Activist Maikel Herrera Bones is grappling with a serious health issue and he has taken to social media to highlight his case, seeking only visibility as he assured he would handle the rest with his remaining strength.
In a Facebook post, Bones detailed that he has been waiting five days for a bed to be transferred from the Manuel Fajardo University Clinical Surgical Hospital to the Institute of Tropical Medicine Pedro Kourí, commonly known as IPK, in Havana.
“Today marks the fourth day of waiting and agony, hoping to be treated at IPK,” wrote the former political prisoner, who is also a member of the Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU) and a promoter of Cuba Decide.
He reminded his followers that he has been living with HIV since 2012 and currently has CD4 levels (a type of white blood cell crucial for fighting infections) at only 6%, making him highly susceptible to any disease.
Additionally, he mentioned there are suspicions he might have tuberculosis and dengue, as he has been suffering from fever for over two months and has lost 22 pounds.
“They have me here at Fajardo, giving me intravenous fluids while I wait for an alleged bed at IPK for new treatment,” he reported.
A History of Opposition
Herrera Bones is a staunch opponent of the Cuban regime. In 2019, he walked down the entire length of 23rd Street in protest against police abuses, standing in front of the iconic Habana Libre Hotel with a sign on a cardboard box that read: "Corrupt and Pimp Police. Down with Corruption."
On April 15, 2020, he was arrested at night while protesting a power outage in his community. He was released shortly before midnight but was taken by National Revolutionary Police (PNR) officers to the 11th Police Unit in the San Miguel del Padrón municipality the next day.
He was freed in November 2020, released from the Güines prison for patients with HIV.