The Cuban Institute for Freedom of Expression and the Press (ICLEP) issued an urgent call to the international community to raise awareness and monitor the situation of independent journalists Yunia Figueredo Cruz and Frank Correa, a couple living and working in the neighborhood of Jaimanitas, Havana.
The Cuban Observatory for Freedom of Expression (OCLE) has documented 22 repressive episodes against both between April 29, 2025, and September 4, 2026, which include surveillance, movement restrictions, interrogations, arbitrary detentions, threats, confiscations, and selective telecommunication outages.
For ICLEP, this pattern represents a direct retaliation for the exercise of independent journalism, particularly for the coverage that Figueredo and Correa have provided on blackouts, garbage accumulation, deterioration of living conditions, and citizen protests in Jaimanitas.
The timeline of harassment dates back to mid-2025. According to a report from the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), in June of that year, Figueredo — director of the independent newsletter Amanecer Habanero — received threatening calls from private numbers warning her about a police investigation for "dangerousness," after refusing to respond to a summons.
In July 2025, both journalists were detained in Havana after refusing another police summons, and Figueredo was placed under house arrest, restricted from leaving her home by agents of the political police.
In March 2026, Figueredo was arrested in Jaimanitas after participating in a pot-banging protest against blackouts. On the following July 2, both were taken to the police unit at 3rd and 110 in Playa, where they remained incommunicado for over 16 hours without a court order.
On August 19, Frank Correa was arrested while conducting an interview in Jaimanitas; simultaneously, State Security agents arrived at the family home to threaten Yunia and her daughter.
The most recent and concerning escalation, according to the ICLEP, is the intensification of pressures on the daughter of the couple. On September 4, State Security agents went to the Faculty of Foreign Languages at the University of Havana to inquire about Beily Mariam Correa's enrollment. Days later, a local police chief visited Figueredo's home to impose a new precautionary measure, with warnings regarding his daughters and their connections to the United States Embassy.
The case is situated within an increasing repression against independent press in Cuba. In July 2026, the ICLEP documented 272 violations of freedom of expression and press, marking the most repressive month of the year. That same month, the regime approved Decree 160/2026, which expressly prohibits non-state actors from practicing journalism or operating news agencies. According to Reporters Without Borders, Cuba ranks 160 out of 180 in the 2026 World Press Freedom Index, making it the second worst country in America, surpassed only by Nicaragua.
ICLEP calls on media, human rights organizations, international bodies, and democratic governments to be aware of and disseminate the timeline of the 22 documented episodes, arguing that "international visibility can be an essential form of protection."
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