This Sunday marks seven months since Kamil Zayas Pérez and Ernesto Ricardo Medina, founders of the independent audiovisual project El4tico, were arrested by State Security at their homes in Holguín, with no prosecution request or trial date established as of now.
The group Fuera de la Caja Cuba commemorated the date on X, describing the detention as "unjust and arbitrary" and demanding the release of both young individuals.
"Ernesto and Kamil were among the first to support us when we started. Today we raise our voices for them. 7 months will not erase their names nor extinguish their struggle," the collective wrote in their message.
The operation that led to his arrest on February 6, 2026 included home searches in which agents confiscated a laptop, camera, phone, tripod, and router. The agents refused to show the search warrant when Medina requested it, and the procedure was carried out without eyewitnesses, in violation of Law No. 143 of the Criminal Procedure.
After going through the police unit known as "Everyone Sings," both were transferred to the Provincial Prison of Holguín at the end of March 2026.
The Provincial Prosecutor's Office of Holguín charges them with the alleged crimes of "propaganda against the constitutional order" and "incitement to commit a crime," charges that can lead to a prison sentence of up to nine years. A habeas corpus petition presented on their behalf was initially accepted by the Provincial Court but was later rejected.
The human rights organization Cubalex denounced the violation of due process and warned that "the extension of preventive detention for six months without any prosecutor's request or a trial date raises further concerns about the procedural guarantees for both young men."
The pressure on Medina went even further: his mother revealed in April that State Security demanded he record a video of repentance and retraction, which he refused. Cubalex described that practice as "incompatible with respect for freedom of conscience and with the right not to be forced to incriminate oneself or to make statements under duress."
From prison, Kamil maintained a public stance of resistance. Just two weeks after his arrest, he sent a message to his followers, and in June he sent a handwritten letter from prison denouncing the situation in the country and urging citizens not to relinquish their rights.
"What began as a humble little room has been transformed into a huge house. It has been worth it. Don't give up. Let's now build a community, one that is just and good. We are counting on you. Long live Cuba Digna," Kamil wrote in that first message from confinement.
The case has generated international condemnation. The Committee to Protect Journalists demanded their immediate release since February, describing the arrest as an example of the restriction on the flow of information in Cuba. The U.S. Embassy in Cuba also publicly demanded the immediate release of both founders of El4tico, along with all political prisoners on the island.
El4tico is an audiovisual project that emerged in Holguín in 2024, producing sociopolitical analysis and critique on the Cuban reality; before the arrest of its creators, it had accumulated around 80,000 followers on Instagram. Kamil celebrated his birthday on August 8th while confined in the Provincial Prison of Holguín; Ernesto's birthday was on August 18th, also imprisoned and with no trial date in sight.
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