Standing with China Zion Church Leaders, Cuban Political Prisoners, and more.

HRF condemns the Cuban regime’s escalating crackdown as @PrisonersDFNdrs reports a record 1,351 political prisoners on the island. In Cuba today, demanding basic necessities like water and power can land citizens in maximum security prisons.

Among recent detentions, evangelical pastor Maikel Pupo Velázquez called for a public prayer for Cuba. When police threatened him, he complied by asking his congregation not to show up. He went to the site alone — yet authorities arbitrarily arrested him and sent him to Cerámica Roja Prison on bogus “disobedience” charges after keeping him incommunicado for 9 days.

Citizens face extreme penalties for peaceful dissent amid a severe regime-made crisis. Yordenkis Fonseca — a minor with epilepsy — was jailed after a peaceful protest for water, and suffered seizures in detention. Meanwhile, 17-year-old Leandro Palmero Guevara faces a 12-year sentence, despite prosecutors’ failure to cite a single concrete crime. Minutes after @PrisonersDFNdrs published its report detailing these 1,351 cases and 2,200+ detentions since #11J, its website suffered a massive, coordinated cyberattack aimed at hiding the regime’s abuses.

HRF calls for the immediate and unconditional release of all political prisoners in Cuba. We urge democratic governments to hold the dictatorship accountable for its systematic human rights violations and its relentless attempts to silence peaceful dissent.

HRF welcomes the UN Human Rights Council’s vote to renew the mandate of the Independent Fact-Finding Mission on Venezuela for two more years. The resolution sends a clear message that international oversight remains vital to combat pervasive impunity and state repression in Venezuela.

The Fact-Finding Mission’s three independent experts — mandated to present comprehensive reports in autumn 2027 and 2028 — recently confirmed that while the regime has taken limited steps, its repressive machinery remains fully intact following Nicolás Maduro’s capture on Jan. 6. The basic structures used to stifle dissent have not been dismantled.

Although hundreds of political prisoners have been released since January, @ForoPenal reports that at least 324 prisoners of conscience remain unlawfully incarcerated. Many of those freed face ongoing judicial restrictions, showing that conditional releases are often used as a tactical concession rather than a genuine move toward justice and freedom.

Scrutiny is crucial to document abuses and evaluate genuine progress toward a democratic transition. HRF echoes the UN’s demand for the immediate, unconditional release of all remaining political prisoners and the full restoration of fundamental rights and civic space in Venezuela.