IV 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 1172 

Calling for the release of Cuban political prisoner Silverio Portal Contreras. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 1, 2020 

Ms. MUCARSEL-POWELL (for herself, Ms. SHALALA, Ms. WASSERMAN

SCHULTZ, Mr. SIRES, Mr. SOTO, Mr. DEUTCH, Mr. CRIST, Mrs. MURPHY

of Florida, Mr. MAST, Mr. HASTINGS, Mr. SHERMAN, Mr. VARGAS, Mr. 

KIND, Mr. SCHNEIDER, Mr. LAWSON of Florida, Mr. PAYNE, and Ms. 

WILSON of Florida) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 

RESOLUTION 

Calling for the release of Cuban political prisoner Silverio 

Portal Contreras. 

Whereas Silverio Portal Contreras is a 57-year-old, AfroCuban, social activist who has supported various movements in Cuba that advocate for freedom and democracy, 

including the Ladies in White; 

Whereas Mr. Portal Contreras was arrested in June of 2016 

in Havana for participating in a public protest regarding 

the Cuban Government’s failure to repair dilapidated 

buildings that placed the public at risk for harm, and for 

shouting ‘‘down with Fidel Castro, down with Rau ́l’’; 

Whereas, in June of 2018, as a result of his participation in 

this protest, Mr. Portal Contreras was prosecuted by auVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:01 Oct 03, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR1172.IH HR1172

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•HRES 1172 IH 

thorities for ‘‘contempt’’, a charge that is frequently used 

to criminalize criticism of public officials in Cuba, and for 

‘‘public disorder’’; 

Whereas, in July of 2018, Mr. Portal Contreras was sentenced to four years in prison after a closed-door trial; 

Whereas the health of Mr. Portal Contreras has rapidly and 

severely deteriorated since being imprisoned as a result of 

inadequate medical care, as well as instances of willful 

neglect and even intentional harm directed toward Mr. 

Portal Contreras by security officials; 

Whereas shortly after being imprisoned, Mr. Portal Contreras 

suffered a seizure that rendered him unconscious after 

having repeatedly requested medical attention that was 

denied for over four hours; 

Whereas as a result of poor medical attention and a failure 

of prison officials to address his needs, Mr. Portal 

Contreras’s life has been placed in danger while in prison 

and he has suffered several transient ischemic attacks 

(TIAs) that have caused paralysis on the left side of his 

body; 

Whereas Mr. Portal Contreras has been the subject of threats 

and physical attacks while in prison, including in May of 

2020 when Mr. Portal Contreras was reportedly left 

blinded in one eye following an attack he suffered at the 

hands of security personnel; 

Whereas Mr. Portal Contreras’ petitions requesting that he 

be released due to his deteriorating health were denied by 

the Government, with one court ruling that ‘‘his current 

state of health is compatible with the penitentiary regime’’; 


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•HRES 1172 IH 

Whereas Lucinda Gonzalez Gomez, the spouse of Mr. Portal 

Contreras, has had no contact with Mr. Portal Contreras 

since June of 2020 and has been refused information 

about his health status from Cuban authorities in violation of the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for 

the Treatment of Prisoners; 

Whereas Amnesty International has designated Mr. Portal 

Contreras a ‘‘Prisoner of Conscience’’, who has been deprived of his liberty solely for peacefully exercising his 

basic rights, and has called for his immediate and unconditional release; 

Whereas, on November 29, 2019, the European Parliament 

adopted a resolution recognizing Mr. Portal Contreras as 

a political prisoner persecuted and arbitrarily detained in 

Cuba, and called on Cuban authorities to immediately release ‘‘all political prisoners and those arbitrarily detained solely on the grounds of exercising their freedom 

of expression and assembly’’; and 

Whereas, on July 18, 2020, the Inter-American Commission 

on Human Rights adopted a resolution in which it granted precautionary measures on behalf of Mr. Portal 

Contreras and urged Cuban authorities to protect the life 

and liberties of Mr. Portal Contreras: Now, therefore, be 

it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) calls for the immediate and unconditional 

3 release of political prisoner Silverio Portal Contreras 

4 and the provision of urgently needed medical atten5 tion; 


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•HRES 1172 IH 

1 (2) condemns the politically motivated impris2 onment of dissidents in Cuba and calls for the re3 lease of all those who have been arbitrarily detained 

4 due to their advocacy for human rights and democ5 racy; and 

6 (3) urges the lifting of all legal restrictions that 

7 impose limitations on the exercise of freedom of ex8 pression and association in Cuba. 

Æ 


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