Carolina Barrero Demands Justice Following Heartfelt Plea from Mother of Detained Writer in Villa Clara

Cuban activist Carolina Barrero has urgently called for the release of writer and journalist José Gabriel Barrenechea Chávez. His 85-year-old mother, Zoila Pérez Chávez, is gravely ill with metastatic cancer in Encrucijada, Matanzas, and her dying wish is to see her son. Barrero shared this emotional appeal in a Facebook broadcast, emphasizing the need for action. "We cannot let such an injustice go unchallenged. We must not look away or be complicit in silence," she implored on social media, joining voices demanding Barrenechea's freedom.

The opposition activist revealed her sleepless nights after watching a harrowing video released by Cubanet, in which Zoila tearfully expressed, "Sometimes I feel so ill, I close the door out of fear, lie down, and pray to God and the Virgin to see another day, because all I want is to spend at least one month with my son before I die."

In addition, Barrero criticized the recent inaction by the Academy of the Language of Cuba, which held a meeting without addressing the plight of the island's writer and intellectual. Barrenechea, charged with public disorder for peacefully protesting power outages in his municipality in November 2024, is Zoila's sole surviving child and her primary caregiver since the passing of her husband due to COVID-19 and her elder son at 36 years old. He was her main source of emotional and physical support, providing for her daily needs and care.

Denied Humanitarian Visit

Activist Yania Suárez reported that Barrenechea's lawyer sought permission for him to visit his dying mother. Yet, authorities at La Pendiente prison, where he is held, informed a family member that "the son will see his mother when she dies," denying the humanitarian request. This refusal is seen by activists and human rights advocates as a form of psychological terror typical of the Cuban regime's repressive policies.

Organizations and activists are demanding either the immediate release of José Gabriel Barrenechea or, at the very least, the chance for him to say goodbye to his mother while she is still alive. "Keeping Barrenechea imprisoned despite his mother's suffering and illness is proof of the psychological terror wielded by this tyranny," the #LibertadParaBarrenechea campaign declared on social media.

Zoila's situation highlights the human cost of political repression in Cuba: an elderly mother, isolated in illness, yearning for a final embrace that may be her last solace.

This week, the father of another political prisoner, Wilber Aguilar Bravo, was detained to prevent him from attending a mass and, upon release, remarked that the Cuban regime's only apparent enemy is its own people, Barrero noted.