A Cuban nurse who came across a meme ridiculing the Castro dictatorship’s sock puppet president Miguel Diaz-Canel and shared it on social media is now facing three years in prison. Aroni Yanko García Valdés was arrested in April by Cuban State Security for the Orwellian crime of disrespecting government leaders.
Since his arrest, Garcia Valdes has been rotting in a Castro gulag awaiting trial, which is currently schedule for this month.
A Cuban nurse faces charges of aggravated contempt, according to the government’s accusation, after sharing a meme involving President Miguel Díaz-Canel.
Aroni Yanko García Valdés, who was arrested on April 3, is being accused by authorities of “aggravated disobedience” to the figure of the Cuban leader.
“He has been in La Pendiente prison for more than four months. I went to the law office to inquire about his case, and the lawyer informed me that, just at that moment, an email had arrived stating that he will be tried on August 19,” explained Yunisley Suárez Rodríguez, his wife, to Martí Noticias.
The 31-year-old Cuban was detained after responding to a police summons at the 3rd Unit of that agency in Santa Clara, from where he was transferred to the Unit for Crimes against State Security and subsequently placed in provisional detention at the “La Pendiente” prison in the area.
The aggravated contempt in Cuba is a crime that involves actions perceived as a disrespect towards figures of authority and can result in severe legal sanctions, which may be greater if the act is committed against the President, the Vice President of the country, the President of the National Assembly of People’s Power, and members of the Council of State or the Council of Ministers, among others.
The prosecutor requests the highest sentence provided for that crime for García Valdés: three years of imprisonment, notes Martí Noticias.
If you’re wondering where the British government got the idea of imprisoning those who share unapproved content on social media, they got it from communist Cuba.