Voces Presas

ARC – Artists at Risk Connection and PEN International, in partnership with Civil Rights Defenders (CRD), present Voces Presas (Incarcerated Voices), an international campaign highlighting the cases of Cuban artists who have been imprisoned, harassed, or forced into exile for their artistic expression.

Since its launch in 2022, the campaign has brought visibility to artists targeted for their critical voices and has contributed to international awareness and advocacy efforts, including in cases where artists have been released.

Voces Presas documents the experiences of artists whose work challenges censorship and repression, and calls for the release of those who remain unjustly imprisoned, as well as for the respect and protection of artistic freedom in Cuba.

The campaign features artist profiles, testimonies, and audiovisual works, offering insight into the patterns of harassment, criminalization, and imprisonment faced by independent artists on the island.

It also calls on the international community to stand in solidarity with Cuban artists and to support sustained attention, accountability, and the protection of freedom of expression.

Recommendations

This campaign makes the following recommendations to the Cuban government, to interested organizations and individuals, as well as to members of the international community regarding the condition of artists and free expression in the country:

• The Cuban government should immediately release all imprisoned artists and guarantee the free exercise of art and activism in the country.

• The embassies of the European Union and Latin America in Cuba should demand that the government allow them to visit the three imprisoned artists to verify their conditions and should subsequently issue reports with the findings of these visits.

• Interested organizations and individuals should demand that the Cuban government remove the requirement of state approval for artists to freely exhibit their work, one of the most repressive measures of Decree 349.