WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Senator Rick Scott released the following statement after receiving disturbing reports from the family of José Daniel Ferrer, the unjustly jailed Cuban democracy and human rights activist. José Daniel’s latest visit with his family, which was the first to be allowed by the illegitimate communist Cuban regime in nearly 40 days, was restricted to just one minute. This brief visit confirmed to his loved ones the dire health condition and the brutal and inhumane treatment and torture José Daniel has been subjected to. According to José Daniel’s family, he continues suffering from severe headaches, mouth bleeding, severe malnutrition and insomnia, and recently developed gastritis and a serious skin infection – all products of the cruel torture and inhumane treatment from the regime.

Senator Scott has worked with the Organization of American States (OAS) to demand that the regime allow outside medical treatment for those unjustly jailed and he is again calling on President Joe Biden to engage on this issue and join these calls. This week, Senator Scott and leaders around the world marked the one year anniversary of the July 11 democracy demonstrations in Cuba, which the president completely ignored and failed to issue any public statement on.

Senator Rick Scott said, “It has been more than a YEAR since José Daniel Ferrer was unjustly detained in isolation, and has being subjected to physical and psychological torture by the illegitimate communist Cuban regime. According to his family, José Daniel has gone 3 MONTHS without sunlight, MONTHS deprived of receiving medicine, medical treatment or food, and he recently went 38 DAYS without contact with his family. What has Joe Biden had to say about the horrific treatment of José Daniel and the nearly 1,000 other innocent Cubans facing these brutal conditions? NOTHING. All Biden has done is appease the illegitimate Castro/Díaz-Canel regime and ease sanctions, further fueling its oppression of the Cuban people.

“It is absolutely unacceptable that Joe Biden stayed silent on the anniversary of the July 11 democracy demonstrations and I won’t let him continue to ignore the suffering of José Daniel and the Cuban people. José Daniel’s family reports that his health is rapidly declining and he is being subjected to frequent horrific torture by Castro/Díaz-Canel’s thugs. Despite all of that, his conscience and courage have not broken. His response has not waivered; he is still proclaiming: ‘ABAJO LA DICTADURA, ABAJO DÍAZ-CANEL, ABAJO LOS CASTRO.’

“Joe Biden needs to show even an ounce of the courage and determination we’ve seen from José Daniel. The president needs to finally STAND UP for freedom in Cuba, demand an urgent humanitarian medical visit for José Daniel and join us in calling for the immediate release of all jailed democracy activists. Continued silence and appeasement only make Biden and his administration more complicit in the torture and deaths of innocent Cubans.”

###