The Diplomat
Cuban playwright Yunior García, who arrived in Spain in November after becoming one of the most visible faces of the opposition movement to the Castro regime, has applied for asylum in our country, as he himself revealed to Europa Press.
Yunior García, one of the founders of the Archipiélago Movement, which organised the failed protests planned for 15 November in Cuba, said he had taken the decision to seek asylum in Spain, given the impossibility of returning to the island. “If I were to set foot in Cuba again, I would go to prison”, he said.
The dissident arrived in Madrid with his wife on 17 November on a tourist visa issued by the Spanish government authorising him to stay in the country for 90 days. “What we would like is to return, but it is impossible”, he lamented, hoping that the government would grant him asylum given his personal circumstances and the persecution he is subjected to on the island.
García recalled that the case against him is still open and that since his departure from the island, the authorities have even proceeded to close the theatre group he directed.
“The situation is even worse than when we left”, he stressed, alluding to the fact that this week a total of 20 people, including five minors, have been sentenced for sedition to up to 20 years in prison for their participation in the anti-government protests of 11 July.
