Cuban doctor in the United States: "In Cuba, my life was a hell."

Ana Karelia Borrego Machado, a Cuban doctor who recently requested political asylum in the United States, recounted the reasons that turned her life in Cuba into a torment, to the point that she decided to leave the country and leave two of her children there until she could reunite with them one day.

In an interview with Telemundo 51, Borrego explained that she was a victim of systematic harassment by the Cuban regime, which classified her as a dissident and nonconformist. "I left Cuba because my life was hell, I was brutally persecuted," she said.

The Cuban regime identified her as "a dissident." She was accused of participating in human rights commissions, and a series of reprisals were unleashed against her, which included constant persecution and harassment by State Security.

This situation led her to seek support from the independent press, which further intensified the repression, to the point of losing her job and being left without a way to provide for her family.

In May 2023, Borrego and one of her three children left Cuba for the Dominican Republic, where she claims she also felt watched. "They would ask me the time and take a photo of my face," she revealed.

This feeling of insecurity led her to the decision to embark on a dangerous journey to the United States in July 2024 along with her oldest son.

After 21 days of traveling, they arrived at the border of the United States with Mexico. They were detained by authorities on August 9. A few days later, Borrego was released with an electronic ankle monitor and an I-220A document, but his son was sent back to Mexico.

This causes him great concern for the violence in that country and because under the new immigration regulations his son could lose the right to return to the United States due to the attempt of illegal entry without using the CBP One appointment as the law establishes.

Borrego and his son cannot return to Cuba. They fear being arrested or pursued by the regime. The Cuban doctor is awaiting her court hearing in the United States and hopes to reunite with her family and find a life in freedom.