The Cuban government, which did not mention the increasing pressure from the US, said it had “released” both foreigners and Cubans, including women, seniors and young people. However, she did not specify who was allegedly released or under what conditions, and did not mention the specific crimes that the convicts were serving in prison. It is therefore not clear whether among those pardoned are also demonstrators convicted of alleged terrorism, contempt of court or disturbing public order.
The Cuban government does not recognize the existence of political prisoners. However, according to the non-profit organization Prisoners Defenders, as of February this year, 1,214 people were imprisoned in Cuba for political reasons.
The local authorities said that the decision on the current amnesty “is based on a careful analysis of the nature of the crimes committed by the convicts, their good behavior in prison, the fact that they have already served a significant part of their sentence, and their state of health.” This is already the fifth amnesty since 2011, since then over 11,000 prisoners have been released, according to the authorities.
The Cuban government consistently denies that it would take any decisions under pressure from the United States. The amnesty of two thousand prisoners, one of the largest in recent years, is obviously accompanied by the most intensive pressure campaign that Washington has led against the island regime in the last decade, including an oil embargo lasting almost three months, the agencies emphasize.
