Cuba - country of concern: latest update 31 December 2014
Updated 21 January 2015
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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cuba-country-of-concern/cuba-country-of-concern-latest-update-31-december-2014
Any incidents or events taking place after 31 December 2014 will be covered in future reports.
0.1 Latest Update: 31 December 2014
The overall human rights situation has remained unchanged in the last three months, with no real improvement on freedom of expression or association, and continued use of short-term detentions to restrict the activities of human rights defenders.
The Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation (CCDHRN) reported 1,300 such incidents during this reporting period, many occurring on 10 December – International Human Rights Day. On 30 December, a number of short-term detentions were made at an event organised by Cuban artist Tania Bruguera in Revolution Square. This brings the total short-term detentions CCDHRN have reported in 2014 to 8,899, up 2,475 from last year. These figures are, however, currently impossible to verify.
On 17 December, the US and Cuban Presidents announced a series of measures designed to move towards the normalisation of relations between the US and Cuba. Minister for the Americas, Hugo Swire, welcomed the historic announcement in comments published on 18 December. As well as the high-profile prisoner releases, the agreement between the US and Cuba also included the release of over 50 prisoners held in Cuba. A number have since been released, although the identity of these prisoners, and when their full release will be complete, is unclear. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office will continue to monitor the impact of the 17 December announcements on human rights issues in Cuba.
Mr Swire visited Cuba from 29 October 2014 to 1 November 2014, the first visit by a British minister in almost a decade. He signed three Memoranda of Understanding with Cuba, including one on foreign policy dialogue that includes an agreement to discuss human rights. During his visit, Mr Swire also discussed our concerns about human rights with the Cuban government.
10 December, International Human Rights Day, was widely publicised in the Cuban media, with a focus on access to health services in Cuba. Some official events were held to mark the occasion. Political dissidents, including from Ladies in White (an activist group made up of female relatives of ex-political prisoners), also marked the event with marches and demonstrations, and some were detained by the authorities. Other representatives of civil society and independent journalists were also detained, and also later released.
Just prior to International Human Rights Day, on 9 December, Ladies in White member Sonia Garro Alfonso and her husband Ramón Alejandro Muñoz, who were arrested on 18 March 2012, were released from detention in prison, having been held on charges of “contempt, public disorder and attempted murder”. Their trial, together with fellow activist Eugenio Hernández Hernández, has so far been postponed four times - in November 2013, June 2014, October 2014 and November 2014 - with no reason given.
In the last three months, the Cuban government’s economic reform programme has continued, and more information on the overall state of the economy has been released by the government, including by President Castro in his address to the National Assembly on 23 December. 246 projects eligible for foreign investment were launched in sectors including construction, agriculture, food, the pharmaceutical and biotechnological industry, and renewable energy.
Miguel Díaz-Canel, the First Vice President of the Cuban Councils of State and Ministers, called for stronger unity with the local Christian community. During this period, he met Cuban evangelical and protestant leaders from the Cuban Council of Churches, and said that it was important to establish a permanent dialogue with the church.
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