Government recognizes increase in femicides and violence against women in Cuba

The regime recognized an alarming increase in femicides and cases of violence against women in Cuba during the first half of 2023.

"In the first half of 2023, a greater number of femicides and complaints by women victims of violence were evident, something that calls us to continue working to prevent the occurrence of events as devastating for a society as these," he said in a statement. press conference by the general secretary of the Federation of Cuban Women, Teresa Amarelle Boué.

Quoted by the Granma newspaperThe Demajagua The official announced that from November 25 to December 10 there will be a day to fight againstviolence against women and girls to promote spaces for help; preventive work, and the dissemination of laws that protect women.

Likewise, the dissemination of the Program for the Advancement of Women and the Comprehensive Strategy for Prevention and Attention to Violence will be intensified, he stressed.

For her part, the vice president of the National Union of Jurists of Cuba, Yamila Peña Ferrer, said that there are more complaints about violence against women.

However, she justified that "it does not have to be exactly because there are more cases of violence, that cannot be stated," and attributed it to the fact that now "women feel more supported and safe to report."

According to the jurist, this is due to "the construction of a regulatory framework, from a legal and institutional perspective, that protects women."

She also attributed this increase in complaints to "the action protocols signed by the different authorities," and said that "to the extent that they are complied with effectively, women will gain greater security."

The official did not mention the impact on this phenomenon ofthe surveillance established by independent Cuban feminist organizations, which have established protection protocols for victims and promote several demands on the state for the effective protection of women.

The Yo Sí Te Creo platform in Cuba (YSTCC) and the Gender Observatory of Alas Tensas magazine (OGAT) have verified at least76 femicides so far this year, which represent more than double those counted in Cuba in 2022, which were 36 in total.