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Julián Mazola Beltrán, a political prisoner of the July 11 (11J) protests who had already served a five-year sentence, was arrested again on October 9 in San Antonio de los Baños, in Cuba’s Artemisa province. Almost a month later, he remains in custody at the Cuatro Caminos detention unit.
The new case, for alleged “propaganda against the constitutional order,” stems from an anonymous accusation, his sister, Yismely Mazola, told Martí Noticias, which reported the case on November 5.
How Julián Mazola Beltrán was arrested
It began when State Security summoned him in his hometown. Mazola Beltrán showed up, and agents took him back to his house, searched it and seized his cellphone.
The video, posted by Martí Noticias on Facebook, shows a photo of Julián Mazola Beltrán with a summary of the case: after serving his 11J sentence, he was taken back to prison.
From there he went through a police station and the criminal investigation center in Guanajay before ending up at Cuatro Caminos, where he is still waiting for a decision on his case.
He is being investigated over the alleged posting and painting of anti-government signs in San Antonio de los Baños. The charge, still preliminary, is propaganda against the constitutional order.
His sister said the criminal investigator is keeping him jailed while awaiting a forensic analysis of the seized phone. If that analysis yields no evidence, the family hopes his detention measure will be changed or that he will be released.
“They detained Julián on October 9 over an anonymous accusation. It still hasn’t been revoked; he’s still in Cuatro Caminos. Until the phone analysis comes out. If they don’t prove it, I imagine they’ll take another measure or release him,” she said, in remarks originally made in Spanish.
Defensa CD reports fainting spells and demands medical care
Juan Carlos Vargas, executive director of the organization Defensa CD (Centro de Denuncias), raised concerns about the detainee’s health. According to what the family told him, after almost a month under arrest Mazola Beltrán continues to suffer fainting spells and episodes of low blood pressure.
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Vargas also pointed to a contradiction in the accusation: since Mazola was jailed, anti-government signs have kept appearing in San Antonio de los Baños, while he, according to the organization, is being held incommunicado.
The activist noted that the young man is a beneficiary of precautionary measures from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR). In that resolution, dated June 28, 2024, the Commission found that his life and personal integrity were at serious risk in Guanajay prison and asked Cuba to protect him.
Defensa CD is demanding immediate medical care, adequate food and his unconditional release.
“His medical care cannot wait for the outcome of an investigation. Let us remember that Julián is a beneficiary of IACHR precautionary measures. That is why we demand that the authorities of the Cuban dictatorship provide immediate medical care, adequate food and, of course, his immediate and unconditional freedom,” Vargas said.
From 11J to the new arrest: background
Mazola Beltrán was arrested on July 12, 2021, one day after the protests that broke out in San Antonio de los Baños and spread across the island. Prosecutors sought a 12-year prison term for him, according to the list of prosecutors’ requests against 17 protesters from that town (in Spanish).
In December 2021, the U.S. Embassy in Havana publicly called for his release. In May 2022, the Artemisa Provincial Court rejected the appeals of eleven San Antonio de los Baños protesters, including his.
He ultimately served his full five-year sentence. Martí Noticias did not say when he was released, but his freedom was short-lived: on October 9 he was detained again.
What we know so far
- He was detained on October 9 in San Antonio de los Baños after reporting to State Security, which had summoned him.
- He is under investigation for alleged propaganda against the constitutional order, based on an anonymous accusation.
- He remains at Cuatro Caminos awaiting the forensic analysis of his phone.
- Defensa CD reports fainting spells and low blood pressure episodes and is demanding urgent medical care.
- He has been a beneficiary of IACHR precautionary measures since June 2024.
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