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The Cuban writer and journalist Jorge Fernández Era and his wife Laideliz Herrera Laza arrived in Madrid on Sunday, marking the end of more than three years of repression, harassment, and restrictions imposed by the Cuban regime.
The intellectual announced the news on Facebook with a message titled "IT IS POSSIBLE," in which he recounted the long journey from his detention to the moment the plane touched down in Spain.
"Yesterday, March 29, 2026, Laide and I landed in Madrid. This is my first trip to Europe. Laide had never even been on a plane," wrote the writer.
It all began on April 6, 2023. Fernández Era, who each month tried to peacefully demonstrate in Central Park in Havana to demand the release of political prisoners, was arrested three blocks from his home during an operation by State Security.
That day, he and his wife were heading to the UNEAC to apply for visas, as they needed to present two books published by the Guantanamera publishing house from Valencia in Madrid.
"I was prevented from traveling. A precautionary measure forbidding me to leave the country and another for house arrest supported an illegal and senseless judicial case against a man who only commits the crime of thinking," he denounced.
During that period, he faced charges of "Disobedience," "Disrespect towards the leaders of the Revolution," "Defamation against military officials," and "Sedition," offenses that placed him under the threat of a possible life sentence.
Harassment included multiple arbitrary detentions, beatings, and death threats. In July 2025, a lieutenant colonel from State Security physically assaulted him at the Zanja Unit, and the writer posted images of the injuries on Facebook.
On November 19 of that year, the head of the PNR Unit of Aguilera notified him that the charges were dismissed. "Free men travel," wrote Fernández Era as he recalled that moment.
However, the harassment did not stop with the case dismissal. On March 18, the same day he was summoned by the Spanish embassy to process his visa, he was interrogated by a lieutenant colonel from State Security at the Zanja Unit. On March 20, he learned that the visas had been granted.
The latest intimidation attempt occurred last Saturday at José Martí International Airport, where local authorities called him in for a thorough inspection of his belongings. He was then taken to an office where the same lieutenant colonel and an agent identified as "Evelio" were waiting for him.
"It was another section of psychological torture in which they once again caught the aforementioned with the door, as I confronted them at the risk of having to return home with a fallen visa," the writer recounted.
Regarding the attitude of the lieutenant colonel, Fernández Era did not hold back his irony: "He is so cynical that he wished me a happy journey and assured me that his desire is to help me. I replied that I surrendered to his charm, suggesting that, under his leadership, a humorous group should emerge in Villa Marista."
Despite everything, the couple managed to board the flight. In Madrid, they were welcomed by friends and took a tour of the city, including a visit to the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium. The trip also has a family purpose: to visit the writer's aunt, the only sister of his mother, who lives in Fuerteventura and turned 80 on February 11.
"Upon realizing how much we had lost three years ago due to the repression of a totalitarian state that takes its people hostage," Fernández Era reflected.
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