HAVANA, Cuba – Cuban political prisoner Lisdani Rodríguez Isaac gave birth on September 6 in Santa Clara, Villa Clara province, without complications despite having had risks during her pregnancy, she told Cubanet his mother, Barbara Isaac.
“The baby is doing well, she weighed 8 and a half pounds, it was a normal delivery. We arrived on the 6th at 4 in the morning and she gave birth at 3:30 in the afternoon,” Isaac explained.
In a telephone conversation with CubanetRodríguez Isaac said he was very happy that everything went well and that his baby, whom he named Lía, was healthy.
The 25-year-old and her sister (the Rodríguez Isaacs are triplets, but only two are in prison) are serving an eight-year prison sentence after their participation in the protests of July 11, 2021 (11J) in their hometown, Placetas.
At the beginning of the year she learned of her pregnancy and reported that State Security officials were Pressuring her to abort against their will.
His mother explained to Cubanet that the young woman longed for her baby because she had been with her partner for several years and had not been able to get pregnant.
Shortly after, Isaac communicated Likewise, her daughter’s health and pregnancy were at risk after being diagnosed with a low anterior placenta, which increased the possibility of premature birth of her baby if the necessary precautions were not taken. Also, the mother declared that her daughter had low hemoglobin due to the “poor nutrition” in the Guamajal women’s prison, located in Santa Clara.
“There is no milk to give her, the main dish is only given three times a week and is usually mortadella; the rest is mashed potatoes or plantain, rice with half-boiled croquettes because they don’t have oil to fry them either, and in the mornings they give her a little piece of tortilla. She doesn’t have the necessary diet for a pregnant woman,” she said.
Due to media pressure and the serious risk to her life and that of her baby, at the end of May the authorities of the Guamajal women’s prison, located in Santa Clara, with the consent of State Security – which directly cares for all political prisoners – granted her a one-year extra-penal license.
Since then, Lisdani Rodríguez has been able to enjoy better conditions and nutrition, which has enabled her to carry her pregnancy to term without complications.
Barbara Isaac requested Cubanet to denounce the precarious conditions to which newly delivered women are subjected at the “Mariana Grajales” Maternity Hospital in Santa Clara.
“There is no cotton or sanitary pads here, but there are a lot of cockroaches, there is no hygiene at all. I had to go out and buy the very expensive sanitary pads on the street. The food is also terrible for a new mother: they give her rice soup and mincemeat without seasoning that none of the new mothers can eat, the families have to bring them food. We eat thanks to some friends who bring us food because we are not from this city,” she explained.
Lisdani and her baby are due to be discharged from the state institution on Monday.
