The Cuban State Security imposed a new precautionary measure on José Ramón Viñas Alonso this Tuesday, Sovereign Grand Commander of the Supreme Council of the 33rd Degree for the Republic of Cuba, after subjecting him to interrogation for an alleged offense of "disobedience," according to a video released by CubaNet in which the Masonic leader himself recounts what occurred.
The measure requires Viñas Alonso to appear every Wednesday at two in the afternoon to sign in front of the authorities, as well as imposing movement restrictions and a ban on leaving the country. "They just placed a precautionary measure on me. I can't leave my house, I can't leave the province, it's all the same," the Mason leader declared after leaving the police station.
The interrogation was conducted by a criminal instructor from the Department of Crimes Against State Security, which led Viñas Alonso to openly question the logic of state intervention: "We do not understand how an administrative dispute between the Ministry of Justice and the Supreme Council has become a matter of State Security."
The Masonic leader attributed this interest to the historical weight of the institution: "The only idea I could have is the prestige, the gathering, the history that Freemasonry has. There should always be a concern regarding the Masonic institution."
This episode is the most recent in a series of pressures that began at least in July 2021, when Viñas Alonso was summoned for the first time by State Security after signing a letter critical of Miguel Díaz-Canel and the repression following the protests of July 11.
Since then, the pressure on the Masonic Supreme Council has continued to intensify. In May 2025, the MINJUS attempted to impose Lázaro Faustino Cuesta Valdés as interim leader in place of Viñas Alonso, threatening to revoke the official recognition of the organization and freeze its funds.
On July 30, 2025, the regime initiated criminal proceedings against Viñas Alonso and Grand Master Juan Alberto Kessel Linares, and days later, State Security interrogated him for an alleged currency trafficking offense. On August 7, 2026, Cuban freemasons gathered in Havana to support their leader in response to a new intervention attempt by the MINJUS.
Viñas Alonso maintains that, although the Supreme People’s Court issued a ruling that the government uses to deny his position, his Masonic brothers do recognize him fraternally. "Legally I am not recognized by you, and we accept that to avoid disobedience. But fraternally, my brothers acknowledge me as such," he stated.
Regarding the future of the leadership, the Masonic leader announced that the decision about his continuation is not up to him or the State. "In September, the High Chamber will evaluate, which is the one in front of the Supreme, will evaluate whether to hold elections or not," he explained, stressing that "all the decisions we make in the Supreme Council are by vote."
Cuban Freemasonry consists of tens of thousands of members and has historically been one of the few civil organizations with a degree of autonomy from the State, which, according to Viñas Alonso himself, would explain the regime's efforts to control it.
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