other inmates with the instigation of prison authorities,” as well as the fabrication of new criminal charges to prevent access to prison benefits and restrictions on family and conjugal visits.
The CDPC stressed that the information included in its report represents “an undercount of the real events and victims.”
Finally, it explained that it is impossible to obtain complete documentation due to “the systematic opacity of the Cuban regime, which refuses to make official information about its prison system transparent, prevents independent observers from accessing prisons, and criminalizes the documentation of human rights violations in these spaces.”
Translated by Regina Anavy
______________________
COLLABORATE WITH OUR WORK: The 14ymedio team is committed to practicing serious journalism that reflects Cuba’s reality in all its depth. Thank you for joining us on this long journey. We invite you to continue supporting us by becoming a member of 14ymedio now. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.