Amnesty International on Friday called for the release of Cuban artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcantara, who has been imprisoned since March 1, calling him a "prisoner of conscience". "It is absolutely shameful that the Cuban administration continues to suppress any voice that is not aligned with the official position," said Erika Guevara-Rosas, director of Amnesty for the Americas region, in a statement.
"Luis Manuel Otero is a prisoner of conscience and we urge the Cuban government to release him immediately and unconditionally," he added. The 32-year-old artist - who calls himself an "artivist", artist and activist - was arrested on March 1, charged with "insults to the symbols of the fatherland," for using the Cuban flag in a performance, and " damage ”to public property, for having resisted when arrested by the police.
The socialist government says it is a dissident paid by Washington: Luis Manuel Otero is "not an artist," tweeted Carlos Fernandez de Cossio, director general of the United States department at the Cuban Foreign Ministry.
He is "an individual paid and guided by the United States government to defy the law in Cuba and the values cherished by the Cubans," he added. According to the NGO Cubalex, in the past 30 months, the authorities have arbitrarily arrested him more than 20 times.
His latest arrest sparked a huge protest in the Cuban artistic community, including artists close to the government such as singer Silvio Rodriguez or painter and sculptor Kcho.
The Cuban government has always denied the existence of political prisoners on its soil, estimated at a hundred by several NGOs.
ka / fjb