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Reyna Yacnara Barreto Batista, young political prisoner of 11J in Camagüey, was released this Wednesday, as reported on social media by her mother, Reyna Luiza Batista Silva.
"Happy, my daughter is free. Thank you, my God, for giving me this joy. Thanks to my family, my children, my friends, and to all those who never turning their backs on us," Batista Silva wrote on Facebook alongside a photo with his daughter.
"It was the first trial held in all of Cuba for the participants of 11J, and now she is the first woman to benefit from the new changes that are coming," he added.
The young woman from Camagüey was held at the prison known as Campamento El Anoncillo for participating in the protests on July 11, 2021.
Three months after those massive protests, Barreto Batista, only 21 years old, was sentenced to four years of correctional labor with internment, on charges of public disorder and assault.
The Cuban regime denied the right to parole on two occasions: first in August 2023, and then in August 2024.
The accusation against Barreto Batista was based on her resistance to a uniformed police officer who attempted to subdue her during the protests on July 11th.
The incident was captured in a video shared on social media. However, instead of being used as evidence of the aggression suffered, the regime used the footage against the young woman.
On January 14th, shortly after the Biden Administration announced the removal of Cuba from the list of state sponsors of terrorism and the suspension of Title III of the Helms-Burton Act, the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MINREX) announced the imminent release of 553 individuals convicted of "various offenses" on the island.
The MINREX emphasized that the releases take place "in the spirit of the Ordinary Jubilee of the Year 2025" and following negotiations with the Catholic Church, the Vatican, and the mediation of Pope Francis.
According to the official statement, Miguel Díaz-Canel sent a letter to the Pope to inform him of the decision.
The organization Amnesty International (AI) demanded the regime for the immediate release of all political prisoners in Cuba.
"Following the announcement by the Cuban government to grant legal benefits to 553 individuals, we demand the immediate release of all people unjustly imprisoned for exercising their rights in Cuba, particularly those imprisoned for their beliefs," stated in a statement disseminated through the social network X.
Amnesty International noted that currently more than 600 people are detained for their participation in protests since 2021 and emphasized that the prisoners of conscience Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, Maykel Castillo Pérez (Osorbo), José Daniel Ferrer García, Loreto Hernández García, Donaida Pérez Paseiro, Roberto Pérez Fonseca, Félix Navarro, Sayli Navarro, and Luis Robles remain deprived of freedom.
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