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The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) granted precautionary measures on January 19 to the Cuban political prisoner Duannis Dabel León Taboada and his mother Yenisey Taboada Ortíz.
The organization considers that Duannis and her mother are in a situation of severity and urgency, as their rights to life, personal integrity, and health are at risk of irreparable harm in Cuba, as stated in a statement from the CIDH.
The IACHR reports that León Taboada is facing acts of violence, a lack of medical attention, and precarious conditions of detention, while his mother is reportedly receiving threats from State Security agents.
Similarly, the body affiliated with the Organization of American States (OAS) reported that the Cuban state did not provide information on the matter and "expressed its concern about not having information regarding immediate medical care or interventions that could reverse the health deterioration noted" in the young man.
In the case of her mother, the IACHR warns of a risk situation that could materialize at any moment given the current context of the country.
In this way, the organization requests the Cuban regime to implement the necessary measures to ensure that León Taboada's detention conditions comply with the applicable international standards and to conduct an immediate comprehensive medical evaluation of his physical and mental health situation.
Furthermore, it must ensure timely and specialized medical treatment, inform the detainee's family members and representatives of the results, and that the political prisoner is not subject to violence, threats, intimidation, or assaults within the penitentiary.
It also calls for the necessary measures to be implemented, with a gender perspective, so that Taboada Ortíz can carry out her activities as a human rights defender without being subject to threats, harassment, intimidation, or other acts of violence in the course of her work.
The case of Duannis
Duannis, 24 years old, was sentenced to 14 years in prison for participating in the anti-government protests of July 11, 2021.
The sedition sentence against him was initially 21 years and then reduced to 14 following an appeal process.
He was accused of alleged damage to a police patrol, although his family maintains that he was simply exercising his right to peaceful protest.
Her mother has held the Cuban state responsible for her son's well-being. The case of Duannis León Taboada represents, for many Cubans, the face of a youth who raised their voice against the regime and ended up behind bars. And that of a mother who, despite the pain and fear, continues to fight to save her son.
Taboada is one of the political prisoners' family members with the most public resonance due to the courage and determination with which she has demanded her son's freedom.
Last July, for instance, this mother stood her ground in front of the Combinado del Este prison in Havana after being denied access to visit her son, who had been on a hunger strike for over a week.
The hunger strike of her son, in response to the injustice of his sentence, left many Cubans on edge until it was interrupted following Taboada's pleas.
In March, the woman reported that she was a victim of sexual assault and mistreatment at the Capri police unit, in Havana, after responding to a summons issued by the authorities.
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