Cuban father is arrested for poster against Díaz-Canel

The activist Anamely Ramos reported on social media the detention of the young Cuban Moisés Legrá Díaz, who was arrested in Havana after writing slogans against Miguel Díaz-Canel on a wall near the courthouse in the Arroyo Naranjo municipality.

In his post, Ramos stated that Legrá Díaz "is not a criminal. He harmed no one, he did not commit any violent act. He only wrote Patria y Vida on a public wall near the La Palma court in Arroyo Naranjo." He also noted that he was summoned "for an interview" and that he was later arrested in a "setup."

He explained that the incident occurred in a context of material poverty. He stated that he is the father of three children and that his wife is pregnant. Regarding the situation following his arrest, he reported that he was taken to Villa Marista and remained incommunicado for several days.

The case was later documented by the Cuban Institute for Freedom of Expression and the Press (ICLEP), which issued an alert stating that Legrá Díaz was arrested on February 13, 2026, after making "a public political expression." The organization detailed that on February 5, he wrote the phrase "Patria y Vida" on a wall near the courthouse in the Arroyo Naranjo municipality, and days later, he was summoned "for an interview" and subsequently detained.

According to ICLEP, the citizen was transferred to the Villa Marista headquarters, where he remained incommunicado for nearly a week. He was later allowed a brief family visit under supervision. Although he acknowledged having done the graffiti, the authorities are attempting to charge him with other offenses and accuse him of the alleged crime of propaganda against the constitutional order.

In a video shared on social media by Rolando Nápoles, a relative of the detained individual, details were provided about the circumstances surrounding the incident. "The misery in Cuba, the conditions in Cuba, the government's disregard for the youth and for everything, has led him to feel degraded, the word is degraded, by society," he expressed.

In his testimony, he added that on the day of the incident "the power was out," that they had no gas, and that there were "three children begging for food, with no food." He also recounted that Legrá Díaz "went out and shouted what every Cuban must shout: 'Down with Díaz-Canel, down with the dictatorship!'" and that he later wrote with charcoal in the courthouse: "Cuba, Homeland and Life, down with the dictatorship, down with Díaz-Canel."

ICLEP indicated that it will follow up on the case as part of its monitoring of freedom of expression in Cuba. So far, the authorities have not provided any public information regarding the criminal proceedings against Legrá Díaz.