Cuban State Security agents on Monday arrested Yoan Ricardo Llerena after they found copies of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights during a search of his home. The human rights activist was arrested on charges of possession of “enemy propaganda” and “assault.”
Via ADN Cuba (my translation):
Cuban activist Yoan Ricardo Llerena was arrested on Monday in Manatí, Las Tunas, after State Security searched his home and found copies of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
According to his wife, Disnelbys Vidal, a forensic expert, State Security agents, the local sector chief, and two witnesses arrived at their home with a search warrant.
Her husband is accused of the alleged crimes of enemy propaganda and assault.
“They seized books from the independent library, a memory stick, and his cellphone,” Vidal added.
The activist was transferred to the Penal Investigation Center in Las Tunas, and his wife was told she needed to hire a lawyer for him.
Ricardo Llerena is a collaborator with the Cuban Observatory of Human Rights (OCDH), a civil society organization not recognized by the Cuban regime.
“It is unacceptable under any circumstances for someone to be detained for defending human rights. When they searched his house, all they found was the Universal Declaration and other related literature. The Cuban regime still has time to release him and avoid pursuing an unjust legal process against him,” said Yaxys Cires, OCDH’s Director of Strategy, in a statement to ADN Cuba.
In communist Cuba, advocating for human rights is considered a crime against the State, punishable by prison and even death. This is socialism in action.
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