Press Advisory – For Immediate Release

Over 100 academics, former diplomats, opposition leaders, and human rights advocates appeal to world leaders to prioritize the release of Cuban political prisoners

Contact: John Suarez and Janisset Rivero 786-208-6056

Center for a Free Cuba. Washington DC. April 9, 2026. Over 100 human rights advocates, religious leaders, writers, artists, intellectuals, journalists, businessmen, former diplomats and academicians appeal to world leaders to prioritize the release of Cuban political prisoners.

Among the signatories are Regis Iglesias Ramirez, spokesman of the Christian Liberation Movement, a prisoner of conscience who spent seven years in a Cuban prison; Anamely Ramos González, Cuban art historian, curator, professor, and human rights activist; Guillermo Marmol, businessman and Chairman, Center for a Free Cuba; Ambassador Everett Briggs, former U.S. ambassador to Portugal and Panama; and Ambassador Andras Simonyi, Former Hungarian ambassador to the U.S. and NATO.

Also, among those signing, are:Carl Gershman, President Emeritus, National Endowment for Democracy; Carlos Eire, author, and professor at Yale University; Miriam de la Peña, mother of Mario de la Peña, one of the four Brothers to the Rescue pilots murdered by Cuban MiGs in 1996; Sirley Ávila León, human rights activist and victim of regime orchestrated machete attack in 2015, and Janisset Rivero, writer and human rights activist.

Signers urge that leaders with unique influence over the Cuban government—prioritize the immediate release of all political prisoners in Cuba and use their platforms to bring urgent international attention to their ongoing plight.

This appeal was sent on April 8, 2026 to the President of the United States Donald J. Trump;  His Holiness Pope Leo XIV, High Representative Kaja Kallas of the European Union, and the Prime Minister of Canada Mark Carney.

Havana is engaged in a disinformation campaign, announcing on April 2, 2026 the pardon and release of over 2,010 prisoners as a “humanitarian and sovereign gesture,” but as of April 8, 2026 common prisoners have been released, but no political prisoners have been pardoned.

Guillermo Marmol, chairman of the Center for a Free Cuba, stated: “The international community must act now. By uniting voices from academia, diplomacy, the Church, and civil society, we are sending a clear message that the Cuban people’s suffering will not be ignored.”

The petition remains open and available for signature on Change.org at https://www.change.org/FreeAllPoliticalPrisoners.

Below is the full text and first 33 signers as of April 9, 2026. A full list of signers is available upon request.

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Petition: Urgent Request to Prioritize the Release of Cuban Political Prisoners and Bring Global Attention to Their Plight

Addressed to:

• The Honorable Donald J. Trump, President of the United States
• His Holiness Pope Leo XIV and the Holy See
• High Representative Kaja Kallas, European Union
• The Honorable Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada

We, the undersigned citizens and human rights defenders, respectfully request that you—leaders with unique influence over the Cuban government—prioritize the immediate release of all political prisoners in Cuba and use your platforms to bring urgent international attention to their ongoing plight.

The Cuban dictatorship is currently engaged in a disinformation campaign, announcing the pardon and release of over 2,010 prisoners in early April 2026 as a “humanitarian and sovereign gesture.” Families of political prisoners, independent human rights organizations, including Prisoners Defenders, Cubalex, the Cuban Observatory for Human Rights, and other international monitors, confirm that the vast majority of those released are common prisoners.

The announcement deliberately excludes those convicted of “crimes against authority”—the charges the regime routinely uses to criminalize peaceful dissent. As a result, more than 1,214 political prisoners and prisoners of conscience remain arbitrarily detained simply for exercising their rights to freedom of expression, assembly, and protest.

These individuals endure inhumane prison conditions, including prolonged solitary confinement, denial of adequate medical care, torture, insufficient food and water, and deplorable sanitary standards.

Families are subjected to systematic harassment and surveillance. Compounding this crisis is Havana’s longstanding refusal to grant access to independent monitors: the Cuban government has not allowed the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to visit its prisons since 1989.

To bring global attention to this reality, we highlight these 10 cases of Cuban political prisoners who remain imprisoned:

1. Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara – Internationally recognized artist and leader of the San Isidro Movement; imprisoned since July 2021 for peaceful artistic activism and criticism of the government. He began a hunger strike in March 2026 amid death threats and fears of sentence extension.
2. Maykel Castillo Pérez (“Maykel Osorbo”) – Grammy-winning musician and co-author of the global protest anthem “Patria y Vida”; detained since May 2021 and serving a nine-year sentence for his activism. He has faced repeated transfers to high-security prisons, physical assaults, and severe health deterioration.
3. Félix Navarro Rodríguez – Veteran opposition leader and founder of the Pedro Luis Boitel Party for Democracy; re-arrested in April 2025 and held in prolonged isolation despite his advanced age and health concerns.
4. Sayli Navarro Álvarez – Prominent activist and daughter of Félix Navarro; imprisoned for her human rights defense work and participation in nonviolent dissent.
5. Donaida Pérez Paseiro – President of the Free Yoruba Association; re-arrested in May 2025 for her advocacy on behalf of religious and political freedoms.
6. Loreto Hernández García – Recognized prisoner of conscience; detained for peaceful opposition activities, with reports of deteriorating health and denial of medical care.
7. Alexander Díaz Rodríguez – Imprisoned for exercising freedom of expression and assembly, diagnosed with thyroid cancer since 2022 without proper medical treatment.
8. Jaime Alcide Firdó – Opposition figure re-arrested in April 2025 amid the regime’s crackdown on dissidents.
9. Rolando Yusef Pérez Morera – Recognized opposition activist, one of the leaders of the 11J protests, he is in a severe state of malnutrition without medical attention.
10. José Gabriel Barrenechea – Independent journalist sentenced to six years in prison in January 2026 for participating in a peaceful street protest during a blackout.

These cases represent the broader reality of more than 1,200 political prisoners, including hundreds from the July 2021 (11J) protests, artists, journalists, and ordinary citizens.

We respectfully ask that you prioritize the following:

• The immediate and unconditional release of all political prisoners and prisoners of conscience.
• Immediate granting of full access to Cuban prisons for the International Committee of the Red Cross and independent international monitors.
• An end to inhumane prison conditions, torture, and the criminalization of peaceful dissent.

The release of all political prisoners would represent important, verifiable progress and could serve as the first essential step toward any consideration of lifting or easing U.S. sanctions on Cuba. It would also demonstrate meaningful advancement in fulfilling the human rights commitments under the European Union’s Political Dialogue and Cooperation Agreement (PDCA) with Havana.

Your leadership at this pivotal moment—leveraging U.S. influence, the Vatican’s trusted mediation role, the EU’s diplomatic and economic ties, Canada’s diplomatic and economic ties — can help shine a light on these injustices and secure concrete humanitarian outcomes for the Cuban people.

We humbly appeal to you to act decisively and publicly to prioritize their freedom and dignity.

Sign and share this petition widely.

Guillermo Marmol, businessman and Chairman, Center for a Free Cuba

Carlos Eire, Professor of History and Religious Studies, Yale University

Miriam de la Peña, activist for victims’ families and against the Cuban dictatorship, Mother of Mario de la Peña, one of the four Brothers to the Rescue pilots murdered by Cuban MiGs in 1996 .

Regis Iglesias Ramirez, spokesman, Movimiento Cristiano Liberación.

Father Alberto Reyes, Cuban Catholic Priest

Anamely Ramos González, Cuban art historian, curator, professor, and human rights activist.

Manuel E. Iglesias Esq., entrepreneur, President, Center for a Free Cuba

Nestor T. Carbonell, Cuban-American author, businessman (former Pepsi executive)

Ambassador Everett Ellis Briggs, Cuba-born, member of the U.S. Foreign Service, retired

Miriam Kornblith, Senior Director for Latin America and the Caribbean at the National Endowment for Democracy

Ambassador Andras Simonyi, Former Hungarian ambassador to the U.S. and NATO

Carl Gershman, President Emeritus, National Endowment for Democracy

Sebastián Arcos, human rights activist, interim director, Cuban Research Institute,  Florida International University

Raimet Martinez Avila, Pro-democracy activist, coordinator, Coalición Cubano-Canadienses (Cuban-Canadian Coalition)

Father Juan Lázaro Vélez González, Cuban Catholic priest

Nancy Alfaya, Cuban human rights activist, women’s rights defender, artist, cultural promoter

Germán J. Miret, Cuban exile, human rights activist, Catholic lay leader, author, radio host

Julio Estorino, retired Cuban journalist, radio personality, and oral historian; longtime collaborator with Monsignor Agustín Román.

Dr. Eduardo Zayas-Bazán, Professor Emeritus, East Tennessee State University

Luis Eligio D Omni, Cuban poet, performer, visual artist, and activist; founding member of the Omni Zona Franca collective

Sandra Cordero, Cuban artist and cultural producer;

Jorge Olivera, journalist, poet, and dissident.

Victor J. Pujals, engineer, civic leader

Raul G. Marmol, business entrepreneur, civic leader

Dora Amador, journalist.

Sirley Ávila León, human rights activist and victim of regime orchestrated machete attack in 2015.

Frank Calzon, former executive director Center for a Free Cuba, former Washington representative Freedom House

Janisset Rivero, writer and human rights activist

Carlos Luis Martínez, Cuban-American Ph.D. student in Economics at George Mason University.

Ruhama Fernandez, former Cuban political prisoner, human rights advocate, and political activist.

Armando Chaguaceda, PhD in History and Regional Studies, Universidad Veracruzana (Mexico);

Federico Justiniani, MD., expert on Cuban medicine

John Suarez, executive director, Center for a Free Cuba

Thank you for standing with the Cuban people and helping bring attention to their struggle for justice and freedom.

Petition available for signature here: https://c.org/VMyMbQ59FT