Torture in Cuba 2022

The Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment and Punishment was ratified by Cuba in 1995, and it is one of the few international regulations binding on the Island. In spite of this, torture is a mechanism of coercion against all those people who are against the Government.
      One of the most notorious mechanisms has been the deprivation of freedom for political reasons, which has been undergone by thousands of people considered to be opposers of the regime. In addition, these people undergo all kinds of vexations during their imprisonment. These forms of vexation include food in bad conditions, deprivation of sleep, prohibition to communicate with family members, lack of medical attention, and others.
      What the documented cases demonstrate is that, far from being an exception, torture has become institutionalised as the modus operandi of the regime. Another peculiarity is the lack of transparency and accountability by the Government, in a country where there is no rule of law or division of powers. Therefore, determining the responsibilities for these abuses, at least at a national level, seems impossible.