The mysterious deaths within days of five high-ranking Cuban regime generals

Causes of death of five Cuban generals in just over a week unknown, with Cuban dictatorship refusing to provide information. The last one was communicated on Tuesday: Armando Choy Rodriguez He died Monday evening at the age of 87, the Central University of Las Villas reported in his hometown of Villa Clara. Deaths occur after massive protests on July 11 on the island, and in the midst of a coronavirus outbreak and a Profound economic, health and political crisis aggravated by the coronavirus pandemic.

In addition to Choy Rodríguez, the generals have also died in the past nine days. Rubén Martínez Puente, Manuel Eduardo Lastres Pacheco, Agustín Peña Porres and Marcelo Verdecia Perdomo.

Choy Rodríguez, born in 1934, was one of the founders of the July 26 Movement that led the Cuban Revolution, in which he participated as a fighter. Appointed general by Fidel Castro in 1962, he was responsible for leading the group of the sanitation Yes development from Havana Bay and was delegate of the Minister of Labor in the city port.

Lastres PachecoA reserve brigadier general, he fought as a soldier in the Sierra Maestra guerrillas under the command of Commander Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara.

Martínez Puente, 79, began his military career in the Sierra Maestra, under the command of the column directed by Raúl Castro in the second eastern front Frank País.

He became the supreme head of anti-aircraft defense and the revolutionary air force, after having specialized as a combat aviation pilot in the former Czechoslovakia.

Peña Porres, for his part, was at the head of the Army of Eastern Cuba.. In 2000, he was promoted to the rank of major general. Some Cuban media independent from Cuba believe that the military, known as “Mr. Army”, Possibly died of coronavirus.

Ultimately, Verdecia Perdomo, who was one of Fidel Castro’s bodyguards in the Sierra Maestra, was founding president in Cienfuegos of the Association of Fighters of the Cuban Revolution. In April, he received the status of Work Hero of the Republic of Cuba from dictator Miguel Díaz-Canel.

The Cuban dictatorship, true to its style, did not provide information to the population on the causes of the death of important Cuban soldiers, so in social networks there are all kinds of rumors on what could have happened to them.

On the other hand, after the massive demonstrations where the dictatorship repressed the demonstrators and imprisoned hundreds of people, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) expressed its “concern” for what he considers “Serious violations” of human rights recorded in Cuba.

In a statement, the Office of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression of the IACHR reiterated its rejection of “repressive actions during demonstrations“And warned that the complaints received by civil society”are serious and deserve the attention of the Cuban authorities and the international community”.

“According to the information received, the days of protest were followed by a police deployment both in the streets and in private residences, which would have lasted several days.», Resumes the text.

Thus, the IACHR indicated that the events denounced “They include the arrests of hundreds of demonstrators, the incommunicado detention of detainees and the uncertainty of relatives as to their fate.”

The IACHR also indicated that acts of “surveillance and control of residences” were recorded, as well as the opening of legal proceedings “without adequately guaranteeing the right of defense of persons detained by the State”, as reported by the Radio Televisión Martí network.

The Cuban Observatory for Human Rights (OCDH) demanded that the European Union (EU) apply sanctions to the Cuban regime to force a “peaceful transition” that put an end to the “violation of human rights” in the country, by denouncing more than 700 detainees and missing during the recent demonstrations on the island.

This non-governmental organization, which brings together various activists and exiles from Cuba, among others, assured during a ceremony in the capital of Spain that they had documented the arrest and disappearance of 601 men and 156 women, including 13 minors, since the protests began on July 11.

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