Amelia Calzadilla, program coordinator for the organization Ciudadanía y Libertad, appeared before the Equality and Development Cooperation Commission of the Basque Parliament, gathered in Vitoria, to discuss the situation faced by women in Cuba and to denounce the humanitarian crisis affecting the island.
In her testimony, published by Ciudadanía y Libertad on Facebook, the Cuban activist described the crisis in Cuba as a direct consequence of decades of dictatorship. "Our country is experiencing a humanitarian crisis. And it's not a humanitarian crisis that originated a month ago; it's a humanitarian crisis resulting from poor governmental management that has lasted for nearly seven decades," she pointed out.
Calzadilla estimated that around 1,200 people are currently political prisoners in Cuba, a figure that aligns with the 1,214 recorded by Prisoners Defenders in February 2026. He warned that this number is constantly changing; "as demonstrations occur on the Cuban streets, new individuals are being admitted to the prisons."
The activist emphasized the central role of women in the protests. "Women are the true protagonists of these demonstrations because ultimately, the burden of the family, the weight of the children, inevitably falls on the mothers." She accused the regime of responding with "violence and exemplary lessons," and noted that the repression is not limited to activists but also extends to their families.
As a concrete example of this repression, Calzadilla revealed that on the same day of his intervention in Vitoria, a young activist who had recorded a video for the parliamentary session was summoned by the Cuban political police, who were fabricating a crime against her mother to pressure her.
Before the Basque parliamentarians, he presented two videos, one of a recently released political prisoner and another featuring a young woman who uses social media to amplify the voice of Cuban youth. He also issued a warning about the country's trajectory: "The maintenance of the dictatorship in power is leading our country towards a massive, slow, painful, and silent extermination, because we are forbidden to speak about what is happening."
Calzadilla called on the international community to recognize the peaceful nature of the Cuban people's struggle, to cease any support for the regime, and to exert real pressure. "If this crisis continues, we foresee that it could turn into a process of violence, and we do not want that," he warned.
Citizenship and Freedom is a Cuban civil society organization founded in 2024, led by historian and activist Carolina Barrero, that operates from exile and documents the systematic repression against independent organizations on the island.
"The fate of our opponents is either prison or exile. And we want to be able to return to our country and we want to be able to rebuild it," concluded Calzadilla before the Basque lawmakers.
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