Cuba rejects march called by the opposition

Cuban authorities denied a demonstration permit on Tuesday to an opposition group, whose representatives say they want to protest violence and demand the release of political prisoners.

Yunior García Aguilera, a Cuban playwright and one of the people who signed the protest petition, said he will march anyway, even if he ends up in jail.

"I will go, but they would be committing a crime. They would be turning me into a political prisoner," said García on Wednesday during an interview with The Associated Press.

"They would be making it clear to the world that they are a dictatorship for those who are still afraid to use that word in the world when they refer to the regime in Cuba," added the 39-year-old writer.

Cuban authorities declared the march illegal because they say it violates the socialist character of the Cuban model, described as "irrevocable" in the Constitution approved in 2019.

Opponents say they based their petition on the same Constitution.

According to Garcia, the demonstration for which they requested the permit has nothing to do with the political model. Rather, it is a march against violence, demanding the release of political prisoners and that the rights of Cubans be respected.

The dispute over the march has generated a huge reaction on social media, already tense since last July 11 and 12 when anti-government street demonstrations took place without clear leadership.

Thousands of Cubans took to the streets in July  with some of the gatherings resulting in vandalism and one death.

An unknown number of people were imprisoned and taken to court with some of them considered political prisoners by Archipiélago.

Authorities consider the protests as a destabilizing manoeuvre instigated by the United States or by Cuban exile groups that have tried to destroy the regime and support sanctions against the island, pushing for a change in the political model.

Cuba is currently undergoing a severe economic recession as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, combined with U.S. sanctions that are exacerbating the crisis.

Born in the eastern province of Holguín, García is recognized among the island's intellectuals for his theatre productions and for being the director of the Trébol theatre company.