A reflection for the "liberators of sofas and screens."

There is something that deeply concerns me because it says a lot about us as Cubans subjected to a dictatorship for more than six decades, and especially about the opposition to Castroism.

Since Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara was released from prison and began giving interviews, dozens of "experts" have emerged analyzing each of his responses. Some say he talked too much, some claim he answered poorly, some interpret every word as evidence of something sinister, and, of course, there are the usual suspects: those who, without a shred of proof, return with the old refrain that "he's from the G2."

And one cannot help but ask a question: At what point did an interview become more valuable than five years of political imprisonment? Because an interview lasts minutes. Five years in a dictatorship’s prison last a lifetime.

Five years away from freedom, from your loved ones, subjected to surveillance, psychological pressure, isolation, and the physical and emotional toll of being imprisoned for thinking differently, is no minor detail. Amnesty International has recognized him as a prisoner of conscience and has stated that he should never have spent a single day in prison for peacefully exercising his rights.

However, there are those who seem to forget all of that because they did not like a response.

Others, who have never felt the door of a cell close behind them, allow themselves to judge from the comfort of a sofa, from the keyboard of a phone or a computer, or by profiting on social media, how someone who has just regained their freedom after nearly five years of captivity should speak, think, or behave.

It is very easy to be brave when someone else takes the risk. It is very easy to hand out certificates of patriotism when you have never had to pay the price of exercising it. And it is very easy to demand perfection from someone who has already sacrificed far more than the vast majority would be willing to sacrifice.

The most concerning aspect is not the regime's messengers. I don't expect anything else from them. Their mission has always been to discredit, sow doubts, divide, infiltrate distrust, and morally destroy any uncomfortable voice.

What is truly sad is to see those who claim to fight for a free Cuba using exactly the same strategy.

Because when someone, without a single piece of evidence, accuses a man who spent five years in prison for standing up to the regime of being a G2 agent, they are not conducting a serious analysis... They are defaming and acting as a spokesperson and accomplice for that which they claim to be fighting against.

And when that defamation replaces arguments, it ceases to be an exercise in critical thinking and becomes a free service to the propaganda of power.

Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara has never presented himself as the "savior of Cuba." He has never claimed that he will liberate the country nor has he built a cult around his personality. His role has always been that of a dissenting artist who chose to turn art into a form of resistance against censorship and authoritarianism, becoming one of the most visible figures of the San Isidro Movement.

Does that mean we have to agree with everything that is said? Of course not.

In a free society, we disagree, we debate, we argue, we question ideas. What should not be done is to erase a path of sacrifice just because an interview did not meet our expectations. What should not be done is to destroy someone who has paid a huge price simply because they did not respond exactly as we would have responded... from the comfort of our own home.

The Cuban opposition needs fewer inquisitors and more people capable of recognizing others' merits without sacrificing their critical spirit. It needs fewer egos. Fewer displays of protagonism. Fewer struggles to determine who is the "most pure" opponent.

Because while some compete to prove who has the absolute truth, the regime continues to do what it does best: divide those who oppose it.

I don't usually idealize anyone. Human beings make mistakes. Luis Manuel will also make mistakes, just as I do and just as anyone else does.

But there is one thing I am clear about. Before judging a man based on an interview, ask yourself if you would have endured five years in a political prison without abandoning your principles.

And if the answer is that you don't know... perhaps the most prudent thing is to speak with a bit more humility.

Because the true liberators are not always the ones who talk the most. Many times, they are the ones who have suffered the most... while others merely commented from social media.