Cuba: UN rights office hopes release of political prisoners paves way for freedoms to flourish

The United Nations human rights office today welcomed Cuba’s recent release of political prisoners, hoping this new development will help open the way for an environment where freedom of expression and association flourishes.

According to media reports yesterday and overnight, at least nine political prisoners have been released by the Cuban authorities, reportedly as part of the recent US-Cuba agreement.

“We understand that at least some of them may have been released conditionally, which means that they have to report to the authorities regularly,” Rupert Colville, spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said at a Geneva briefing.

“We do not know what other conditions may have been imposed for their release. As far as we are aware, the Cuban authorities have not made any statements with regard to these releases, so the details are not yet clear,” he added.

OHCHR has been particularly concerned about Cuba’s recent short-term detention of political opponents, human rights activists and members of civil society. Over the past four years, the Office received numerous reports of such detentions, without warrants, especially in advance of certain meetings and events, apparently in order to prevent specific people from participating.

“These detentions can last a few hours, a few days and sometimes longer, and then people are usually released without charges,” Mr. Colville said, adding that a number of UN rights experts have engaged with the Cuban authorities on this issue.

“We urge the authorities to stop this practice, which clearly impinges on individuals’ human rights and appears to be little more than a form of intimidation or harassment,” Mr. Colville said.

The latest such detention occurred on 30 December 2014 when, according to media reports, dozens of people were arrested before they could participate in a performance at the Plaza de la Revolución in Havana by Tania Bruguera, a well-known Cuban artist. The protest had not been authorized by the authorities. Ms. Bruguera and others were subsequently released, but she was detained on two further occasions over the following days and finally released last Friday.

Sources in Cuba have put the number of these detentions to well over 8,000 in 2014 alone, although we have not been able to verify the number independently, he added.