On November 26, 2019, Norma Goicochea, Cuba’s Ambassador to the European Union (EU), released an open letter to the European Parliament asserting that José Daniel Ferrer is not a political detainee on the island.[1] The following alleged grounds were provided for that conclusion:
- On October 1 Ferrer was arrested “in response to the complaint filed by his countryman Sergio García, who accused him and three other individuals of kidnapping him for a whole night,” severely beating him and leaving him in hospital admission.
- Ferrer now is awaiting trial on charges from that incident.
- The U.S. and its diplomatic mission in Cuba have been “guiding, instigating and financing the violent and destabilizing behavior of Ferrer while intending “to fabricate the image of [him as] a persecuted and mistreated” political dissident.
- Moreover, “the US embassy in Havana [has concentrated] in recent months on the failed purpose of recruiting mercenaries, of promoting division and confusion in [Cuba], of identifying the areas of the [Cuban] economy against which [to] direct coercive measures, and [of] trying to slander and discredit the management of the Cuban Government and the Revolution. ”
- In Cuba, “as in many countries where the rule of law prevails, it is the law that establishes the procedures and circumstances that warrant detention; as well as the terms [for holding a] detainee . . . subject to precautionary measures, [and when a] criminal proceeding must be initiated or [dismissed.]”
- “Ferrer has received a visit from his wife and children and received proper medical attention.” In addition, he “performs regular physical exercises and, upon request, religious assistance is provided. I can assure you that all references to [his] physical disappearance, alleged physical abuse, torture or receiving insufficient food are false. These lies are deliberately conceived and guided by the United States Government and its Embassy in Havana.”
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[1] Cuba points to the European Union that José Daniel Ferrer is not a political detainee, Cubadebate (Nov. 26, 2019). Earlier blog posts have discussed recent events regarding Ferrer.