For the past three years, many of you have been praying, protesting, and writing to Pastor Lorenzo Rosales Fajardo and his family in Cuba. Our team has been working alongside you, maintaining regular contact with his wife and children, and ensuring his case is being raised at every level.
Here is an update on a major breakthrough we’ve seen this year.
In February 2024, the United Nations (UN) Working Group on Arbitrary Detention adopted an opinion on Pastor Lorenzo’s case, ruling that his imprisonment meets their definition of arbitrary detention. In fact, they said it contravenes nine different Articles of the UN Declaration of Human Rights.
The international recognition of this injustice is a significant breakthrough! It confirms what we have known all along: that Pastor Lorenzo Rosales Fajardo should not be in prison. There was no justifiable basis for his arrest while peacefully protesting on 11 July 2021.
The UN Working Group also called for reparations to be made, and for a full, independent investigation into his unjust detention.
The truth prevailed
The decision came almost two years after CSW originally submitted Pastor Lorenzo’s case to the UN Working Group, providing them with detailed evidence.
The Government of Cuba was also given an opportunity to share its side of the story, and it did, with a lengthy list of false accusations against Pastor Lorenzo. In the end, the truth prevailed.
When we shared the decision the family, Pastor Lorenzo’s wife, Maridilegnis (who is also a lawyer) responded:
‘…this decision is a great victory because [the Cuban government] have been exposed internationally and they have been unable to maintain their lies and injustices. It is very, very good. We give thanks to God for this case, and we honour the life of everyone at…CSW for all the work that they have done without giving up…We are very encouraged.’
‘All of this lets me know that I am not alone…’
We have seen progress in Pastor Lorenzo’s case since his violent arrest during the national protests calling for freedom on 11 July 2021. While he suffered severe mistreatment in the first year of his imprisonment, he has since been moved to a minimum-security prison near his home.
Although he is still subjected to forced labour, he has been allowed some day passes to visit his family at home. He continues to share his faith with other prisoners and has even been able to baptise some of them.
None of this would have happened were it not for your prayers, your protests, and the letters and cards you’ve sent his family. These cards have encouraged and given them strength, knowing they have a larger family around the world standing with them in solidarity.
And you don’t need to take our word for it. Pastor Lorenzo sent the following message in a letter which he asked us to share with all of those who have supported him and his family in different ways:
‘We thank God for all the brothers, sisters, and friends who always pray and are interested in me. Thank you for your displays of affection and Christian love, for the…letters I receive daily from all over the world, for the phone calls, and all the spiritual and material help offered to me and my family. All of this lets me know that I am not alone, nor forgotten in this tribulation. I have not lost my JOY, that is, my happiness, being able survive in prison… there are sad days [when] I lack the motivation to pray, but today I can say like the Apostle Paul to the Philippians, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."'
Every time you pray, take part in an act of protest, or write a card of encouragement it makes a difference. We will continue together until Pastor Lorenzo is free.