The terrible situation suffered by Cubans in general, and political prisoners in particular, deserves international solidarity
(Bonn, 24.09.2025) The following is a report by René Gómez Manzano, founder and chairman of the International Society for Human Rights (ISHR) in Cuba. Gómez Manzano is a former political prisoner, lawyer and independent journalist.
Report by René Gómez Manzano
In recent days, a popular expression from the Spanish language has kept coming to mind: “The road to the worst is infinite.” These words keep hammering around in my head because, given the facts, it seems that the Castro communist regime ruling Cuba is determined to use all the means at its disposal to make this a reality.
The worsening of the plight of ordinary Cubans has been a constant for decades. This is despite the fact that the regime in Havana has usually been able to count on a foreign benefactor to take care of the unaffordable expenses that the inefficient and wasteful regime constantly incurs. For decades, this benefactor was the Soviet Union, which fortunately has since disappeared, and more recently, Chavist Venezuela.
But as the absolute ineffectiveness of the economic system introduced by the Castro-communist regime becomes increasingly apparent, the level of foreign aid has declined. Venezuela, which has sunk into misery under “21st century socialism,” is more dependent on receiving aid itself than on granting it to a foreign partner such as Cuba. China, Putin’s Russia and Vietnam make friendly statements and give gifts on a limited scale, but they are reluctant to take on the financing of the bottomless pit that is the Castro-communist economy.
Grotesque: the sugar island has to import sugar
Meanwhile, the situation in Cuba is deteriorating day by day. Production is collapsing—suffice it to say that the island, once known as the “sugar factory of the world,” has just had its lowest harvest in over a century and has to import the sweet product! The same is true for other branches of production. Inflation is rising with each passing week … It is no coincidence that Cuba’s population has declined, due to the extremely low birth rate and the recent emigration of hundreds of thousands of citizens hoping for a better life in another country.
Amid this catastrophic situation, the number of citizens who are dissatisfied with the current state of affairs and openly express this dissatisfaction is growing. The island has sunk into such hardship and poverty that the patience of its citizens is slowly running out. The latest outbreak of protests took place last Saturday evening in the coastal town of Gibara in the eastern province of Holguín.
The residents of Gibara had had enough of the endless power cuts (although, as in the entire interior of the country, it would be more accurate to speak of “power failures,” since the time without electricity is much longer than the time when electricity is available). Outraged, the town’s citizens took to the streets. Shouts of “Turn on the electricity!” alternated with demands for “Freedom!”.
Only the apparatus of oppression works
Ultimately, the regime resorted to its most tried and tested method: repression (which, incidentally, is one of the few activities in which Castro communism has proven to be efficient …). The press reported on the arrest of participants in the protests and the inclusion of Interior Ministry employees who had helped identify some of the demonstrators on the list of oppressors.
Given the bleak situation of hunger, shortages, galloping inflation, economic exhaustion and oppression, it is inevitable that we think above all of those who suffer most from the worst aspects of the current situation: I am referring to political prisoners, whose number, according to the organisation Prisoners Defenders, has reached 1,185.
Among them are prominent opposition leaders José Daniel Ferrer García and Félix Navarro Rodríguez, who were already victims of persecution by the Castro communist regime in 2003 during the wave of repression known as “La Primavera Negra de Cuba” (The Black Spring of Cuba). At that time, a total of 75 activists were arbitrarily sentenced to long and arbitrary prison terms. Years later, they were released from prison, and most of them accepted exile. However, Ferrer, Navarro and a few others refused, and to this day they remain in Cuba and are role models for their compatriots.
Among the women, Saylí Navarro, Félix’s daughter, and María Cristina Garrido, author of several published poetry collections, are particularly noteworthy. Both were given disproportionate sentences (eight and seven years, respectively) after being arrested the day after the peaceful protests that took place on 11 July 2021 in more than fifty different locations across Cuba. Both Saylí and María Cristina took part in the protests in their respective locations.
The terrible situation Cuba is suffering deserves the solidarity of all well-meaning foreigners, friends of freedom and democracy. The suffering of the Cuban people due to hunger, power cuts and inflation must come to an end! José Daniel, Félix, Saylí, María Cristina and all other political prisoners in Cuba must be released!
Downloads and Links
- Photo 1: ISHR President Thomas Schirrmacher and author René Gómez, Chairman of ISHR Cuba, in Havana in 2017 © Thomas Schirrmacher
- Photo 2: “Cámara de Representantes”, the Cuban parliament until 1959 © Thomas Schirrmacher
- Photo 3: Neglect, lack of food and medicine, and prolonged power cuts characterise the daily life of Cubans, even in the capital Havana © ISHR
- Download the original report by René Gómez Manzano in Spanish: https://bonner-querschnitte.de/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/BQ0878esp.pdf
