Cuba Names 2,010 Pardoned Prisoners: A Gesture That Excludes Every Known Dissident

According to the Cuban government, the pardon was based on several criteria :

• The nature of the offenses committed
• Good conduct while incarcerated
• The portion of the sentence already served
• The health status of the inmates

The released groups include women, young adults, seniors aged 60 and older, foreign nationals, and Cuban citizens living abroad .

One notable detail revealed by the list's publication: 95 individuals are linked to cases handled by the Chamber of Crimes against State Security of the People's Supreme Court . The Cuban government does not use the category "political prisoner" to describe any of them, and these cases were prosecuted under common criminal statutes .

Why Human Rights Groups Are Skeptical

Despite the scale of the amnesty and the inclusion of state-security cases, human rights organizations have been unequivocal: the list contains no one they recognize as a political prisoner or prisoner of conscience.

Amnesty International's named prisoners of conscience were left off the list. None of the individuals that Amnesty has designated as prisoners of conscience—including Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, Maykel Castillo Pérez (Osorbo), Félix Navarro Rodríguez, Saily Navarro Álvarez, Roberto Pérez Fonseca, Loreto Hernández García, and Donaida Pérez Paseiro—appear among the pardoned .

Other independent groups reached the same conclusion. Human Rights Watch, Justicia 11J, and Prisoners Defenders all confirmed they could not identify any political detainees on the published list .

Human Rights Watch noted that the Cuban government explicitly excluded people sentenced for "crimes against authority"—a category that under Cuban law includes charges like "contempt," "propaganda," and "assault" often used to prosecute peaceful dissent .

The skepticism is reinforced by the March 2026 release of 51 prisoners, in which only 20 of those freed were linked to the July 2021 protests, all serving sentences of 6 to 18 years . That earlier release, negotiated through the Vatican, was presented as a goodwill gesture, but the small fraction of political cases it covered did little to shift assessments from rights groups.

Cuba's Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carlos Fernández de Cossío, made the government's position explicit in March: "Political prisoners exist, but they are not part of the discussions with the United States. It is an internal matter for Cuba."

The Broader Context: U.S. Pressure, Vatican Mediation, and Selective Releases

The April amnesty did not happen in isolation. It is the second chapter in a year defined by escalating U.S. pressure, Vatican-mediated diplomacy, and selective prisoner releases that have stopped short of freeing high-profile dissidents.

Vatican-Mediated Release (March 2026)

On March 13, Díaz-Canel publicly confirmed for the first time that Cuba was engaged in diplomatic talks with the United States . At the same time, Cuba released 51 prisoners through an agreement negotiated with the Vatican, described as a goodwill gesture to the Holy See .

The April Amnesty Ultimatum

Following a secret April 10 meeting in Havana between U.S. and Cuban officials, the Trump administration issued a two-week ultimatum demanding the release of high-profile political prisoners, specifically artists Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara and rapper Maykel Castillo Pérez (Osorbo) .

Cuba rejected the ultimatum. Cuban Ambassador to the U.N. Ernesto Soberón Guzmán stated that Havana "will not abide by American ultimatums" and that releasing political prisoners is "not on the negotiating table" .

Ongoing Selective Releases and Exile Conditions (May 2026)

In May, Cuba released another political prisoner during CIA-facilitated talks. Meanwhile, the regime offered Otero and Castillo Pérez release in exchange for exile, a condition that would force dissidents to choose between freedom and leaving the country . As of the list's publication, both men remained behind bars.

The Numbers Behind the Negotiations

Prisoners Defenders reported a record 1,260 political prisoners in Cuba as of April, an increase of 10 from the previous month . The organization documented 23 new political prisoners during April alone, along with allegations of torture, sexual assaults, and denial of medical care inside the prison system .

The U.S. pressure campaign has been fueled by broader geopolitical shifts. Following the capture of Venezuela's leader in January, the Trump administration tightened sanctions, throttled oil shipments to Cuba, and warned of possible hostile intervention—marking the highest tension between the two countries in decades . Nationwide blackouts and severe fuel shortages have intensified political pressure on the Díaz-Canel government .

What the List Tells Us

The publication of the names represents a transparency measure Cuba had not previously offered. But the contents confirm what skeptics suspected from the start: the amnesty was designed to show goodwill and reduce prison populations under international pressure, while carefully avoiding the release of anyone the outside world would recognize as a political prisoner.

The 95 state-security cases remain a gray area. The government classifies these individuals under ordinary criminal statutes, while rights groups argue that the legal framework itself is used to criminalize dissent .

As Cuba and the U.S. continue tense negotiations over energy sanctions, economic relief, and human rights, the published list makes one fact unambiguous: the people Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and other organizations have named as prisoners of conscience remain behind bars.