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NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Veronica Mayer
Saturday, March 21, 2020 (703) 566-3037

U.S. COMMISSION NAMES CUBA AS TIER 2 RELIGIOUS FREEDOM ABUSER

GLA Urges the U.S. Act on USCIRF Sanctions Recommendations

Alexandria, Virginia - On March 10, the U.S. Commission on International Religious

Freedom (USCIRF) named Cuba as a Tier 2 violator of religious freedoms in its 2019 Annual
Report. The Global Liberty Alliance has been advising the U.S. government on these matters for
several years and was pleased to learn of certain steps being taken to reorient U.S. policy toward
Cuba when it comes to matters of religious freedom. More work needs to be done, but the process is
moving in the right direction. Here are a few highlights from the report.

Background
The USCIRF, an independent, bipartisan federal commission defending the freedom of belief
abroad, lists nations under Tier 2 when they “engage in or tolerate religious freedom violations” that
are either systematic, ongoing, or egregious.” Other Tier 2 countries include Afghanistan, Egypt,
and Iraq. Throughout 2019, Cuba limited religious freedoms in its new Constitution, and with
increased harassment and threats against religious leaders and journalists. The USCIRF
recommended U.S. government sanctions against Cuba’s Office of Religious Affairs, a facilitated
visa process for Cuban religious leaders, improved support of journalists reporting religious
freedom abuses, and spotlighting Cuba’s poor religious freedom record.

This report confirms ongoing human rights abuses in Cuba. Human rights groups reported that the
total number of arbitrary detentions doubled before the February 2019 constitutional referendum.

The Cuban Constitution of 2019 removed references to freedom of conscience and made its
religious protection more vague (Article 15). Cuba’s Office of Religious Affairs (ORA) controls all
religious groups in Cuba. Not registering a religious group with the ORA is a crime punishable with
fines and imprisonment, while registering requires government permission for almost all activities
besides worship. The ORA often revokes permission without grounds; for instance, in late July
2019, it cancelled permits for National Catholic Youth Day at the last minute and prevented
Catholic leaders from attending Cardinal Ortega’s funeral. Unregistered religious groups, such as
the Cuban Evangelical Alliance and the Association of Free Yorubas, have been banned from
traveling, even to the U.S. State Department’s Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom last July.
As of November 2019, 204 people, around 20 of whom are estimated to be religious leaders, had
been arbitrarily prevented from leaving Cuba that year. The Cuban government also regularly

A part of The Global Rule of Law & Liberty Legal Defense Fund
globallibertyalliance.org
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employs travel bans and arbitrary detentions, threatening jail time and limiting travel to intimidate
religious leaders out of peaceful activity.

GLA Defense of Religious Leaders, Advocacy

● This March 11, GLA reported that, while arbitrarily detaining Free Yorubas leaders Ms.
Donaida Pérez Paseiro and Mr. Loreto Hernández García, State Security officers stated
an obscenity about God, the saints, and the orishas, declaring that “there is only one god:
Fidel Castro.” This was after the February 24 detention of the Free Yorubas’s press
secretary, Ms. Eliaisys Almeida Pavón.

● U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient Dr. Óscar Elías Biscet, who endured 20 years
of prison for peaceful dissent, was detained for several hours without probable cause on
February 20, after being featured at the National Prayer Breakfast’s segment on religious
persecution.

● In December, authorities threatened imprisonment of Mr. Olainis Tejeda Beltrán and Ms.
Yeliney Lescaille Preval, Sephardic Bnei Anusim Jews, after months of harassment and
physical assaults of their sons at school led to a ban on kippahs.

● In April 2019, Pastor Ramón Rigal and his wife Ayda Expósito Leyva were sentenced to
two years and one and a half years’ imprisonment, respectively, for homeschooling their
children; this was determined to be an “act against the normal development of a child.”

● Members of the Ladies in White, famed for marching to Sunday Mass in white clothes to
protest their family members’ imprisonment, have been detained on their way to religious
services. Some have been blocked from leaving the country.

The Global Liberty Alliance and other human rights groups have worked to bring these violations to
light, expressing these concerns in an August 19, 2019, joint letter to Secretary Pompeo on religious
freedom abuses in Cuba. The U.S. State Department has responded to such efforts by urging Cuba
to improve its religious freedom record (statement of September 10), and added Cuba to the Special
Watch List of countries who engage in severe violations, alongside Nicaragua, Nigeria, and Sudan
(on December 19, 2019). GLA joins the USCIRF’s 2019 Annual Report in enjoining the United
States government to continue to defend religious freedom in Cuba by: urging the use of targeted
sanctions such as visa bans against religious freedom abusers, especially Caridad Diego, head of the
ORA; facilitating U.S. visa processing for registered and unregistered Cuban religious leaders from
within Cuba; and encouraging other countries to address violations of freedom of belief in all
discussions with or about Cuba.

The Global Liberty Alliance is committed to defending fundamental rights and the rule of law,
including the fundamental right to worship freely and follow one’s personal beliefs about faith or
conscience matters. You can find more information about the work that GLA is doing for people of
different faith traditions on our blog, Facebook page, or Twitter account.

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GLA/USCIRF/Mar. 16, 2020

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