Cuban exile groups in Miami on Saturday demonstrated against the Cuban government’s arrests this week of two prominent dissidents, Félix Navarro and José Daniel Ferrer.
The Moviemiento Democracia (Democracy Movement) and UNPACU Exiles Movement organized the demonstration in front of the Versailles Restaurant on Miami’s Calle Ocho, which is often the site of protests by Cuban exiles. Passing cars honked in support of the two dozen demonstrators.
Ramón Saúl Sánchez, who leads the Democracy Movement, posted a video on Facebook to condemn the Cuban government’s actions and demand the release of the two dissidents.
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Reuters and other media outlets reported that Cuban government authorities arrested Ferrer on Tuesday for violating the terms of his parole only three months after being released from jail as part of a deal mediated by the Vatican between Cuba and former President Joe Biden’s administration.
Cuba released 553 prisoners “in the spirit of” Poper Francis’ 2025 Holy Year and had informed the pope of its decision ahead of time. The move came a day after the Biden administration announced its intention to lift the U.S. designation of the island nation as a state sponsor of terrorism. Trump has since reinstated the designation.
Maricela Sosa, vice president of Cuba's Supreme Popular Tribunal, told Reuters that Ferrer — who lives in Santiago de Cuba — did not attend two mandatory court hearings, a violation of Cuban law and the conditions of his release.
"Not only did he not show up, but he also announced through his social media profile, in flagrant defiance and non-compliance with the law, that he would not appear before the judicial authority," Sosa told Reuters in a statement.
Sosa told Reuters that Navarro, who is from Matanzas, Cuba, violated the terms of his parole “by leaving the municipality in which he lives without first seeking authorization from a judge.” He had previously been sentenced to nine years in prison following the anti-government protests in July 2021 across the island country.
"Although not part of this process, in addition to failing to comply with the terms of their parole, (Ferrer and Navarro) are people who publicly call for disorder and disrespect for authorities in their social and online environments, and maintain public ties with the head of the United States embassy," Sosa told Reuters.
Ferrer, 54, founded the opposition group National Patriotic Union, or UNPACU, in 2011.
The U.S. State Department slammed the Cuban government over the arrests and demanded they be immediately set free, along with other political prisoners.
“We strongly condemn the brutal treatment and unjust detention of Cuban patriots José Daniel Ferrer and his wife and young son, as well as Félix Navarro and other pro-democracy activists,” said State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce. “We call for the immediate release of the hundreds of unjustly detained political prisoners and prisoners of conscience that the Cuban regime holds.”
The European Union, in a statement last week, criticized the arrests of Ferrer and Navarro
"The European Union regrets the decision by the Cuban authorities to revoke the conditional release granted in January to José Daniel Ferrer and Félix Navarro," the EU statement said. "The EU calls on the authorities to review these decisions and to release all individuals detained for exercising their rights to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression."
