Anna Sofía Benítez Silvente, known as Anna Bensi, arrived this Thursday along with her mother, Caridad Silvente, at the court where both are facing trial in Havana, amidst applause and expressions of support from several people who managed to get close to the location, while the young woman reported a large police operation since she left her home.
«Do not be afraid, do not be afraid. We are with you. You have done nothing. You are just speaking the truth,» several people can be heard saying.
Bensi stated that both felt “helpless” in the face of the police presence deployed since the early hours of the morning around their home and during the journey to the courthouse.
«We feel helpless because since we left the house, well, since we woke up today, there is a police presence throughout the area. There are patrols, there are police officers, dozens of police dressed in plain clothes,» stated the young activist.
Bensi asserted that there were also plainclothes officers in the vicinity of the court and reported that they were being monitored throughout the entire journey.
"In fact, there are, because of all this, plainclothes police officers. Officers dressed normally," he stated.
"When we were on our way, as if we were criminals, we were being followed the whole way," she declared.
Before the judicial hearing celebration, there were also reports of detentions and restrictions on movement against individuals who intended to accompany Bensi and Silvente.
Among those reported as detained are Christian activist David Espinosa Martínez and Pastor Rolando Fidel Pérez Lora, known as "Pregonero de Cristo".
Bensi directly referred to the arrest of "Pregonero de Cristo" and stated that, according to the information he had received, he was taken by the authorities without any explanation being provided.
"They took Pregonero de Cristo away, handcuffed as if he were a criminal. And they gave no justification," he stated.
The young woman directly linked that arrest to the restrictions faced by those who express critical views in Cuba, according to her.
"They took him because, literally, Cuba is a dictatorship where one cannot think differently," he stated.
At another time, Bensi turned to his faith and expressed his confidence that, despite his doubts about the judicial process, God would act justly.
"So today what we have to do is to let the truth be known and for my God to be glorified," he said.
The young woman then questioned whether the process could take place with guarantees.
"Will the trial be fair when we are governed by a state of injustice? The trial will not be fair. But I have a just God. Amen!" he concluded.
Bensi's allegations coincide with reports of home surveillance and restrictions to prevent activists, journalists, and others from reaching the People's Municipal Court of Havana del Este, in Cojímar.
Members of the youth project Fuera de la Caja Cuba asserted that agents had informed them they could not leave their homes until after 11:00 AM. The collective reported patrols and agents in front of the homes of several of its members.
Anna Bensi and Caridad Silvente are accused of "acts against personal and family privacy" for recording and publishing on social media the visit of an agent from the Ministry of the Interior, who came to their home to deliver a summons from State Security.
The process began in March and both remain under house arrest and are prohibited from leaving the country.
The case had initially been filed away, but it was reopened after MININT non-commissioned officer Yoel Leodán Rabaza Ramos, who appears in the video, filed a complaint.
According to Bensi, the lawyer for the plaintiff is requesting two years of restrictions on freedom for each of them.
In the days leading up to the hearing, artists, religious figures, activists, and content creators spread messages of support for mother and daughter. Expressions of solidarity intensified this Thursday coinciding with the trial.
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