Music Freedom Day in Cuba

"During 2013, the human rights organization Freemuse registered 19 musicians killed, 7 abducted, and 18 music creators imprisoned. There are many reasons for organizing the annual ‘Music Freedom Day’ 3rd of March, which puts focus on musicians’ rights to freedom of expression."At least one of the 18 is a Cuban. His name is Angel Yunier Remon Arzuaga.

Rodolfo Ramirez, rapping name El Primario

Freemuse has documented the plight of punk rocker Gorki Águila imprisoned for two years and threatened with new trials for his anti-government lyrics and Cuban rappers Rodolfo Ramirez, known by his rapping name as El Primario brutally beaten by regime agents and Angel Yunier Remon Arzuaga, known best as “El Critico” imprisoned and brutalized since March 2013.

Rapper imprisoned since March 2013

This is just the tip of the iceberg. In addition to imprisoned and brutalized musicians in Cuba under the Castro's music has been systematically censored in what amounts to a Cuban cultural genocide that is depriving generations of Cubans of their heritage.

Below is a mash-up of musical styles with Gorki Águila and El Primario collaborating on the song ESTE AÑO SI SE CAE (This year it will fall).

Status Update from Gorki on Show Trial and need for Solidarity in Cuba

The importance of solidarity and international attention

Rodolfo Ramirez, rapping name El Primario

  Yesterday the news arrived first as rumor that the trial had been suspended then at 3:27pm over Facebook Gorki Águila gave the following status update:

At 2:00pm I was informed that the oral presentation of the trial scheduled for Tuesday, February 11 was suspended due to health reasons of my lawyer ... At no time did an official notice arrive to me so right now I am heading to the Marianao Summary Court 100 & 33 to make known my concerns with regards to this news and that they not be given any argument for accusing me of not appearing ... I ask the people who have joined the solidarity campaign not to abandon denouncing this because the authorities may take advantage of a break to attack with impunity. Any other information I will try to make available. Thanks to all friends. 

A LAS 2 PM FUI INFORMADO DE QUE LA VISTA ORAL DEL JUCIO DEL MARTES 11 DE FEBRERO FUE SUSPENDIDA DEBIDO A RAZONES DE SALUD DE MI ABOGADA ..... EN NINGUN MOMENTO ME LLEGO UNA NOTIFICACION OFICIAL POR ESO AHORA MISMO ME DIRIJO HACIA LA SALA SUMARIA DE MARIANAO 100 Y 33 PARA HACER CONSTAR MI PROCUPACION ANTE ESTA NOTICIA Y QUE NO TENGAN POSIBLE ARGUMENTO ALGUNO PARA ACUSARME DE NO PRESENTACION ..... LES PIDO A LAS PERSONAS QUE SE HAN SUMEDO A LA CAMPANA DE SOLIDARIDAD QUE NO ABANDONEN LA DENUNCIA PUESTO QUE LAS AUTORIDADES PUEDEN APROVECHAR DICHA PAUSA PARA ARREMETER DESPUES IMPUNEMENTE . CUALQUIER OTRA INFORMACION TRATARE DE HACRELA LLEGAR .GRACIAS A TODOS LOS AMIGOS


At 9:32am  today Gorki posted the following Facebook status update:

If the alleged justice of the Castros make a mockery of these documents it is proof of its arbitrariness. Their laws mean nothing to them when it comes to achieve their objectives... In my 2008 trial they accused me of pre-criminal social dangerous conduct but the solidarity was so great that they were obliged to change the charge to disobedience and a fine of 600 pesos for the alleged crime. This is only achieved through unity. Lets unite once again and change the laws of the Castros, Viva Liberty. Thanks to all friends

SI LA SUPUESTA JUSTICIA DE LOS CASTRO SE BURLA DE ESTOS DOCUMENTOS ES PRUEVA DE SU ADBITRARIEDAD .. SUS LEYES NO SIGNICAN NADA PARA ELLOS MISMOS A LA HORA DE CUMPLIR SUS PROPOSITOS .... EN EL JUCIO DEL 2008 ME ACUSABAN DE PELIGROCIDAD SOCIAL CONDUCTA PREDELICTIVA PERO LA SOLIDARIDAD FUE TAN GRANDE QUE SE VIERON OBLIGADOS A CAMBIAR EL DELITO POR UNA MULTA DE 600 PESOS EN UN SUPUESTO DELITO DE DESOBEDIENCIA, ESTO UNICAMENTE LO LOGRA LA UNIDAD , UNAMONOS UNA VEZ MAS Y CAMBIEMOS LAS LEYES DE LOS CASTRO, VIVA LA LIBERTAD . GRACIAS A TODOS LOS AMIGOS

 The importance of generating and maintaining attention is critically important for anyone who dissents from the official government line. Rodolfo Ramirez, known by his rapping name as El Primario, member of the hip-hop duo El Primario y Julito,who appears in the above video was so badly beaten by an agent of state security that he is suffering from memory loss, and his face is completely disfigured. Another who is not in the video but is a fellow rapper is Angel Yunier Remón Arzuaga, whose stage name is "el Critico del Arte" (the 'Art Critic') he has also been badly beaten up and jailed since March 26, 2013 and has been so mistreated that it has driven him to hunger strikes that have compounded the deterioration of his health caused by the beatings.

At the same time that the campaign for solidarity has provided much needed protection for Gorki in other parts of Cuba the repression continues. On  the mornings of February 5th and again on February 11th the home of Jorge Luis García Pérez "Antúnez" was invaded and ransacked and Antúnez violently arrested and taken out of the city and held for hours. All his belongings seized during the first raid. No search warrant or notice that his property was to be confiscated for some legal reason. Nothing.  His wife, Yris Tamara Pérez Aguilera, detained, abused and beaten on February 5th as she was going to the offices of State Security to ascertain her husband's plight. This morning, February 11, at 6:00am without warning their home was invaded again and both were detained and beaten. This has led Antúnez to take the extreme measure yesterday to announce a hunger and thirst strike in protest.

We must remain vigilant for Gorki. The show trial has been suspended for the time being and can be reconvened at any moment. The dictatorship hates what he represents, and as we saw with Oswaldo Payá Sardiñas even high visibility is not enough to protect one who lives free in Cuba. We need to continue gathering signatures for the petition demanding his freedom. At the same time there are others who also need our attention.

In Cuba a middle aged mom and a young rapper have something in common

 “It may well be that we will have to repent in this generation. Not merely for the vitriolic words and the violent actions of the bad people, but for the appalling silence and indifference of the good people..." - Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

On Sunday, July 21, 2013 they were both brutally beaten by agents of the Cuban government for their dissent and suffered lasting physical damage. It takes time to get images out of Cuba, but unlike years past now it can be accomplished in hours and days instead of months and years.

Over twitter the images were posted today by her daughter Sayli Navarro who tweets: "my mom Sonia Álvarez Campillo, shows x-rays and fractured arm by repressors on Sunday" and independent journalist Ivan Hernandez Carrillo tweeted: "This is Lady in White Sonia Álvarez Campillo after first act of repudiation against Ladies in White."

There for everyone to see, a woman with a her left arm in a cast holding up her x-ray showing where the breaks are following a savage attack on Sunday by regime agents. This is not an isolated case but a disturbing pattern of increasing violence against nonviolent activists that is primarily but not only targeting women.

Sonia Álvarez Campillo is a victim of government violence

For example on the same day a young rapper was brutally attacked and Pedazos de la Isla broke the story and information and images are excerpted below.

Rodolfo Ramirez badly beaten on Sunday suffering memory loss

 Rodolfo Ramirez, known by his rapping name as El Primario, member of the hip-hop duo El Primario y Julito, was the victim of a brutal beating which left him with memory loss and serious injuries on his head. The attack occurred on Sunday, July 21st, at the Malecon (Sea wall) of Havana.

Julio Leon Fonseca “Julito”, offered declarations to ‘Radio Republica’ in regards to the situation, explaining that the repression was part of a series of hostile actions against both rappers that week. Fonseca had been verbally threatened in his neighborhood of Boyeros, in Havana, by a person at the service of State Security on July 16th. But the presence of various friends that came out in his defense forced the agent to flee.

El Primario was sitting along the Malecon of Havana with his girlfriend on Sunday morning.

“His girlfriend says that when they were sitting there he told her that there were two men following them and they looked like State Security. He told her they should leave that place“, explains Julito in the audio, “but in a little while, when Rodolfo and his girlfriend were leaving, they saw the two men again. One of them starts being rude to his girlfriend and El Primario responds, saying that its disrespectful. Quickly, one of the men throws Rodolfo to the floor and they both begin to kick him repeatedly in the head“.

“It’s a very difficult case”, expresses Julito, “Because El Primario is suffering from memory loss, he is repeating things and his face is completely disfigured“.
Fonseca says that both attacks – verbal and physical – occurred the same week, and when the police arrived on the scene, they did not handcuff the attackers.

Julito's mother, Sara Marta Fonseca Quevedo, spoke about her son's plight:

“I have more details about this case. I was able to sneak in through the backdoor of the police unit because they left it open. I could perfectly see Rodolfo. He was in a jail cell with both aggressors. He couldn’t even remember that they were the ones who attacked him. His girlfriend was the one who identified them“, recounts the activist, “both men were very confident and trusting with the political police agents. And it’s obvious that both of them had been trained with the way they beat Rodolfo. In addition, the family of one of them was there in the unit, chatting with the police with much confidence“.
“We do not think this is something casual, that in the same week both members of El Primario y Julito were assaulted. We hold the regime responsible for what has happened“.

 The body count in Cuba continues to rise, yesterday was the one year anniversary of the suspicious deaths of Oswaldo Payá Sardiñas and Harold Cepero Escalante. Some members of the Christian Liberation Movement were also subjected to acts of repudiation as they tried to honor their memory. People of good will need to focus on what is happening in Cuba. People are being brutalized and some are being killed by a dictatorship now in its 54th year.