AREQUIPA, Peru – Reports of repressive actions against civil society organizations and independent press in Cuba motivated the concern of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) and its Office of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression (RELE).
The situation was addressed in a statement published by the IACHR this Wednesday, in which it urges the Cuban State to stop the harassment, as well as to respect and guarantee freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association on the Island.
According to the organization, around 300 repressive actions against human rights activists and defenders, political dissidents, journalists, independent artists, and relatives of people deprived of liberty for political reasons, have been reported by members of Cuban civil society in which goes from 2024.
These actions include arbitrary arrests, physical violence and medical negligence in the context of deprivation of liberty, house arrests, threats and coercion, selective internet and communications cuts, internal mobility restrictions, police summonses and interrogations without respect for legal guarantees.
“The IACHR and its RELE observe that this situation is framed in a context of intensifying limitations on freedom of association and expression in the country, as well as an increase in violence by State law enforcement forces,” says the release.
In this regard, the text highlights that activism and political dissidence within the Island are subjected to processes of criminalization, judicial persecution and violence with the aim of discouraging demonstrations critical of the government, hindering free expression, impeding defense work. and promotion of human rights, and the emergence of new leadership.
“Such actions particularly affect organizations and media outlets not aligned with state ideology and policies, who face an inhibiting and silencing context, which discourages any critical demonstration, even leading to the forced exile of journalists and activists for fear of reprisals.” ”.
Likewise, the RELE showed its concern towards the state policy of the Cuban Government, aimed at maintaining control over the flow of information, severely limiting civic space and access to information by Cuban society.
In this sense, it mentions independent journalists and media, which operate in a hostile environment, with legal restrictions and repressive practices for reporting critically about the Government.
The IACHR is a main and autonomous body of the Organization of American States (OAS), whose mandate arises from the OAS Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights.
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2024-02-23 18:18:26
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