The Cuban Observatory of Human Rights published this Thursday the first images of the prison release of Sissi Abascal, a Cuban political prisoner sentenced to six years for participating in the protests on July 11, 2021, in Matanzas.
Abascal, 27 years old and recognized as the youngest Lady in White in Cuba, went out of prison and was subjected to forced exile by the regime.
This Thursday, she arrived in Miami with a humanitarian visa granted by the U.S. Department of State, after nearly five years of imprisonment.
His release was facilitated by the Legal Rescue Foundation, led by activist and businessman Santiago Álvarez, who stated: "After much work and patience, as it truly was a long journey, we finally succeeded in having the Cuban dictatorship release Sissi Abascal from prison so that she can address her health issues in the United States."
Abascal traveled accompanied by her mother, Annia Zamora —also a member of the Ladies in White—, and other family members.
She was arrested on November 3, 2021, in Carlos Rojas, a municipality of Jovellanos, Matanzas, and sentenced to six years in prison for the crimes of contempt, assault, and public disorder, a sentence she began serving on December 27, 2021, in the La Bellotex women’s prison in Matanzas.
According to the ruling from the Criminal Chamber of the People's Supreme Court, which Cubalex accessed, his sentence would expire on November 5, 2027, meaning he had approximately 14 months left in prison at the time of his release.
During her imprisonment, Abascal was classified as a "negative inmate" for refusing to participate in mandatory political activities, which earned her at least seven denials for a change in prison regime, the last occurring in September 2025.
In June 2025, prison authorities formally denied her parole, citing her stance of resistance within the prison.
She also suffered from bartolinitis without receiving adequate medical attention, according to her mother, and in October 2022, she was forbidden to receive winter sleepwear.
In early September 2025, the U.S. State Department included her in its "Unjustly Detained" campaign.
The organization Cubalex described her release as "conditional freedom upon exile," noting that "the regime preferred to grant her parole to expel her from the country rather than placing her in a less severe penal regime within Cuba."
The release of Abascal is part of a process of selective releases that began in January 2025, when the regime announced criminal benefits to 553 individuals following negotiations with the United States and the Vatican, although Cubalex verified that only 205 of them were political prisoners.
Cuba still has 775 political prisoners, of which 338 are from 11J, according to data from Justicia 11J from April 2026, and human rights organizations warn that none of these releases are unconditional, but rather conditional and revocable.
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