Cuban political prisoner says he “would rather die than surrender”

José Daniel Ferrer, opponent of the Cuban communist regime and leader of the Patriotic Union of Cuba, considered the largest platform of opposition to the Castro regime, last week began a hunger strike in prison, located in the province of Santiago de Cuba, where he is serving an arbitrary sentence. since 2021 for having participated in popular protests against the dictatorship that controls Havana.

According to information, the strike was the activist’s way of denouncing the inhumane conditions and abuse he suffers in prison. Through an audio sent to his wife, Nelva Ismaray Ortega Tamayo, broadcast by the Argentine portal Infobae, the opponent said he would rather “die” than “surrender” to the communist dictatorship.

“I have been the victim of increasing attacks throughout my fight. I thank everyone for their support and I want you to know that I will continue,” he said.

Ferrer detailed the prison setting where he is confined. According to him, he shares an inadequate cell with six other prisoners, in a small, unhealthy and pest-infested space. “Hygiene is terrible, there is an infestation of flies and, at night, bedbugs. They don’t do anything to improve this”, he reported.

Despite his weakened condition, Ferrer, who reported having been attacked in prison days ago, remains firm in his hunger strike, demanding dignity and better conditions for all political prisoners. “I don’t feel good, but I will resist and continue until this situation is resolved,” he said.

Ferrer’s situation reflects a pattern of repression denounced by international organizations and families of other political prisoners in Cuba. According to the portal CubanetAndy García Lorenzo, an opponent also detained for participating in the 2021 protests, has been on hunger strike in prison for 13 days. His mother, Tayrí Lorenzo Prado, described her son’s alarming condition: “He is extremely thin, with sunken eyes and no strength to speak.”

Another case is that of Roberto Pérez Fonseca, who also began a hunger strike after suffering abuse and shouting slogans against the regime. He has been held incommunicado since November 28 in prison.

These episodes are part of a systematic repression against opponents, marked by torture, isolation and lack of medical assistance. According to the organization Prisoners Defenders, Cuba currently has 1,117 political prisoners, who face subhuman conditions in prisons.