MADRID, Spain.- José Cecilio Pérez Hernández, a 70-year-old former Cuban political prisoner, made a desperate appeal seeking help to treat his illness in another country. In an emotional video recorded by the activist and opposition leader, Barbarian de Cespedes, known as “The Patriot”, and sent to CubaNetPérez showed the precarious conditions in which he lives, recently accompanied by his daughter and her mother, who have moved in with him to support him in the midst of his battle against colon and rectal cancer.
José Cecilio Pérez was an officer of the Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR) before being accused of sedition and attempting to reveal state secrets, which led to his imprisonment as part of case 04/83. The video shows the extreme poverty in which he lives: his house in Camagüey is run down, with few, old furniture, damp walls, a damaged roof and a mattress full of holes. The kitchen and bathroom are also in very poor condition, without the minimum facilities for their use.
During the recording, Bárbaro de Céspedes highlighted that José Cecilio Pérez is “one of the great patriots of Cuba” and showed in detail the deplorable state of the house. In his message, Pérez explains his difficult health situation, as well as explaining that he was unable to undergo surgery when he still had time due to the lack of resources in the country’s hospitals.
Pérez requested a humanitarian visa to allow him to treat his illness outside of Cuba, clarifying that this is the first time he has asked for help of this kind for himself. His appeal is directed to the international community and to his “anti-communist brothers,” in the hope of receiving support in his struggle to survive and, at the same time, keeping alive his dream of seeing a free Cuba.
