The two animals that escaped from Ariel Ruiz Urquiola's farm have returned home after being held for two days by a neighbor. Initially, the neighbor did not want to reach an agreement with the mother of the Cuban scientist, who lives in Switzerland because the Havana regime prevents her from entering the Island.
Instead of reaching an agreement with the mother of the Ruiz Urquiola family regarding compensation, the neighbor, known as El Niño Dopico, went to the authorities at the Ministry of Agriculture in the municipality, as confirmed by the activist himself during two live broadcasts from CiberCuba to denounce what was happening in real time.
The animals were out in the sun and tied up for hours, during which Ariel Ruiz Urquiola's mother feared the worst: that they would be confiscated. In this case, the situation was particularly painful because she helped one of the detained calves to be born. Ultimately, the media attention surrounding what was happening in real-time has produced results.
On the same day that the animals were seized, one of the workers at the farm that Ariel Ruiz Urquiola has under usufruct in Viñales (Pinar del Río) resigned, and he has been unable to renew the contract because he is not allowed to enter Cuba to do so. This situation, created by the regime itself, has been exploited by the authorities of the Ministry of Agriculture to argue that due to the breach of contract, the farm must be vacated and the animals confiscated.
Last November, officials from the Communist Party, reminiscent of the old Rural Guard, approached the farm to announce that they would terminate the usufruct contract and force a sale of the livestock. On February 21, they arrived at the farm and took two animals.
On this occasion, they have taken a different approach, but the goal remains the same: to gradually take all the animals away. Ariel Ruiz Urquiola's mother is determined to stay in Viñales "until the last cow."
For his part, Ruiz Urquiola has begun a peaceful protest outside the Bundeshaus in Bern (Switzerland) to demand respect for his family's rights and the acknowledgment of crimes against humanity.
"I am in front of the Bundeshaus to raise awareness among Swiss parliamentarians to reconsider the concept of crimes against humanity in accordance with the Rome Statute, which implies the systematic nature of crimes committed by those who hold the misgovernment of Cuba, but not numbers. Human Rights Campaign titled: 'Recognizing Crimes Against Humanity in Switzerland,' with the slogan 'Justice Beyond Numbers—Make It Right!' Ariel Ruiz Urquiola clarified to CiberCuba."
In a video sent to CiberCuba, Ariel Ruiz Urquiola thanks the audience of this platform for helping him recover these two animals while his mother remains steadfast in her fight to get back the pregnant cow (Rita) and the donkey (Guana), which were forcibly taken away on February 21 by the head of Livestock, Carlos Fleitas, under the orders of the Minagri delegate in Viñales, Jorge Miguel Martínez Hernández.
"I want to thank you for helping us amplify this other flagrant violation of human rights against an elderly woman, in this case, my mother, and against animals, which also have rights. However, in a country where there are no rights for people, what rights can there be for animals?"
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