The Justice 11J platform rejects the justifications offered by the Cuban Prosecutor’s Office to accuse many of the participants in the anti-government demonstrations of last July for the crime of sedition, since it supposes arbitrariness and responds to an exemplary objective, since the events that occurred do not correspond to that alleged “disruption of the socialist order” typified in The criminal code.
The group has released a statement in response to the one issued yesterday by the Public Ministry in which it considers that the official text constitutes “an evident response to the claims of civil society” reflected in the international media. Justice 11J, however, responds to many of the justifications provided by the Prosecutor’s Office.
The platform refutes some arguments of the Prosecutor’s Office, among them that of “tendentiously” mentioning hospitals among the vandalized places when the files do not even mention this type of center
The platform refutes some arguments of the Prosecutor’s Office, among them that of “tendentiously” mentioning hospitals among the vandalized places when the files do not even mention this type of center among those allegedly stoned.
Justice 11J also clarifies the accusation of the Prosecutor’s Office, which attributes a criminal record to 21% of the accused. “We consider it opportune to point out the 79% that lack such records,” highlights the group that, in addition, clarifies that some of the crimes adjudicated to that percentage of people with previous crimes are older than 10 years and, therefore, they must be canceled ex officio. In other cases they were not even committed or brought to trial.
The platform contrasts its data with that offered by the Prosecutor’s Office and confirms that the agency registers more people involved than themselves, which makes them fear the lack of independent information that exists. The Public Ministry places the files that affect 790 people at 117, while Justice 11J counted 40 cases in which 520 defendants are involved.
The same underreporting occurs with minors (27 for the Prosecutor’s Office compared to 7 that the association could determine) or young people between 16 and 18 (115 compared to 67). The only figure that comes close is that of people in provisional prison, which for Justice 11j are 431, a short distance from the 490 of the Prosecutor’s Office. The percentages of those imprisoned over the accused, yes, are very distant (82% of the total for the activists and 69% for the Public Ministry) because the total number of defendants is greater than those that the association has managed to include in the list.
Despite the disparity, the group is satisfied to have been able to prepare a fairly detailed record, taking into account that relatives are afraid to speak and many causes are known through social networks
Despite the disparity, the group is satisfied to have been able to compile a fairly detailed record, bearing in mind that family members are afraid to speak and many causes are known through social networks. In the circumstances of Cuba, the census is an achievement rarely achieved, although it raises fears of the lack of protection of cases that cannot be made visible.
The group criticizes the Public Prosecutor’s Office for omissions that can be attributed to the lack of transparency of the Ministry of the Interior, responsible for the investigation. Among them is the absence of a list of cases whose file is still being processed – they specifically mention the case of Jonathan Torres-Farrat –, that of total detainees for 11J, that of people released with fines or administrative sanctions or the absence of mentions of police violence, the result of which he died Diubis Laurencio in the La Güinera neighborhood.
We have confirmed that of the 621 people released from prison, 50 were released immediately without charge (6 between 16 and 20 years old), and 103 fines were imposed (11 punished are between 16 and 20 years old and one of them was injured by a firearm during the demonstration). The legal status of the rest is unknown.
Justice 11J also launches a series of demands, among them that the Convention on the Rights of the Child, of which the Cuban State is a signatory, be applied to minors, and which provides for the assistance of parents or lawyers in proceedings against minors under 18 He also asks that the judicial system be accelerated, since there is a “pattern of excessive delay” in the publication of the sentences, according to the family members.
The group reiterates its request that the trials be allowed to be followed, that they be televised live without cuts and that the international press be able to cover them
In addition, they recall that the UN Committee against Enforced Disappearances established February 7 as the deadline “for the Cuban State to provide ‘urgently’ information on the demonstrators disappeared by the authorities” during the protests in July and They demand that there be access to the records of the penitentiary centers and courts that allow a comprehensive breakdown of each and every one of the accused.
The collective reiterates its request that the trials be allowed to be followed, that they be televised live without cuts and that the international press be able to cover them.
Finally, they demand “that procedures for free and definitive dismissal be immediately initiated for cases in the preparatory phase, as well as the review of cases for those who have been tried, and that they end with acquittal.”
________________________
Collaborate with our work:
The team of 14ymedio is committed to doing serious journalism that reflects the reality of deep Cuba. Thank you for joining us on this long road. We invite you to continue supporting us, but this time becoming a member of our newspaper. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.
