Human rights: Family: German seriously injured in prison in Cuba

The relatives of a German imprisoned in Cuba are concerned about his condition after he was allegedly beaten and seriously injured in prison. “Our family was still not allowed to see him. Why?” wrote Janie Frómeta from Dresden on social media on Thursday. A week earlier, four inmates said they had beaten their father, the German-Cuban Luis Frómeta Compte, in prison and cut his nose with a razor blade.

Luis Frómeta Compte is one of hundreds of people detained on the socialist Caribbean island for taking part in protests in July 2021. He was visiting relatives in Havana, filmed a demonstration with his cell phone, was arrested and sentenced to 15 years in prison for rioting.

Frómeta Compte moved to Dresden in 1985 as a guest worker. The forestry worker has been a German citizen since 1997. According to his wife Silke Frómeta Compte, the 61-year-old has to share a cell with 30 serious criminals in the maximum security prison Combinado del Este.

The background to the attack is unclear

The background to the attack on November 30th was unclear. According to Janie Frómeta, her father is in prison in the infirmary. His relatives have not been allowed visitors since the incident and were only able to speak to him briefly on the phone on Monday.

Two weeks ago, EU Human Rights Commissioner Eamon Gilmore was in Cuba for talks. He said that he had reiterated the EU’s call to the government to release the detained demonstrators. A few days earlier, one of the prisoners had died – according to activists, from a respiratory illness that had not been treated.

The Cuban government did not respond to a question from the German Press Agency about Frómeta Compte’s health. The authorities at the German embassy in Havana are refusing to provide him with consular assistance. However, the case is being closely monitored and intensive efforts are being made for it, the Foreign Office said.