Related videos:
María Victoria Gil, sister of the former Cuban Minister of Economy and Planning, Alejandro Gil Fernández, stated in an interview with Telemundo 51 that her brother “has denied from the very beginning all the crimes he is accused of,” including espionage, considered one of the most serious offenses under the Cuban Penal Code, which carries a sentence of life imprisonment or the death penalty.
From Tenerife, the lawyer and former television presenter recounted that the process against Gil Fernández began in February 2024, when he was removed from his position and subjected to an investigation by the Ministry of Interior (MININT).
"My brother was removed from his position on February 2, and a month later, the prime news broadcast announced that he would be investigated for serious mistakes. Since then, the silence has been absolute," he explained.
Gil Fernández, who has been in provisional detention for more than a year and a half, faces charges of espionage, embezzlement, bribery, tax evasion, money laundering, and forgery of public documents, among other offenses.
The Prosecutor's Office presented the proceedings before the People's Supreme Court on October 31, paving the way for a trial that, according to his sister, will take place before the end of the year.
María Victoria noted that the judicial process will take place behind closed doors, a decision she attributes to the Cuban regime's interest in preventing the exposure of "uncomfortable truths."
"They have established the crime of espionage precisely to have the legal protection that allows them to conduct a closed trial. My brother knows many things that are not in the interest of many people to be known," he stated.
Although she harshly criticized her brother's economic management—whom she referred to as "the architect of the Tarea Ordenamiento and the economic disaster in Cuba"—the woman insisted that he should not be made a scapegoat for the regime's failures.
"When Cuba is free and has a democratic government, he and the entire leadership will have to answer to the people, but he cannot be judged now by his own executioners," he stated.
The lawyer lamented the lack of judicial independence on the island: "In Cuba, there is no separation of powers. It is the State that accuses, judges, and condemns. That is why that life sentence has already been handed down," she stated.
Finally, he called for international support to demand a public and transparent trial, emphasizing that his brother has criminal lawyer Dr. Solar, although he acknowledged that “there is little he can do in the face of a political decision of that magnitude.”
"I will fight for the truth even if I have no hope. My brother is broken, but he deserves to defend himself before the Cuban people," she concluded emotionally.
Filed under: