Cuban dissident José Daniel Ferrer arrives in US after being freed from prison
By Jennifer Hansler, CNN
(CNN) — Cuban dissident José Daniel Ferrer has arrived in the United States after being freed from prison in Cuba, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Monday.
Ferrer was released and allowed to depart for the US after a formal request from the US government, according to the Cuban Foreign Ministry.
His family members were also able to depart, the foreign ministry statement said.
Ferrer reportedly said in a letter this month that he would accept exile rather than continue to be tortured in prison, after his brief parole was revoked.
“José Daniel Ferrer, a courageous leader of Cuba’s pro-democracy movement, arrived in the United States after suffering years of abuse, torture, and threats to his life in Cuba,” Rubio said in a statement Monday. “Ferrer’s leadership and tireless advocacy for the Cuban people was a threat to the regime, which repeatedly imprisoned and tortured him. We are glad that Ferrer is now free from the regime’s oppression.”
Ferrer, one of the last remaining dissidents in Cuba, had been repeatedly imprisoned during his years of opposing the government there. Republican and Democratic secretaries of state have voiced support for Ferrer and spoken out against the crackdown on dissent in Cuba.
Most recently, Ferrer was convicted of participating in the massive July, 11, 2021 protests on the island and imprisoned until January 2025, when he was released early from his four and half year long prison sentence.
His release came just days after Biden administration officials announced the removal of Cuba from a US list of countries that support terrorism, and said that Cuban officials had agreed to a Vatican request to free Cubans jailed for anti-government activity among other crimes.
The Trump administration reversed the Biden decision and re-listed Cuba as a state sponsor of terrorism shortly after taking office.
In April, Ferrer’s early release was revoked, and he was once again imprisoned on allegations that he had violated his parole.
Rubio said in July that the Cuban government was torturing Ferrer and demanded “immediate proof of life and the release of all political prisoners.”
On Monday, Rubio again called for “the immediate release of the more than 700 unjustly detained political prisoners.”
He also urged “the international community to join us in holding the Cuban regime accountable for its abuses and their malign influence across our region.”
CNN’s Patrick Oppmann contributed to this report.
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