IACHR Grants Precautionary Measures in Favor of Human Rights Defender D.M.P. in Cuba

May 15, 2024

Washington, D.C. – The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) issued Resolution 30/2024 on May 12, 2024, to grant precautionary measures in favor of D.M.P. in Cuba, in the belief that he faces a serious, urgent risk of suffering irreparable harm to his rights.

The request for these precautionary measures alleged that D.M.P. is a political dissident and is currently deprived of liberty in conditions of detention that seek to get him to incriminate himself or other individuals for crimes against the security of the State.

The party who requested these precautionary measures said that D.M.P. had been subjected to beatings and psychological torture, that he had been threatened with being executed by shots, that he had been confined to a dark, humid cell, and that he had been given little food. The request also said that he had been the victim of an attempted rape perpetrated by other inmates in connivance with penitentiary officers, and that he was not getting adequate medical care.

The beneficiary has been on hunger strike three times and has been diagnosed with grade III malnutrition. Further, by early April 2024, D.M.P. was unable to access a legal defense and had not been notified of the charges of tax fraud against him nor of the date when he was to stand trial.

The State of Cuba failed to provide information about this case.

When assessing this request for precautionary measures, the Commission took into consideration the fact that the beneficiary is in pretrial detention for a crime against the security of the State and that the risk factors he faces are allegedly the work of the very officers of the State in whose custody he is currently being held.

This implies that the beneficiary's defenselessness is being made worse by the actions of the officers who are responsible for keeping him safe. The Commission found the lack of adequate medical care and allegations of connivance between the beneficiary's attackers and penitentiary officers particularly serious.

After assessing the legal and factual allegations in this case, the Commission considers that the information it has received shows prima facie that D.M.P. is in serious and urgent danger and that his rights to life, personal integrity, and health risk suffering irreparable harm.

Consequently, in keeping with Article 25 of its Rules of Procedure, the Commission asked the State of Cuba to take the following action:

1. Adopt any measures necessary to protect the rights to life, personal integrity, and health of D.M.P.
2. Ensure that the beneficiary's conditions of detention reflect the applicable international standards
3. Come to an agreement with the beneficiary and his representatives concerning any measures that need to be taken
4. Report on any actions adopted to investigate the alleged events that gave rise to the adoption of these precautionary measures, in order to prevent such events from happening again in the future

The fact that these precautionary measures have been granted and their adoption by the State do not entail a prejudgment on a potential petition that may be filed before the inter-American system to allege violations of rights protected by the applicable instruments.

A principal, autonomous body of the Organization of American States (OAS), the IACHR derives its mandate from the OAS Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights. The Inter-American Commission has a mandate to promote respect for and to defend human rights in the region and acts as a consultative body to the OAS in this area. The Commission is composed of seven independent members who are elected in an individual capacity by the OAS General Assembly and who do not represent their countries of origin or residence.

No. 103/24

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