The Cuba Gender Equality Observatory (OCIG), part of the National Office of Statistics and Information (ONEI), published this month the official data on feminicide violence on the island: 49 women aged 15 and older were victims of gender-based murder in judicial proceedings adjudicated during 2025, which amounts to a rate of 1.19 per every 100,000 women.
The source of this data is the Complementary Statistical Information Subsystem of the Supreme People's Court (SIEC-TSP), which this time publishes the figures corresponding to cases processed judicially in 2025.
It clarifies that the statistics do not correspond to the total number of crimes that occurred that year, but rather to those that were processed through the justice system, which implies a delay between the incident and its judicial processing.
The report indicates that Havana accounted for the highest number of cases, with 12, followed by Mayabeque, Camagüey, and Holguín, each with six, and Santiago de Cuba, with five.
Among the most alarming data from the official report: 46.9% of the victims were killed by their ex-partner; 75.5% were unemployed at the time of their death; and in 89.7% of cases, the crime occurred within their own home.
Additionally, 32 of the victims had minor children, leaving 54 boys and girls without maternal support.
The age group most affected was those between 20 and 44 years, with 38 victims. More cases were reported in urban areas (33) than in rural areas (16), although the rate was higher in rural regions, with 1.65 per 100,000 women.
The figure for 2025 represents a decrease compared to the 76 cases judged in 2024 —with a rate of 1.79— and the 60 in 2023, with a rate of 1.37. However, independent observers warn that the reduction in judicial data does not necessarily reflect a real improvement in the situation.
At the end of 2025, the Gender Observatory of Alas Tensas (OGAT) and Yo Sí Te Creo en Cuba (YSTCC) verified 48 femicides, a figure that both organizations describe as an underreporting of the actual cases, as many deaths go undocumented, especially during the prolonged power outages affecting the island.
What is unmistakable is the trend for 2026: as of August 2nd, OGAT reported 46 femicides so far this year, an increase of approximately 112% compared to the same period in 2025.
Since 2019, the observatory has documented 359 femicides on the island. The pattern is consistent: 83.3% of the cases are perpetrated by partners or ex-partners, 64.6% involve sharp weapons, and 62.5% occur in the victim's home.
The structural backdrop exacerbates the situation: Cuba lacks a comprehensive law against gender-based violence, femicide is not classified as an autonomous crime in the Penal Code that has been in effect since December 2022, and the country does not have specialized shelters for at-risk women.
In April 2026, YSTCC closed due to lack of resources, leaving OGAT as the only active independent observatory monitoring femicides in Cuba.
"These preventable deaths clearly highlight the urgent need for shelters in Cuba to protect women, their children, families, and the community as a whole. In the face of a femicide, specialized structures for protection are necessary," warned OGAT in August 2026.
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