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The Cuban opposition leader José Daniel Ferrer, who was , sent a message to Miguel Díaz-Canel in recent hours, urging him to hold "free and plural elections" in the country and to initiate a process of "national reconciliation."
"It is time to stop harming #Cuba, to put an end to state terrorism against the people, to stop millions of Cubans from suffering all kinds of deprivation and wishing to emigrate to other lands, and to stop the persecution and imprisonment in concentration camps, Nazi-style, of anyone who dissents," Ferrer wrote at the beginning of a message shared on his social media.
"It is time for Cuba to become a free and democratic nation, a friend of the West, to start rebuilding our beautiful homeland, to leave behind hunger and misery," he added.
Next, José Daniel Ferrer called for "free and plural elections" that would allow the Cuban people to regain their "sovereignty."
"It is time to begin an honest process of national reconciliation that does not exclude any Cuban. There is nothing more dangerous than clinging to power and prolonging the suffering of an entire people. Do what reason and justice demand.", he added.
Ferrer, leader of the Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU), who remained imprisoned for the last three and a half years in Santiago de Cuba, advised the ruler to "not wait until it's too late."
"Time is running out and the patience of a desperate people has its limits. I hold no grudges for the tortures inflicted on me by your regime in its terrible prisons, I wish you no harm, but I will never be silent in the face of the evil your regime causes to our nation and I will continue to fight for the rights and well-being of all Cubans, aware that I may return to your prisons and even that I may be murdered," he concluded.
In a previous message on January 20th, Ferrer issued a strong call for unity among all Cubans, both on the island and in the diaspora, to confront the regime and fight for freedom, democracy, and human rights in the nation.
Through a message shared on social media, Ferrer expressed his determination to continue the fight against tyranny following his return to the public eye after three and a half years of unjust and cruel imprisonment.
"It is time for Cubans both on the island and in the diaspora to unite as one front and make it clear to the world our steadfast commitment to conquering our freedom and making Cuba a just and prosperous nation allied with the West," he wrote.
Ferrer García, who was released this past Thursday, in his first statements after leaving prison, had already sent a message of strength and hope to the Cubans, urging them to lose their fear because "the oppressor is increasingly afraid."
“Do not be afraid to fight for a free, just, and prosperous Cuba, do not be afraid to work for a better future for all Cubans, so that we do not have to leave in search of freedom and better living conditions in other lands,” he said on that occasion, in statements to Martí Noticias.
“Do not be afraid to confront the oppressor, because the oppressor is increasingly scared, increasingly weak, and the more we face him directly, confronting him with dignity, decency, and courage, the shorter his existence will be, the less time he will remain in power, the fewer abuses he will be able to commit, and the fewer atrocities he will continue to perpetrate,” he added.
Ferrer concluded that together "we can make Cuba change, we can put an end to oppression, misery, hunger, widespread poverty, and give Cuba and the Cuban people what we have always deserved: a happy Cuba, a free Cuba, a just Cuba, a prosperous Cuba."
Regarded as a "prisoner of conscience" by Amnesty International (AI), José Daniel Ferrer was imprisoned on July 12, 2021, in the context of the anti-government protests on July 11.
Leader of the Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU), Ferrer -who is currently 54 years old- has been a staunch opponent of the Cuban communist regime for many years, which has resulted in multiple imprisonments, persecution, and reprisals for his political activities.
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