"Afraid of dying inside": Serious allegations from inmates and families about abuse and hunger at Veguita No. 1 prison in Granma

Relatives of inmates from Veguita No.1 prison in the municipality of Yara, Granma province, issued an urgent public complaint today, describing a system of abuses, corruption, extreme hunger, and systematic violations of human rights within the facility.

The complaint, published on Facebook by the Cuban opposition figure José Díaz Silva, directly holds the prison chief, Javier Torres Bermúdez, along with officials from the Ministry of the Interior (MININT) and the Communist Party in the municipality of Yara, responsible for maintaining a regime of exploitation and repression against inmates and their families.

Among the most serious complaints is the sale of penitentiary benefits in exchange for money, transfers, or favors—such as open farms, parole, and passes—while inmates with long sentences and years served are denied those benefits due to their inability to pay.

Inmates assigned to open farms work without pay under the threat of having their benefits revoked if they do not comply or fail to provide resources to the supervisors.

On the other hand, the sanitary conditions described are critical: contaminated water with a foul smell that causes diarrhea, dehydration, and illnesses, with authorities refusing to conduct tests despite medical recommendations, and long periods without water supply.

The food provided to the inmates includes spoiled rice, raw food, rotten fish, and spoiled ham, in minimal amounts that are insufficient for survival. Fainting due to hunger and dehydration is a constant issue within the prison, according to the reporters.

The complaint also describes the existence of a group known as "los placá," whose actions within the prison are part of the network of abuses reported by the families of the inmates at Veguita No. 1.

The deterioration of conditions in Cuban prisons is set against a backdrop of increasing repression. Recently, a new beating of a political prisoner by six guards was reported, highlighting a systematic pattern of brutality.

This is compounded by the seven deaths in prisons during February 2026, a figure that reflects the alarming deterioration of the Cuban penitentiary system. The pardon of 2,010 inmates for Holy Week did not alleviate the situation of the most vulnerable, as according to Human Rights Watch, it explicitly excluded those convicted of crimes against authority.