Versión Español
Dissident artist and political prisoner Danilo “El Sexto” Maldonado, was transferred to the high security prison “Combinado del Este”, according to his mother María Victoria Machado.
“Yes, it is true that he was transferred Wednesday from the Valle Grande jail to the ‘Combinado’ prison. Today he called me and he told me,” said the famed grafitti artist’s mother.
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Machado explained that El Sixto has been in custody since November 26 and that the charge he is currently facing is “for damage to State property” according to the case that they are building against him.
“For that charge I would only have to pay a fine of 200 pesos (about USD $7.50) to the government,” said the opponent’s mother, who said El Sixto “is a pacifist, an artist” and said she is worried about this new transfer, worried that “The inmates in Combinado are hardened criminals, it is a high security prison.”
El Sexto could be sentenced to 2 or 3 years in prison, according to Machado, who also revealed that her son is still on “partial hunger strike”, since he refuses to eat in prison and only eats what she brings to him on visiting days.
After his arrest, El Sexto was taken to a police station in Havana‘s “La Lisa” neighborhood, then passed through two police stations before arriving at the “El Vivac” detention center, located in Calabazar, Boyeros. Finally he was place at the prison in “Valle Grande”.
Danilo “El Sexto” Maldonado was recognized with the Václac Havel International Award for creative dissent given by the Human Rights Foundation. He is also key collaborator of the critical forum “Estado de Sats” that is closely associated with the Cuban opposition.
Under the six decade rule of the Castro brothers, prisons have frequently been filled with political prisoners, dissidents, and free thinkers in the one party state. International human rights organizations as well as numerous governments in Europe, North America, and South America, have place international pressure on the Cuban regime to reform.
Source: Ciber Cuba
