Roberto Ponce Valdespino, a young veterinarian from the Fontanar neighborhood in the Boyeros municipality of Havana, is currently detained at the VIVAC after being arrested during a peaceful protest against blackouts and water shortages that erupted on the night of September 5 in that residential area.
The demonstration started around 9:30 PM, when residents fed up with the energy crisis blocked the traffic light on Avenida Rancho Boyeros at the entrance to the neighborhood, overturned garbage bins, and banged pots to make their voices heard.
The A940 Fontanar electrical circuit had been experiencing continuous outages since September 1, amidst a crisis that on the same day left only 1,000 MW available against a demand of 2,890 MW, with blackouts exceeding 70% of the national territory.
In a post on her social media, activist Tania Tasé described Ponce as "the good boy with everyone, an animal lover, noble, affectionate, and generous," and noted that the young man did not resist when the agents intercepted him: "He tried to talk to his attackers and they became more violent, he was beaten severely."
According to reports gathered in your complaint, more than 10 patrol cars from the National Revolutionary Police (PNR) arrived at the site within minutes. According to testimonies shared on social media, the officers violently charged at the young people present: they pushed, struck, and took at least two individuals into custody. Ponce was one of the first victims of this repression.
At some point during the protest, someone in the crowd struck one of the more aggressive police officers —reports suggest it was with a frying pan or a motorcycle helmet—. Shortly after, Ponce was arrested and taken to the VIVAC. At least one other person was also detained, though their identity has not been disclosed.
The veterinarian's family has been unable to visit him or confirm whether he received medical attention following the beating. According to the statement from Tania Tasé, State Security has threatened the family with harsher reprisals against the young man if they made his situation public: "They have been threatened by the SE, State Security, with severe retaliation against the boy if they report it and his case goes viral on social media".
"Silence has never freed a prisoner; silence is the worst option, silence is CONDEMNATION. Protesting is not a crime, it is a right," Tasé concluded in his statement.
The activist and art historian Anamely Ramos also joined in the public denunciation of the case through her social media.
Paradoxically, after the protest, Fontanar partially restored electricity and water supply at 2:00 a.m. on Saturday, although the service was cut off again hours later. "Today Fontanar has light and water, thanks to those who protested," wrote Tasé.
The arrest of Ponce is part of a repressive pattern that the regime has intensified in response to the wave of protests in 2026.
The Cuban Observatory of Conflicts recorded 1,415 protests just in July, the highest monthly total since July 11, 2021, while Cubalex documented 319 repressive events in June, with 38 people detained that month for participating in protests.
As of July 31, 2026, the organization Prisoners Defenders counted 1,327 political prisoners in Cuba, including 40 minors.
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