A group of approximately 60 religious groups has made a public call to the Cuban government to take concrete steps to improve its record on human rights, including reforms that will protect freedom of religion or belief (FoRB).

The Alliance of Christians of Cuba (ACC), an independent network of religious leaders created in 2022, published the statement following their second annual general meeting on 26 June 2024 in the city of Las Tunas.

In the statement, the group condemns the Cuban government’s ongoing violations of Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and calls for a new legal framework that will allow religious groups to register, noting that this will make it possible for legal action to be taken when FoRB violations occur. The group goes on to demand the release of all political prisoners and prisoners of conscience and urges the government to immediately halt ‘pre-criminal’ legal proceedings, which are used to try individuals suspected of the potential to commit crimes in the future, including political ‘crimes’.

Since 1 January 2024 CSW has documented 20 cases across eight provinces of religious leaders, including those of Christian and Afro-Cuban religious groups, being subjected to harassment, threats and fines because of their lack of legal recognition. In some cases, a registered religious association worshipping in an unregistered location was affected. In others, a religious leader was targeted because of the unregistered status of both the religious group and the location.

In one typical case, Hilber Morales Vargas, pastor of the Jesus Christ the Victor (Jesucristo el Vencedor) Church in Nuevitas, Camagüey, was fined 30,000 Cuban Pesos (approximately USD $1,250), which is six times his monthly salary of 5,000 Cuban Pesos, because of his leadership of what Housing Inspector Rolando Arencibia called ‘an illegal, unregistered church’. Pastor Morales Vargas protested the unfairness of the fine, pointing out that the church is only unregistered because the government has prevented them from registering, however he was ultimately forced to pay under the threat that the fine would double if he did not.

In another case, a babalawo, an Afro-Cuban religious leader, in Camagüey was interrogated by government officials in March 2024, regarding the ‘illegal’ religious activities taking place in his home. The religious leader explained that the situation could be easily resolved if the government would grant him legal permission to hold the religious activities in another location, but that, in the absence of said permission, he would be forced to carry on practicing his religion inside his home. The government officials fined the babalawo 10,000 Cuban pesos (approximately USD $417) for ‘providing spiritual services without the relevant permits’.

The ACC’s declaration also addressed violence against women and called on the government to divert resources dedicated to ‘persecuting those who think differently and demonstrate against government policy’ to the effective protection of its citizens and the development of more economic opportunities, and called for reforms around workers’ rights, concluding with a promise ‘to continue defending, praying and fighting for the dignity of the Cuban people’.

CSW’s Head of Advocacy Anna Lee Stangl said: ‘CSW stands with the Alliance of Christians of Cuba in their call to the Cuban government to protect fundamental human rights including the right to freedom of religion or belief. Over the past few years, we have seen a steady deterioration in what was already a poor record on FoRB, with leaders of different religious groups across the country being subjected to increased harassment and threats because the Cuban government requires the registration of civil society organisations, including those of a religious nature, and their places of assembly but refuses to create transparent procedures in line with international standards to allow them to comply with the law. Worryingly, we are now seeing the imposition of onerous fines, even as the economic situation for most Cubans has worsened dramatically in recent years, on individuals whose only ‘crime’ is to attempt to peacefully practice their religion. We call on the international community to press the Cuban government to implement policies that will allow for the development of a flourishing independent and legal civil society sector.’