Following the resumption of releases this week, nine opposition members have been released from prison
14ymedio, Havana, 28 February 2025 — Five other Cuban political prisoners – Yunaiky de la Caridad Linares Rodríguez, Andy Alexis Martín Pérez, Luis Armando Cruz Aguilera, Lázaro Antonio Rodríguez Jerez and Abel Lázaro Machado Conde – were released this Friday. After stopping the releases in January, the Regime resumed them as the result of a negotiation with the Vatican. All the prisoners had been arrested during the popular protests of 11 July 2021 (11J) and given sentences of up to 10 years.
Martín Pérez received the prison benefit yesterday afternoon, when the release from prison of four other political prisoners was also announced: Iván Mauricio Arocha Arocha, Ohaurys Rondón Rivero, Brusnelvis Adrián Cabrera Gutiérrez and Yaquelin Castillo García.
According to the organization Justicia 11J, Martín Pérez – father of five children and a “ponchero“* by profession – was arrested in Colón, Matanzas. After his arrest, he was prosecuted by a military court, and the prosecutor asked for 22 years in prison for sabotage, robbery with force and public disorder.
Linares Rodríguez, for her part, was the first person released from prison this Friday, and according to CubaNet was put on parole. The 27-year-old – she was 24 at the time of the demonstrations – was arrested in Havana and “was incommunicado for two days,” Justicia 11J clarifies.
For her participation in the Toyo corner protest, which left the iconic image of the overturned patrol car, she was accused of sedition
For her participation in the Toyo corner protest, which left the iconic image of the overturned patrol car, she was accused of sedition; the prosecutor’s office requested 17 years in prison. The sentence was 10 years, and after an appeal by the family, it was reduced to eight, which she served in the Women’s Prison of the West, also called El Guatao, in the capital.
Yunaiky [Linares Rodríguez] suffers from thyroid problems, and during her confinement she reported that she did not receive medication. On several occasions she was taken to a punishment cell after she demanded that her rights be respected. Her helplessness and pain for the injustices she endured in prison led her to self-harm,” said Justicia 11J.
During her time in prison, her mother, Niurka Rodríguez García, carried out a very intense activism for the cause of political prisoners and tirelessly reported the violations of the rights suffered by Linares Rodríguez and other women prosecuted for their participation in the historic demonstrations.
The releases were negotiated between the Vatican and Havana, which promised the release of 553 prisoners throughout 2025, allegedly to show the “spirit of Jubilee” and the humanism of the Cuban Government. The statements, made at the beginning of the year, coincided with the decision of former US President Joe Biden to remove the Island from the list of states that sponsor terrorism.
After the arrival of Donald Trump at the White House on January 20, Cuba was again included on the list, and the releases stopped. Until that moment, about 200 political prisoners had left Cuban prisons – more than 30 of whom had already finished their sentences – along with others, common prisoners.
After Donald Trump’s arrival at the White House on January 20, Cuba was again included on the list, and the releases were stopped
With the most recent five, there have been 219 releases of political prisoners, but this not guarantee their acquittal. They are on conditional parole.
Mike Hammer, Special Envoy for the U.S. Embassy in Havana, arrived on the Island shortly before the releases began and, since then, has been involved with activists, political prisoners and opponents.
This Friday, the diplomat posted on the Embassy Facebook account: “On my second visit to Matanzas, I met with Maibel Gelin and Alexey Rodríguez, parents of political prisoner José Alejandro Rodríguez Gelin, and with Rosemery Bello, wife of political prisoner Yasmany Porras. We join their request for the release of their relatives and other political prisoners.”
One day before, he visited former political prisoner Samuel Pupo Martínez and his wife Yuneisy Santana González, who thanked the diplomat for their interest in the Cuban opposition and for the testimonies of those who have been imprisoned for political reasons.
In recent weeks, Hammer visited other opposition figures such as José Daniel Ferrer, who was also released from prison as part of the agreement; the leader of the Ladies in White, Berta Soler; the dissident Martha Beatriz Roque, who was hospitalized; Félix Navarro; and the teacher and activist Bárbara Alina López in Matanzas.
*Translator’s note: Someone who repairs flat tires
Translated by Regina Anavy
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