The municipal prosecution office of Bayamo requested sentences of up to five years of imprisonment for nine citizens charged with participating in the popular protest of May 23, 2025 in that city of the Granma province, according to the provisional conclusions of the legal file accessed by Martí Noticias.
The prosecutorial requests were made about a year and a half after the events, and the document marks the conclusion of the investigative stage to move forward with the request for a trial.
According to the fiscal report, around 120 people gathered near Avenida Vicente Quesada and Calle 22, some with their faces covered, banging pots and other metal objects while chanting slogans such as "we want food, electricity, and water."
The accusation also states that offensive remarks were made against the President of the Republic and other leaders, and that the protesters threw bottles and stones at the officials of the Ministry of the Interior —without causing any injuries— which led to the arrests.
The charges include contempt, public disorder, incitement to commit crimes, and resistance.
Pedro Luis Zamora Isac is facing the maximum penalty: five years for public disorder. He is followed by Alexander Guzmán Silva, with four years requested for contempt, public disorder, and incitement to commit a crime. Ever Ernesto Pérez Aliaga is facing three years for contempt and public disorder.
They are also accused Arael Rodríguez Escalante, Alejandro Vargas Ortiz, Luis Manuel Zamora Guevara, Rosa María Socarrás Moralez, Aleyda Valera Álvarez, and Katia Sucel Estrada Valera, all for resistance and incitement to commit a crime.
The relatives of the defendants deny the charges. Ernesto Pérez, Ever's father, told Martí Noticias: "He did not disrespect anyone. He needed to express himself, but in an elegant, peaceful, and calm manner, he did not disrespect anyone."
Rosa Escalante, mother of Arael Rodríguez Escalante, was more straightforward: "They are being given years for demanding basic rights from the government, such as access to water, food, and electricity."
The May 2025 protests in Bayamo occurred due to the worsening energy and food crisis affecting the country in recent years. During that time, residents in several neighborhoods had been without electricity for over 36 hours. The demonstrations also spread to Cienfuegos and Santiago de Cuba.
The regime's response combined the deployment of special troops, black berets, and canine units with a social media propaganda campaign to project an image of calm and control.
One of the nine accused, Arael Rodríguez Escalante, was reported on hunger strike at the Las Mangas prison in Bayamo in April of this year, in protest of the conditions of detention.
This case is not the first to be recorded in Bayamo. Another 15 citizens who protested on March 17, 2024, against power outages and shortages were tried in September 2025 and sentenced to prison terms ranging from three to nine years.
The regime's repression is systematic and extends to all provinces. This month, the Prosecutor's Office in Ciego de Ávila requested sentences of up to 13 years for protesters in Morón on charges of sedition, highlighting a sustained escalation in the criminalization of social protest in Cuba.
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