Cuban Legal Expert Criticizes Questioning Political Equality Rights

On Tuesday, Cuban jurist and dissident René Fidel González García shared an in-depth reflection on Facebook, condemning the audacity of questioning the legitimacy of political equality demands in Cuba. He described most of his fellow citizens as victims of a systematic stripping of their political rights by the regime.

"It's quite brazen to ask why we want political equality rights in Cuba for all citizens when we understand—and it is entirely understandable—the reason we have been deprived until now of exercising and securing them," wrote the doctor of Legal Sciences under his usual hashtag #PensarEnCuba.

González García argues that the majority of Cubans live in what he calls a "state of political indigence." This condition, he asserts, is imposed by the regime to maintain power and is neither natural nor acceptable.

The Misunderstanding of Political Rights

Rejecting the notion that demanding rights is akin to begging, he states, "A political demand is not a plea. It is first an understanding. It is first a necessity interpreted and assumed as a goal and purpose before becoming a demand."

The jurist lays out his argument through a series of rhetorical questions: Why should Cubans continue to accept that they cannot elect or remove their representatives? Why do leaders who make poor decisions not answer for them? What kind of society results from leaders never being held accountable for their actions?

"What do leaders, political leaders become when they cannot be renewed or removed by citizens when they are exhausted or lose the ability or competence to perform the work they are expected to do successfully?" he asks.

Limits of Political Exclusion

For González García, political exclusion can only be maintained publicly "when the logic, rationality, and decency of most people have been deactivated, instrumentalized, or perverted." However, he warns that this state has its limits: "This can happen for a time, even for a long time, but not forever."

The jurist also dismisses the notion that the solution lies in power concessions: "We don't need those who exclude and discriminate against us in Cuba to accept anything; we need to first understand, we, the excluded, those deprived of political freedom to decide our destinies, this demand, its scope, and necessity."

A Call for Political Equality

He concludes with a declaration of principles: "Restoring the right of political equality to all Cubans is not a government program, but it pertains to solving the political problem we face now as a society."

And he adds, "This is what I believe in. This is our political program, what we want to achieve."

González García served as a full professor of History of Law at the University of Oriente for nearly 17 years until he was dismissed from teaching in November 2016 after publishing critical articles in independent media. The institution cited academic reasons, but he and human rights organizations denounced it as political retaliation. That same year, he was expelled from the Communist Party of Cuba.

Since then, he has maintained a consistent public critique of the system. Recently, he warned that Cuba "no longer has time to waste," and at the beginning of October, he described the country as a "paralyzed society" due to "political underdevelopment."

In April 2026, he announced he would go on a hunger strike if prosecuted for charges of "enemy propaganda," "contempt for the president," and "disobedience."

The 2019 Cuban Constitution enshrines the Communist Party as the "superior political force of society and the state" and declares the socialist system irrevocable. Meanwhile, Freedom House awarded Cuba zero points for political rights out of a maximum of 40, with a total score of nine out of 100 in 2026.