News · Rights
Julián Mazola, former political prisoner of 11J, nears a month in custody with no known evidence
His family and the Defensa CD complaints center say the protester, arrested on Oct. 9 in San Antonio de los Baños, is fainting in a cell in Cuatro Caminos while prosecutors examine his phone, according to Infobae and Martí Noticias.
Julián Mazola Beltrán, who served a five-year sentence for taking part in the protests of July 11, 2021, was arrested on Oct. 9 in San Antonio de los Baños, Artemisa, after answering a State Security summons: officers searched his home, seized his mobile phone and took him to the criminal investigation unit in Cuatro Caminos, according to Martí Noticias.
On Oct. 15 it became known that a criminal case had been opened against him for "propaganda against the constitutional order" over the posting and painting of anti-government signs, according to Infobae and Martí Noticias. His sister, Yismely Mazola, told Martí Noticias that the case began with an anonymous accusation and that the investigator is waiting for the forensic analysis of the phone.
The Defensa CD complaints center said that, 27 days after the arrest, the regime "still has not presented evidence," and reported that Mazola suffers fainting spells linked to low blood pressure, that the food he receives is spoiled and that the only delivery allowed was a packet of crackers, according to Infobae. The family must wait until Nov. 7 for the result of the phone analysis.
Mazola is covered by precautionary measures from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, so Defensa CD considers that his detention without known evidence and the lack of medical care could breach those measures, according to Infobae. Its executive director, Juan Carlos Vargas, demanded immediate medical care and his "immediate and unconditional release" in remarks to Martí Noticias, and noted that anti-government signs reappeared in the town after the arrest, even though he is being held incommunicado.
Sources: Infobae · Martí Noticias · Serie Yamacoa: Presos políticos en Cuba (Prisoners Defenders)
Data updated: 2026-11-06T04:15:00.000Z