A Choir of Voices for Cuba´s Political Prisoners
As a tribute to Yosvany Arostegui Armenteros a Cuban political prisoner who died after 40 days in a hunger strike in the Kilo 7 prison in Camaguey, artist Tania Bruguera launched an initiative called “A Choir of Voices” for political prisoners in which she encourages Cubans and freedom loving people around the world to record a video saying out loud the names of 102 Cuban political prisoners as a way to give them visibility and remind the world there is a human story behind each of those names.
In an interview with Diario de Cuba, Tania Bruguera said: “On his behalf and on behalf of all political prisoners suffering in prison for the crime of thinking differently, we are making a choir of voices to let the world know about their names and the great injustice perpetrated against them.”
“The death of Yosvany Arostegui had a profound effect on me, not only for the responsibility of the regime but also for the responsibility of all of us who did not give him visibility. Hence, the impetus emerged to develop this idea which I had been thinking for a long time.¨
The goal is to produce an audio visual material comprised of all participants´ videos.
Reactions on Twitter on the death of Yosvany Armenteros Arostegui at the hands of the Raul Castro-Diaz Canel dictatorship:
Remembering the faces of political prisoners who have recently died in the Castro regime’s prisons. Click on each image for a description surrounding their deaths as reported by Amnesty International.
Pedro Luis Boitel, university student leader. He died as a result of a prolonged hunger strike in El Castillo prison on May 25, 1972. Líder estudiantil, muere en huelga de hambre, torturado y semi-paralítico, en el Castillo de El Príncipe, La Habana, el 25 de mayo de 1972.
Orlando Zapata Tamayo died on Feb 23, 2010 after a prolonged hunger strike in which the head of the prison Filiberto Hernández Ruiz denied him water for 18 days.
Juan Wilfredo Soto, a former political prisoner, he died on May 8, 2011 three days after being subjected to a brutal police beating.
Wilmar Villar Mendoza, died on Jan 20, 2012 in the Juan Bruno Zayas Hospital in the city of Santiago where he was transferred from prison due to health problems arising from a hunger strike protesting at his unfair trial and imprisonment.
Hamell Santiago Más Hernandez, a member of the Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU) he eied of an alleged heart attack in the Combinado del Este Prison on Sept 25, 2017.
Armando Sosa Fortuny, Cuba’s oldest political prisoner. He spent 43 years in prison and died in the prison hospital on Oct 28, 2019 at 78 years of age.
Examples of other political prisoners (from a long list published by the Interamerican Committee for Human Rights) who died in prison during the 1960s
Lydia Pérez León
Died at 21 years of age on Jan 1961 at the Guanajay Penitentiary for Women. She was denied medical attention during a high risk pregnancy and died while giving birth. CIDH
Julia González Rosquete
Died of sepsis due to denial of medial attention in December of 1961. CIDH
Tomás Aquino.
60 years old. While kept naked in his prison cell, he died of hypotermia on Dec 14, 1962 in Wing No. 4 of the Isle of Pines Prison. CIDH
José Oriol Acosta-Garcia
A sugar cane worker, died of a gunshot to the head on Aug 5, 1971 in the Security Field No. 4. Guards shot him following orders from head of prison, Abraham Claro Cruz. CIDH
Manuel Ruiz del Cristo
Being denied of medical assistance, he died of cancer in La Cabaña Prison on Jan 14, 1974 at 3:20 pm. CIDH