Yoan de la Cruz. (Photo courtesy of Twitter)
A gay man who live-streamed an anti-government protest faces an 8-year prison sentence.
Yoan de la Cruz on July 11 used Facebook Live to livestream a protest in San Antonio de los Baños, a municipality in Artemisa province that is just west of Havana.
The San Antonio de los Baños protest was the first of dozens of anti-government demonstrations against mounting food shortages, the government’s response to the pandemic, a worsening economic crisis and human rights abuses that took place across Cuba on July 11.
De La Cruz is one of hundreds of protest participants who were arrested. Others include Maykel González Vivero, editor of Tremenda Nota, the Washington Blade’s media partner in Cuba.
14ymedio, an independent website founded by Yoani Sánchez, a prominent critic of the Cuban government, reported Oct. 4 the country’s attorney general is seeking an 8-year prison sentence for De La Cruz. 14ymedio also notes Cuban authorities continue to hold De La Cruz “somewhat incommunicado” in a prison in Mayabeque province, which is east of Havana.
It is unclear when his trial will take place.
“The Cuban government is again intimidating Cubans to keep them from peacefully expressing themselves,” tweeted Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs Brian Nichols on Thursday. “After initially sentencing many July 11 protestors to months of detention and fines, they now seek additional jail time for some of the 500+ detainees to 6-12 years.”
The tweet does not specifically mention De La Cruz.
The Cuban gov’t is again intimidating Cubans to keep them from peacefully expressing themselves. After initially sentencing many #July11 protestors to months of detention & fines, they now seek additional jail time for some of the 500+ detainees to 6-12 years. #JailedforWhat
— Brian A. Nichols (@WHAAsstSecty) October 7, 2021
Luis Ángel Adán Roble, a gay man who was once a member of Cuba’s National Assembly, is now a vocal critic of his country’s government and publicly supports De La Cruz. Adán described the proposed sentence Oct. 7 as “excessive and unjust.”
“The only thing about Yoan that I know is the charge of which they have accused him is contempt, and they are asking for eight years,” he told the Blade. “I don’t understand what live-streaming something has to do with contempt.”
