Luis Robles' family files an appeal before Cuban justice to change the prison regime

The family of the political prisonerLuis Robles Elizástigui submitted an appeal for criminal review of his case to the Cuban Ministry of Justice; reportedRadio Marti with statements from his brother, Landy Elizástigui.

The relatives base their hopes on the procedures of the new Cuban Penal Code, in force as of next December, helping to reduce not only the5 years of his sentence but the conditions under which it can be fulfilled.

Landy Elizástigui delivered the petition on September 1 but, once the Minjus declares its receipt, it has between 70 and 90 days to rule on the review of the case of political prisoner Luis Robles. Already last May, his lawyer had filed an appeal before the Supreme Court of Cuba against the sentence without further results.

Luis Robles, 29 years old, is serving a 5-year sentence in the Combinado del Este maximum security prison after being arrested on December 4, 2020 for holding up a sign demanding the end of repression in Cuba and the release of protesting rapper Denis Solís, during a protest. alone on the Boulevard de San Rafael, Centro Habana, City of Havana.

From the beginning, his imprisonment has been marked by several irregularities such as delays in proceedings and little transparency in judicial actions. Luis Robles' mother,Yindra Elizástegui reported in June that her son has been a victim in prison of beatings, isolation, solitary confinement and even being photographed naked by his jailers..

On April 23, an inmate on condition of anonymity commented that Luis Robles was scolded by an officer identified as Lieutenant Ramoncito, who handcuffed him and hit him on the head, according to what was publishedCubanet.

At the beginning of the year, Luis Robles' relatives filed a complaint with the Directorate of Prisons for beatings, humiliation and human rights violations. In May, the Cuban authorities classified the complaint as "a farce aimed at discrediting the Cuban prison system," concludes the Martí Noticias note.

The case of the young political prisoner has been the cause ofcriticism of the government by the Cuban Observatory of Human Rights (OCDH) and the government of North American President Joe Biden.

In March 2021, then-acting assistant secretary of the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs of the United States Department of State,Julie Chung stressed that "freedom of expression is a human right". Sharing the same lines on Twitter, the current deputy secretary, Brian A. Nichols, warned that no one should be jailed for displaying a sign.