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The Cuban Freemasonry has denounced what it considers a serious intrusion by the government into its internal affairs following a surprising audit and a subsequent judicial process for alleged "currency trafficking" against a shelter that operates thanks to donations from Freemason brothers abroad. The complaint was issued in a document signed and unanimously approved by the Masonic Board overseeing the "Llansó" shelter.
The report, to which CiberCuba had access, details that on July 1st, a commission composed of officials from the Ministry of Justice (MINJUS), the Comptroller's Office, and the Register of Associations inspected the asylum without prior notice. During the visit, the auditors demanded to review accounting books, vouchers, and details of the foreign currency donations from masons abroad, who finance a significant portion of the center's support.
“We see it as a violation of the autonomy of the Patronage and therefore of Freemasonry,” states the document, emphasizing that the audited funds do not belong to the State and that their use has been solely to support the asylum.
The Board believes that this review is a deliberate attempt to discredit its president and affect the institution's independence, which has provided assistance to vulnerable elderly individuals for years without state intervention. The inspection, according to the auditors, was prompted by an isolated complaint regarding the treatment of an elderly person.
However, the situation escalated on July 9, when the director of the asylum, brother Raúl Acosta, was summoned by a lieutenant colonel from the Ministry of the Interior and informed that he would face a legal process for "currency trafficking", a crime punishable by up to 20 years in prison.
This new offensive adds to the institutional conflict shaking Cuban Freemasonry since May, when hundreds of brethren dismissed then-Grand Master Mayker Filema Duarte for attempting to prolong his tenure. Despite the legality of the internal decision, the Ministry of Justice disregarded the process, supported Filema, and later imposed a new Masonic leader close to the regime.
Since then, Freemasons have been repressed, summoned by the police, expelled from their temples, and threatened with account freezes if they did not comply with the State's demands. Nevertheless, they have continued to resist, even holding sessions in the street, in front of the statue of Carlos Manuel de Céspedes, under heavy police surveillance.
"If the government wants to dominate us, we will not allow it," declared the elected Grand Master, Juan Alberto Kessell Linares.
Moreover, this occurs just 24 hours after the Minister of Justice, Óscar Manuel Silvera Martínez, stated on national television that the government does not interfere in the internal matters of Freemasonry.
"It is an intrusion into our private heritage that has never been used outside of the benefit of asylum", they reiterate in the text, claiming that all donations are justified through vouchers, accounting books, and the authorization of the Board.
A painful decision: to return the donations
In response to what they consider an unjust criminalization of their management, the Board has decided to return the money donated from March 2024 to the present to each brother who contributed it, as a way to prevent further persecution and protect the beneficiaries of asylum.
“It is a very difficult decision that will harm the residents at the Shelter, but this will be the way to avoid future unpleasant situations”, they lament in the statement.
Additionally, a new protocol was approved to prevent future state interference: accounts in foreign currency may only be reviewed by Freemasons with express authorization from the Board of Trustees, access to the accounting books will be restricted to the president and accountant of the institution, and food brought from abroad may not be audited, except for health reasons.
Cuban Freemasonry, one of the oldest civil institutions in the country, is thus facing another of its toughest challenges amid a context marked by economic crisis, increased state control, and the criminalization of independent forms of solidarity management.
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