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The wife of Ernesto Ricardo Medina, one of the members of the independent project El4tico detained in Holguín, shared a message recalling that it has been 15 days since the young man has been in prison.
"It's been 15 days since I received the embrace of the companion that Jesus sent into my life. 15 days filled with so many things I never imagined, but if there's one thing he has taught me, it’s to be strong and endure whatever comes," wrote Doris Santiesteban, mother of a three-year-old girl, on Facebook.
The woman recounted her daughter's anguish, who constantly asks about her father, and described how she faces the difficult task of explaining his absence without hurting her.
"My daughter, her daughter! cries out for her father's presence, her prince, her protector, her daddy. What can I say to a little girl of just three and a half years old? What can I tell her about where her dad is without hurting her?" she expressed.
Doris described Ernesto as a brave man who fears no one, someone her daughter must be very proud of. "He risked his family and his freedom for saying things that no one else dared to say," she emphasized.
Ernesto Ricardo Medina and Kamil Zayas Pérez make up El4tico, a dissident space that emerged in Holguín, where both challenge power from a small room turned into a studio.
Through sociopolitical analysis and critiques of Cuban reality, they have managed to gather thousands of followers online, becoming one of the most visible alternative spaces on the Island.
As she did days ago, Doris thanked everyone who has supported, prayed, and raised their voice for the two influencers. "May God bless you infinitely. Daddy, I'm here waiting to dance together to all the songs we haven't been able to dance to," she concluded the message.
The arrest of Ernesto and Kamil took place on February 6 in Holguín during a police operation that included a search of their home and the confiscation of computers, phones, cameras, and other equipment used to create critical content against the Cuban regime.
Since then, the young people have been held in pretrial detention at the Criminal Instruction headquarters in Holguín, known as "Everybody Sings," where, according to family members and activists, violent interrogations and degrading treatment are carried out.
The detention falls within a pattern of repression against critical voices on the Island, imposing a high human cost on their families.
The case has generated international reactions.
The U.S. Department of State condemned that "the illegitimate Cuban regime continues with its daily acts of repression and abuses".
On his part, Cuban American Congressman Carlos A. Giménez demanded their release: "We don't know where they are, we don't know if they are okay."
On social media, activists, artists, and citizens are promoting the hashtag #TodosSomosEl4tico to demand justice and raise awareness of the repression faced by young people and their families.
As legal resources progress and public pressure continues, the testimony of Doris Sant Bat highlights the human cost of repression: a small child who does not understand her father's absence, parents facing the anguish of detention, and a community that continues to demand freedom of expression and respect for human rights in Cuba.
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