Undersecretary Brian A. Nichols pointed out that the incident is evidence of the “continued repression of the Cuban Government.”
14ymedio, Havana, 30 April 2024 — The Undersecretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs of the United States, Brian A. Nichols, described this Monday as “outrageous” the sentences imposed by the Cuban courts on those who demonstrated in Nuevitas, Camagüey, in August 2022. In his account on X, the senior official denounces the ’inconceivable’ and ’continued repression by the Cuban government” against those who “struggle for their rights and basic needs.”
This week, the Provincial Court of Camagüey sentenced 13 Cubans to prison sentences between 4 and 15 years for going out to peacefully protest in the streets of Nuevitas. At that time, the Island was going through one of the peak moments of its energy crisis, fueled by shortages, heat and long blackouts.
Nichols, who published his post on the matter in English and Spanish, alluded to the severity of the sentence, which he described as “harsh.” The Cuban Government has not yet responded to the high official nor has it summoned the US diplomatic staff in Havana to “ call their attention,” as happened last March, after the protests in the east of the country. Then, the Cuban Foreign Ministry blamed the United States for instigating the demonstrations in Santiago de Cuba and other cities.
Exemplary sentences against those who take to the streets are a common practice of the regime, but they intensified after 1
