Alfredo Felipe Fuentes, Former Black Spring Prisoner, Dies in the United States

Alfredo Felipe Fuentes, a Cuban independent journalist and former political prisoner, passed away in Austin, Texas, at the age of 75, as confirmed by human rights organizations on Friday. Fuentes was among the 75 dissidents sentenced during the 2003 crackdown in Cuba, known as the Black Spring. He was one of the prisoners released in 2010 on the condition of relocating to Spain.

Fuentes was well-known for his advocacy for human rights and freedom of expression. His arrest in March 2003 led to a 26-year prison sentence following a raid on his home in Artemisa. He was accused of violating Article 91 of the Cuban Penal Code and was detained in the maximum-security prison in Guanajay. Pablo Pacheco Ávila, also a former political prisoner, described him to Martí Noticias as "one of the most just and intelligent individuals, with incredible resilience. A patriot who passed without witnessing the free and democratic Cuba he dreamed of."

In 2010, as part of an agreement between the Catholic Church, the Spanish government, and the Cuban regime, Fuentes was exiled to Spain. After residing in Málaga, he eventually settled in Texas, where he lived until his death. The Cuban Observatory for Human Rights mourned his passing, emphasizing that his life was dedicated to the defense of human rights, freedom of expression, and his courage in the face of repression.

CUBALEX also remarked on his unjust 26-year prison sentence during the Black Spring of 2003, a repressive campaign by the Cuban regime against civil society. They highlighted that he was imprisoned for exercising his right to free speech and peacefully defending human rights, without a fair trial or due process. After spending seven years in prison for his beliefs, he was exiled as part of negotiations involving the Catholic Church, the Spanish government, and the Cuban regime.

From exile, first in Málaga and later in the United States, he continued his commitment to the cause of a democratic Cuba through his words and conviction. Fuentes, an economist by training, was a member of the Cuban Workers' Unitary Council and was actively involved in the Varela Project, led by opposition figure Oswaldo Payá. He began his career as an independent journalist in 1991 and authored several books, including "The False Image of Fidel Castro: Irrefutable Evidence" and "Fidel Castro and the Argentine Military Junta," the latter presented in Miami in 2022.

Pacheco concluded by stating that Fuentes was "a man who exposed the prison system from within."