Cuban leader Miguel Díaz-Canel denied this Friday that the release of 51 prisoners announced by the regime is linked to the discussions Havana is having with the United States.
During a press conference with regime media and members of the government leadership, the president responded to a question regarding the announcement made by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that the government will release 51 prisoners in the coming days.
The question recalled that the official statement indicated: “In the spirit of goodwill of close and fluid relations between the Cuban State and the Vatican, the government of Cuba has decided to release 51 individuals sentenced to deprivation of liberty in the coming days.”
In response to that question, Díaz-Canel dismissed the idea that the decision is due to external pressures. “I will answer you, it is a sovereign practice, no one imposes it on us, we decide it sovereignly. It is not unique; we have done it at other times. Even in the statement, there are details about moments when we have resorted to that sovereign practice; we are doing it at this time for the reasons explained in the statement.”
The ruler also stated that the measure responds to what he described as a practice of the Cuban judicial system: “In this case, notice that he is acknowledging that they are individuals who have maintained good behavior.”
He also anticipated criticism following the announcement of the releases: “As always, get ready now, the media intoxication will come, the search for connections with other events, the distortion of realities, but we have made a sovereign decision and there it is.”
The announcement of the releases occurred on Thursday, when the Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that the regime will release 51 prisoners as part of the exchanges held with the Vatican, as detailed in the report on the regime's decision to release 51 prisoners following the dialogue with the Holy See.
According to the official statement, the beneficiaries have served part of their sentences and have maintained good behavior during their time in prison. Authorities have not disclosed the names of the inmates who are to be released, nor have they clarified whether any political prisoners are among them.
Independent organizations, however, have warned about the lack of transparency in these types of processes. The Justicia 11J platform has documented an underreporting of at least 760 people deprived of liberty for political reasons in Cuba, as highlighted in the report that alerts that at least 760 political prisoners remain in Cuban jails.
The announcement of the releases comes amid ongoing contacts between Havana and Washington. Díaz-Canel himself acknowledged that Cuban officials have engaged in discussions with representatives of the United States government to address bilateral differences and explore potential areas of cooperation, as he explained when he confirmed talks with the United States initiated by Raúl Castro and later stated that it is part of the negotiations with Washington.
In that context, there was also a meeting of the top leadership of the Communist Party and the government at the headquarters of the Central Committee, where Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castro, grandson of Raúl Castro, known as “El Cangrejo,” was seen. His presence was recorded during a high-level meeting about relations with the United States.
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