Alina Bárbara López: "Calling it a dictatorship is too kind for the monstrosity of this system"

Cuban intellectual, historian, and activist Alina Bárbara López Hernández made a powerful statement on Facebook this past Friday, addressing a warning from Cubalex regarding Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara's situation: "Calling it a dictatorship is too kind for the monstrosity of this system."

In her post, López drew from history: "Veterans of the fight against Batista have told me they were often saved by ethical lawyers in the Emergency Tribunals of that dictatorship."

This comparison starkly highlights the differences between then and now: while independent lawyers and basic legal protections existed under Batista, today's Cuban judicial system—where attorneys can only work in state-controlled law firms and courts operate in tandem with State Security—lacks even those minimum safeguards.

López's remarks directly pertain to the case of Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, an artist and activist whose five-year sentence was officially completed on July 9, 2026, yet remains detained without any legal grounds.

Forced Disappearance and Legal Maneuvering

Just two days before his sentence ended, on July 7, State Security agents removed him from Guanajay's maximum-security prison and took him to an undisclosed location. Both Amnistía Internacional and Cubalex have labeled this as a forced disappearance.

Otero Alcántara's only contact with his family has been a brief phone call on July 9, made from a State Security phone with an officer on speaker.

Cubalex officially filed a habeas corpus petition on July 13 at the Havana Municipal People's Court. The legal deadline of 72 hours for a resolution passed on July 16 with no response; authorities merely stated the document was "in processing."

The human rights organization claims this delay is a tactic orchestrated by State Security to prolong legal proceedings, aiming to force an exile deal. If Otero leaves Cuba before the resolution, officials could dismiss the petition as "denied" or "no grounds," arguing his release was "voluntary."

A Call for Freedom

López concluded her post with a firm demand: "Freedom for Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara and for every compatriot imprisoned for political reasons! Freedom for Cuba!"

The Matanzas-born intellectual, who has faced house arrest and multiple detentions by the regime, previously denounced the Díaz-Canel administration on July 11—the fifth anniversary of the 11J protests—calling it a "terrorist state against its own people" and demanding general amnesty for the 1,250 political prisoners listed by Prisoners Defenders.

The UN Committee on Enforced Disappearances has activated Urgent Action AU No. 2357/2026, giving Cuba until July 25 to disclose the whereabouts of Otero Alcántara.