The Stations of the Cross in the defense of human rights in Cuba

In Cuba, being in tune with the truth and sincerity is one of the most dangerous paths to choose, as peaceful opponents or dissidents of the government do on a daily basis. 

When a person decides to be in dissent or think differently from the ideology framed by the totalitarian system imposed on the island, they immediately become the target of the repressive machinery that exercises control over the entire society, the intelligence services known as State security (DSE) or G-2. 

From that moment on, an inquisition-like witch-hunting begins against the person who has decided to take the other side of the coin and publicly express his or her disagreement with the government in Havana or declare openly themself against it.

As the first link in this oppressive chain, they apply forms of indirect repression to try to break and discourage you so that you give up your intentions to be in the opposition. To achieve their purposes, they begin with attacking your moral character in your community and a smear campaign with your family, friends and everyone close to you. They use all kinds of falsehoods, slander, and insults against you. They do this to isolate you from everyone else around you. Initially since you are not psychologically prepared for this, it affects you and It makes you feel bad, because wherever you go you feel a sense of rejection, that the air you breathe is not the best or the healthiest at that moment. 

Then a recovery stage follows, since you have managed to continue with your work of social emancipation and your confidence returns, little by little all the people in your circle who rejected you begin to approach you again, because they realize that none of what the state security told them about you is true. They can see that you are another person, that all of this was nothing more than a crude form of manipulation intended to leave you alone before society.

This is followed by the second oppressive phase, where the direct attacks of the repressive machinery against you begin, which means harassment, travel bans without any legal basis, like those attested to by a list from the Patmos Institute of the so-called regulated, where they have recorded around 300 cases, that involve surveillance, arbitrary detentions, official summons, prison sentences (which, as stated in the updated report of the organization Cuban Prisoners Defenders, there are currently 181 political prisoners) and sometimes even death. 

In short, all kinds of aggressions by the intelligence services, something very sui generis that is found in the communist systems that use their intelligence agencies against their own people, not like the democratic systems that prohibit the use of such agencies in national territory or only for instances of national security.

Only thanks to the support of international organizations that monitor the Human Rights (HR) situation, including regional bodies, has it been possible for the government in Havana to reduce the violations against many of the human rights activists in Cuba. Thus, allowing human rights defenders to carry out their work in a more protected and acceptable way. 

Once this stage is passed, the most pleasant part of being a dissident or opponent can take place. After the people observe the repression you received and that you stood firm in your thinking different from the official line and in the defense of human rights, they begin to recognize your effort, sacrifice and they begin to give you their support. This support is not always done directly with visible actions, many times it is done by recognizing and accepting that you are right, that your work is remarkable and necessary, since doing it can bring serious consequences for you and that this at least warrants your acceptance and respect by them.

Even with this, having the respect and being able to count on the approval of the majority of the people around you and the support of international bodies, the task ahead of you is still hard. You still feel that wherever you go you are being watched and that you are being followed, that all your communications are being monitored, especially your phone calls, that the echoes and intrusive voices are already becoming a daily part of your conversations on the phone, you feel that in your life there is no privacy, but as I saw in a publication online, that Christians should be assured that God leaves the most difficult battles to his best soldiers.

To know more about human rights violations in Cuba visit EYE on CUBA

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