Case History: Damas de Blanco
Human rights defender Leticia Ramos Herreria was released from house arrest on 5 June 2016. She had been arrested on 25 April and put under house arrest on 1 June. The human rights defender continues to be harassed however through e-mail and anonymous threatening phone calls stating that she will "rot in jail" and that her "time will run out".
On 22 May 2016, her colleague, Ms Berta Soler Fernández, leader of Ladies in White, was violently arrested as she was on her way to attend the investiture ceremony of the newly elected Bishop in Havana Cathedral. These events are the latest in a series of acts of repression and judicial harassment against members of the Ladies in White.
The Ladies in White are an internationally acclaimed peaceful civic movement made up of wives and female relatives of jailed dissidents. Since 2003, they have consistently advocated for the release of political prisoners in Cuba by attending mass every Sunday wearing white clothing, to symbolise peace, and silently walking through the streets. In 2005, the Ladies in White were awarded the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought by the European Parliament.
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- About
- 7 June 2016 : Judicial harassment of human rights defenders Berta Soler Fernández and Leticia Ramos Herreria
- 23 March 2016 : Crackdown against human rights defenders during visit of President Obama
- 20 March 2016 : Cuban Police Arrest Members of Damas de Blanco Ahead of Obama Visit
- 27 January 2016 : 150 Cuban democracy activists and a German journalist arrested
- 10 December 2015 : 330 arbitrary detentions of human rights defenders in 1 week
- 28 September 2015 : Clampdown and detention of over 200 human rights defenders during Papal visit
- 20 July 2012 : Arrest of human rights defenders and members of the Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán and denial of the right to freedom of assembly
Update (9 June 2016): Human rights defender Leticia Ramos Herreria was released from house arrest on 5 June 2016. The human rights defender continues to be harassed however through e-mail and anonymous threatening phone calls stating that she will "rot in jail" and that her "time will run out".
On 1 June 2016, Cuban authorities put prominent human rights defender Ms Leticia Ramos Herreria, leader of Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán (Ladies in White Laura Pollán) in the city of Cárdenas, under house arrest. On 22 May 2016, her colleague, Ms Berta Soler Fernández, leader of Ladies in White Laura Pollán in Havana, was violently arrested as she was on her way to attend the investiture ceremony of the newly elected Bishop in Havana Cathedral. These events are the latest in a series of acts of repression and judicial harassment against members of the Ladies in White.
Download the Urgent Appeal (PDF)
The Ladies in White are an internationally acclaimed peaceful civic movement made up of wives and female relatives of jailed dissidents. Since 2003, they have consistently advocated for the release of political prisoners in Cuba by attending mass every Sunday wearing white clothing, to symbolise peace, and silently walking through the streets of various towns and cities in Cuba. In 2005, the Ladies in White were awarded the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought by the European Parliament.
On 1 June 2016, Leticia Ramos Herreria was put under house arrest relating to charges brought against her following her arrest on 25 April 2016. The charges included inciting criminal activity and disorderly conduct, which could carry a prison sentence of up to one year, due to the human rights defender’s participation in a peaceful demonstration in front of the offices of the Cuban Communist Party in Cárdenas on the same day. On 1 June 2016, Leticia Ramos was first apprehended by high representatives of the security forces including the chief of Counter Intelligence of Matanza, as she crossed Bacunayagua Bridge between Matanza and Havana. The human rights defender was told she was not allowed to roam freely and was then taken to a police station, after which she was taken to her home where she is to remain under house arrest. She is prohibited from leaving the country as a result of the charges brought against her.
On 22 May 2016, Berta Soler Fernández, leader of the Ladies in White in Havana, was violently arrested and was taken to the Alamar Police Headquarters where she remained from 3 to 11 pm without access to water or food. Berta Soler was charged with resisting arrest and assaulting a police officer, which could carry a prison sentence of up to five years. The human rights defender was subsequently released, but is not allowed to leave the country because of the charges brought against her. It is also strongly believed that she is under surveillance.
On 25 April 2016, Leticia Ramos was beaten, arrested and denied medical treatment whilst in detention as a result of her participation in a peaceful demonstration in front of the offices of the Cuban Communist Party in Cárdenas on the same day. The defender was protesting human rights violations and violence against numerous members of the Ladies in White. After being released from detention, the human rights defender was hospitalised. Furthermore, the human rights defender's youngest son is also under surveillance in his own home. On 16 October 2015, both of her sons were severely beaten by police officers in front of her as a brutal act of intimidation against her.
The Ladies in White and their relatives have been regularly subjected to numerous abuses by law enforcement authorities as a result of their peaceful activism in favour of prisoners of conscience. Most recently, on 29 May 2016, 75 members of the Ladies in White were arrested as they made their way to their usual Sunday mass to demand the release of political prisoners, 7 more were arrested after mass, including Leticia Ramos. In March 2016, previous to and during the visit of US President Barack Obama, the Cuban authorities staged a crackdown on civil society movements, most fiercely targeting the Ladies in White movement. Dozens of their members were arrested and temporarily detained during their regular Sunday march on 20 March 2016, before being released later that day. Those detained included Berta Soler Fernández.
Front Line Defenders is extremely concerned at the systematic persecution of members of the Ladies in White and their relatives as a result of their peaceful and legitimate activism. From the inception of the Ladies in White in 2003, a pattern of consistent abuse against these women human rights defenders has emerged in what is clearly a concerted attempt to dissuade them from their human rights work.
Front Line Defenders urges the authorities in Cuba to:
1. Immediately drop all charges against Leticia Ramos Herreria and Berta Soler Fernández as it is believed that they are solely motivated by their legitimate and peaceful work in defence of human rights;
2. Immediately and unconditionally remove all restrictions on the free movement of Leticia Ramos Herreria and Berta Soler Fernández and cease all further forms of surveillance or harassment against them, as it is believed that these measures are not only solely related to their legitimate human rights activities but, furthermore, constitute a direct transgression of their rights;
3. Take all necessary measures to ensure the physical and psychological security and integrity of Leticia Ramos Herreria and her family, as well as of Berta Soler Fernández;
4. Guarantee in all circumstances that all human rights defenders in Cuba are able to carry out their legitimate human rights activities without fear of reprisals and free from all restrictions, including judicial harassment.
Front Line Defenders has received worrying reports that between 17 and 22 March 2016, prior to the arrival of the President of the United States in Cuba and during his stay for an official visit, a crackdown was carried out against human rights defenders in the country.
Download the Urgent Appeal (PDF)
Several human rights defenders were arrested and temporarily detained, while others were placed under surveillance in a clear attempt to prevent them from organising demonstrations during the official visit. The human rights defenders targeted included members of human rights organisations such as Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán (Ladies in White), Consejo de Relatores de Derechos Humanos de Cuba - CRDHC (Cuban Council of Human Rights Rapporteurs) and Foro por los Derechos y las Libertades en la Habana – ForoDyL (Forum for Rights and Freedoms in Havana).
In the evening of 22 March 2016, Baptist pastor and defender of religious freedoms, Reverend Mario Feliz Lleonart Barrroso, was released after being arrested on 20 March 2016, just a few hours before President Obama's arrival in Cuba. Prior to his arrest, he reported that his home and church were being kept under surveillance by police and state security agents.
On 21 March 2016, human rights defenders Mr Antonio Rodiles and Ms Ailer Maria González from the Foro por los Derechos y las Libertades en la Habana were violently arrested by state security officers as they left their house in Habana. Both were hit by the arresting officers and forcefully pushed into the police car, whilst Ailer Maria González was struck on the eye and had her hair pulled during the arrest. The state security officers failed to provide Antonio Rodiles and Ailer Maria González with a reason for their arrest. They were released later on the same day. Foro por los Derechos y las Libertades en la Habana was created in December 2015, uniting several human rights defenders, journalists and other activists to advocate for the development of a new legal framework respecting human rights and providing for amnesty for political prisoners in Cuba.
Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán were targeted most fiercely in the crackdown. Dozens of its members were arrested and temporarily detained during their regular Sunday march on 20 March 2016, before being released later on the same day. Those detained included the groups leader, human rights defender Ms Berta Soler. Damas de Blanco was founded in 2003 by wives and female relatives of imprisoned dissidents in Cuba. Each Sunday, members of the group walk through the streets in white clothing silently, on their way to attend mass, in protest against the continued imprisonment of political prisoners.
Human rights defender Mr Juan Carlos Gonzales Leiva, from the CRDHC, was kept under surveillance for over 24 hours, beginning on 17 March 2016. His house was reportedly surrounded by state security officers and members of the national police in patrol cars. A search of his house was conducted by the national police, during which his land-line was cut and two radios were seized from the house. CRDHC is an organisation that works to denounce and publicise human rights violations in Cuba, and calls for the release of political prisoners in Cuba and the improvement in prison condition in the country.
The visit of President Obama to Cuba took place in the context of ongoing abuses and human rights violations perpetrated by the Cuban government in an attempt to silence human rights defenders speaking out against the regime and calling for the release of political prisoners. On 22 March 2016, President Obama met with several Cuban human rights defenders, activists and dissidents to discuss the human rights situation in Cuba in a meeting that lasted almost two hours. Amongst those present at the meeting was the leader of Damas de Blanco, Berta Soler.
Front Line Defenders is gravely concerned at the arbitrary arrests and detentions of the human rights defenders, which it believes were intended to silence all dissenting voices in the country while Cuba was held under spotlight of the international media during President Obama's visit.
Front Line Defenders urges the authorities in Cuba to:
1. Immediately cease all further harassment of human rights defenders who work to ensure the protection and promotion of human rights in Cuba, as Front Line Defenders believes that the arrests carried out were solely related to the legitimate and peaceful activism of those detained;
2. Carry out an immediate, thorough and impartial investigation into the acts of repression against members of Ladies in White, the Cuban Council of Human Rights Rapporteurs, Forum for Rights and Freedoms in Havana and all the above-mentioned human rights defenders during Obama's visit, clearly considering their human rights work as a motive for the repression, and with a view to publishing the results and bringing those responsible to justice in accordance with international standards;
3. Take all necessary measures, in consultation with the above-mentioned organisations and human rights defenders, to guarantee their physical and psychological integrity and security and that of their members;
4. Guarantee in all circumstances that all human rights defenders in Cuba are able to carry out their legitimate human rights activities without fear of reprisals and free of all restrictions.
Hours before President Barack Obama landed in Havana to meet with Cuban authorities on Sunday, 20 March 2016, police arrested and beat more than 50 activists, dissidents, and human rights defenders.
A majority of the arrested human rights defenders were members of Damas de Blanco, who had joined a larger group of activists to march in Havana demanding human rights reform in the country.
The local news outlet Havana Times reported that as many as 180 activists had been arrested ahead of President Obama's visit, citing a spokesperson from the officially banned Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation (CCDHRN).
On January 24, Cuban police arrested more than 150 pro-democracy activists. Among those arrested was Benedict Vallendar, a German journalist who was observing the protest.
The activists and human rights defenders arrested were participating in the 38th protest of the “Todos marchamos” (We all march) campaign, demanding the release of all political prisoners in Cuba. The protest was organised by several dissident groups, including Ladies in White (Damas en Blanco) and Patriotic Union of Cuba (Unión Patriotica de Cuba – UNPACU). Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán was created in 2003 to demand the release of political prisoners in Cuba. The members of the organisation are frequently subject to harassment during their weekly protests in Havana. UNPACO is an NGO that advocates for political change and respect for civil liberties.
The International Society for Human Rights (ISHR) reports that Dr. Benedict Vallendar, German journalist and Latin America expert who writes for several Catholic publications, was arrested in front of the Church of Santa Rita in Havana Miramar – the meeting point of the Ladies in White - and interrogated for several hours. When Vallendar went back to his hotel, he found out that someone had broken into his room and ransacked it. Nothing appeared to be missing from his room.
Front Line Defenders is gravely concerned at the arbitrary arrests of human rights defenders, activists and journalists in Cuba. Further concern is expressed at the continuous acts of violence and human rights violations committed against those who oppose the regime and fight for the implementation of democratic values.
From 29 November 2015 to 6 December 2015 three hundred and thirty human rights defenders from different movements and organisations were arrested in connection with their work, demanding the release of political prisoners in Cuba.
Most of them were arrested on 6 December 2015, in an attempt to prevent them from participating in the demonstration “Todos Marchamos” (We all March), organised by the Damas de Blanco (Ladies in White).
Among the human rights defenders who were detained are 31 members of Ladies in White, including its leader Ms Berta Soler, and almost 300 other human rights defenders from different movements and organisations, including Frente de Acción Cívica “Orlando Zapata Tamayo” – FACOZT (Civic Action Front “Orlando Zapata Tamayo”) and Unión Patriotica de Cuba – UNPACU (Patriotic Union of Cuba). This is the 33rd consecutive Sunday that the Ladies in White and members of other human rights movements and organisations have faced arbitrary temporary arrests.
Every Sunday members of Ladies in White attend mass at Santa Rita Church and march around the neighbourhood carrying pictures of political prisoners in Cuba and demanding their release. These weekly demonstrations are part of the campaign “Todos Marchamos”, which has gathered support from many others human rights movements in Cuba.
Mr Zaqueo Baéz Guerrero, a member of UNPACU, is the only human rights defender out of the 330 recently arrested that has not yet been released. Seven other human rights defenders have been kept under detention since October 2015 while awaiting trial for their peaceful dissent in Cuba. These seven are Hugo Damian Prieto, Miguel Borroto Vazquez, Mario Alberto Hernandez Leyva, Silverio Portales, Leudis Reyes Cuza, Maybel Mediaceja Ramos, David Fernandez Cardoso and Wilberto Parada.
Front Line Defenders is gravely concerned at the arbitrary arrests and detentions of human rights defenders in Cuba, intended to silence all dissenting voices.
Between 19 and 22 September 2015 hundreds of human rights defenders (HRDs) were prevented from speaking out during the Pope's visit to Cuba, according to what local sources told Front Line Defenders. Several HRDs were arrested and detained, while others were put under surveillance and prevented from leaving their houses in a clear attempt to stop them from organising demonstrations during the Pope's visit.
Of the more than 200 HRDs and activists detained, most belonged to human rights organisations Foro Antitotalitario Unido – FANTU (United Anti-totalitarian Forum), Unión Patriotica de Cuba – UNPACU (Patriotic Union of Cuba), Movimiento Cristiano Liberación – MCL (Christian Liberation Movement), Cuba Independiente y Democrática – CID (Independent and Democratic Cuba) and Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán (Ladies in White).
The Foro Antitotalitario Unido is a non-governmental organisation which works to bring about democratic change in Cuba through non-violent action in Havana, Matanzas, Cienfuegos, Sancti Spíritus and Villa Clara. Also working on the same issues are Unión Patriotica de Cuba and Movimiento Cristiano Liberación, organisations that advocate for political change and respect for civil liberties. Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán was created in 2003 to advocates for the release of political prisoners in Cuba. Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán are frequently subject to harassment during their weekly protests in Havana.
Among the 70 members of Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán who were detained was Ms Berta Soler, the leader of the movement, who remained in detention for 2 days, from 20 September 2015 to 21 September 2015. This arbitrary detention was reportedly intended to prevent Berta Soler from attending the Pope's mass at the Revolutionary Square (Plaza de la Revolución) on 20 September 2015, as well as to prevent the organisation of any demonstrations during the mass.
The largest targeted clampdown was against Unión Patriotica de Cuba, as a total of 142 of its members were arrested in the cities of Havana, Holguín and Santiago de Cuba. The Foro Antitotalitario Unido also reported that 26 of its activists were arrested in Villa Clara province as they were making their way to Havana to attend the mass on 20 September 2015. Members of other civil organisations, including the Movimiento Cristiano Liberación and Cuba Independiente y Democrática, were also arrested.
The Pope's visit to Cuba occurred in the context of various abuses and human rights violations perpetrated by Cuban government. From 19 to 22 September 2015 the government engaged in a what has been reported as a “social cleansing” operation, in which many impoverished and homeless people were detained in order to hide all evidence of social problems from the many foreign visitors and the international media. Meanwhile HRDs who speak out against the regime continue to be targets of systematic repression at the hands of the authorities.
Front Line Defenders is gravely concerned at the arbitrary arrests and detentions of human rights defenders in Cuba, intended to silence all dissenting voices while the country was under the international media spotlight during the Papal visit. Further concern is expressed at the continuous acts of violence and human rights violations committed against those who oppose the regime and fight for the implementation of democratic values.
On 18 July 2012, Ms Tatiana López Blanco, Ms Leonor Reinó Borge, Ms Mirta Gómez Colás and Ms Niurkis Rivero Despaigne were detained by Department of State Security agents in Havana.
The aforementioned human rights defenders are all members of the prominent human rights organisation Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán(Ladies in White), which advocates for the release of political prisoners in Cuba.
On 18 July 2012, agents of the Department of State Security went to the homes of Tatiana López Blanco, Leonor Reinó Borge, Mirta Gómez Colás and Niurkis Rivero Despaigne and arrested them in order to prevent them from participating in the monthly Té Literario (literary tea gathering) organised by the Damas de Blanco which takes place at the home of their deceased leader Ms Laura Pollán.
Previously on 16 July 2012 it was reported that an agent had visited the homes of other members of the human rights organisation, including Ms Ivonne Malleza Galano, nominee for the 2012 Front Line Defenders Award for human rights defenders at risk, Magaly Norvis Otero, Mercedes Fresneda Castillo, Belkis Jorrín Morfa, Belkis Nuñez Fajardo, Raquel Castillo, Zahira Castro and Mayra Morejón, to inform them that the Té Literario would not be permitted to take place and that should they attempt to attend it they would be arrested and held for three days. Ms Omaglis Gonzaléz Leiva and Ms María Elena Matos were detained in Palmarito de Cauto, in the municipality of Santiago de Cuba as they attempted to hold a parallel event.
Front Line Defenders believes that the arrests of the aforementioned human rights defenders, as well as the threats of arrest, are directly related to their legitimate work in defence of human rights. The regular prevention of the peaceful monthly Té Literario by police, who block off access to the home of Laura Pollán on the date of the planned event, constitutes a clear denial of the right to freedom of assembly in Cuba. Members of the Damas de Blanco continue to face harassment and physical attacks from police around the island as they attempt to carry out their legitimate and peaceful human rights activities.
