Numerous international human rights organizations have demanded this Thursday, three years after the historic protests of July 11, the release of the more than 600 prisoners who still remain unjustly imprisoned for their participation in those demonstrations.
Prisoners Defenders noted on the social network X, formerly known as Twitter, that in the last three years they have counted a total of 1,728 political prisoners.
"Today, there are still 1,117 political prisoners on the island," the organization stressed and pointed out that "150 were already listed as political prisoners before July 11th."
Finally, it was reported that 611 prisoners from the July 2021 demonstrations have already fully served their sentences.
Victims of Communism, a non-profit educational, research, and human rights organization dedicated to commemorating those who have suffered under communist regimes, noted in X that: "We must not abandon their struggle for democracy."
The association pointed out that more than 700 people are still behind bars, out of the more than 1,400 who were detained after the Cuban people took to the streets in search of freedom.
On their website, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) and the Special Rapporteurship for Freedom of Expression (SRF) warned about the increase in repression by the Cuban regime against activists and human rights defenders, as well as the worsening conditions that led to the protests.
In addition, they urged the Cuban government to address the legitimate demands of the people and demanded the release of all individuals imprisoned for their participation or support of social protests.
The IACHR warned that this year civil society has carried out new protests mainly driven by the worsening of the conditions that led to the 2021 demonstrations.
However, he denounced that the State has once again used the same repressive patterns that the IACHR has documented since July 11th.
The organization highlighted that during the protests on March 17 and 18, 2024, reports were received of militarized cities, activists under surveillance in their homes, internet shutdowns, and at least 37 people detained. Additionally, there were reports of interrogations and detentions of activists for their social media posts, and proposed immigration regulations that could threaten exiled individuals.
Amnesty International, for its part, highlighted on social media X that the protests on July 11 and 12 represented a historic demand for human rights in Cuba.
He emphasized that the only crime committed by the protesters who were unjustly imprisoned was to demand their rights.
The organization pointed out that the repressive actions of the Cuban regime had a human cost that extended beyond the prisons: "Whole families are torn apart, they face harassment and repression for demanding rights for their loved ones, trapped behind bars."
However, as warned by the organization Cubalex, three years after the historic protests on July 11, "the causes that triggered the social explosion of 2021 are still in force."
The group also pointed out that the country currently shows "an alarming panorama of repression and serious human rights violations."
Several Cuban artists living abroad have joined the initiative to commemorate the historic protests of July 11, 2021, by posting messages of support and demanding justice for the political prisoners who are still detained in the regime's prisons.
Los Pichy Boys, Randy Malcom, Leoni Torres, Baby Lores, Andy Vázquez, and Yotuel, among others, recalled the demonstrations and warned that the root causes of the social unrest continue, such as the lack of political freedom, freedom of expression, and artistic creativity.
Of the historic and massive protests that took place on July 11th and 12th in several cities in Cuba against the regime, there are still 600 protesters imprisoned out of the 1,500 detained for peacefully defending their dream of freedom.
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