Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, who recently arrived in Miami this Saturday after serving five years in prison in Cuba, was clear about what is needed to end political imprisonment on the island: the freedom of Cuba.
The artist and co-founder of the San Isidro Movement made statements to journalists and activists who welcomed him in Miami, explaining that in a free Cuba, political imprisonment would automatically cease to exist, and those incarcerated would be released immediately, without conditions, negotiations, or agreed-upon exiles.
"For political prisoners, what exists is freedom. Freedom for Cuba, and with that, everyone goes out into the streets the next day, and of course, there are no more political prisoners," summarized in statements shared on Facebook by the activist of the Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU), José Batista Falcón.
Otero Alcántara spoke from personal experience to denounce the repressive nature of the Cuban totalitarian regime: "I spent five years, neither a day more nor a day less. And I was a well-known political prisoner. And that means that the dictatorship is a dictatorship".
Far from portraying himself as a victim, he acknowledged that he consciously accepted the cost of his resistance and his will to express himself freely, although he downplayed his situation by comparing it to others: "There are people who have spent 20 years in prison... There are people who have suffered more than I have," he stated.
The artist closed his message with the phrase that has become a symbol of unity among Cubans both inside and outside the island: «We are connected».
The regime kept Otero Alcántara in an unknown location for more than 10 days after his sentence officially ended on July 9, when State Security agents removed him from the maximum-security prison in Guanajay, Artemisa, without notifying his family or lawyers.
His release was conditioned on permanent exile, a common practice of the regime to get rid of high-profile opposition figures.
The individual humanitarian parole was approved by U.S. authorities on Friday, July 17, the only mechanism available for Cubans since the Trump administration canceled the collective parole in March 2025.
Otero Alcántara arrived in Miami this Saturday, July 18, aboard American Airlines flight AA2706 from Havana, at around 5:10 p.m. His first destination was the Ermita de la Caridad del Cobre, where he left an offering and hinted at what is to come: “One minute I lose is one more minute of dictatorship.”
The context in which their words arrive is one of utmost seriousness. According to data from the organization Prisoners Defenders as of July 9, Cuba is experiencing a historic record of 1,306 political prisoners, including 40 minors.
Among the most emblematic cases still imprisoned is Maykel Osorbo Castillo, sentenced to nine years, who was transferred on Friday from the maximum-security prison Kilo 8 in Pinar del Río to the one in Guanajay, Artemisa. The rapper has rejected the regime's offer to emigrate in exchange for his freedom.
A massive pardon for 2,010 prisoners announced by the regime in April 2026 explicitly excluded those convicted of "crimes against authority" — the term used to criminalize the protesters from July 11th — and human rights organizations only verified two political prisoners who were actually released in that process.
This Saturday, the U.S. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, issued an official statement welcoming Otero Alcántara, called the Cuban regime "illegitimate," and demanded the immediate release of over 700 political prisoners.
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