On May 29, 2025, Cubalex submitted a formal response to the Committee against Enforced Disappearances (CED) within the framework of Urgent Actions AU Nos. 2033 to 2038/2025, initiated following the arbitrary detention and disappearance of six human rights defenders in Cuba. These actions had been registered by the Committee after receiving requests from Cubalex, including the one concerning Félix Navarro Rodríguez. The Cuban State officially responded to these urgent actions with a communication requesting the definitive closure of the cases, alleging that the detainees had been located and that there was no current risk of enforced disappearance.
In its defense, the State claimed that Félix Navarro is being held in the Agüica prison in Matanzas as a result of the revocation of his parole due to alleged violations. Cubalex refuted this claim, arguing that the State failed to present any official documentation to support the revocation. No court rulings, reasoned orders, or any evidence that Navarro had been notified or given the opportunity to exercise his right to appeal were presented. This omission, in addition to violating Articles 141, 144, and 146.2 of the Cuban Criminal Enforcement Law, also violates Article 18 of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance.
Based on this position, the State requested that the Committee close Urgent Action AU 2033/2025. Cubalex categorically rejected this request. It argued that the mere physical location of a person deprived of liberty does not, in itself, eliminate the elements constituting an enforced disappearance. As long as circumstances surrounding the detention remain unclear, without evidence of minimum procedural guarantees or regular contact with his family, the case cannot be considered closed. Cubalex maintained that the real risk to Félix Navarro's physical and emotional integrity remains, and that closing the case under these conditions would be legally inadmissible and ethically unjustifiable.
Regarding his health, the Cuban state claimed that Félix Navarro “is in good health.” Cubalex denounced this claim as unfounded, contradictory to the evidence gathered, and lacking any verifiable medical support. Direct testimonies and reliable sources indicate that Navarro suffers from uncontrolled diabetes, an untreated chronic lung condition, severe malnutrition, persistent diarrhea, and fainting spells. Furthermore, he has been denied entry to food and medicine sent by his family. This situation constitutes cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment, in violation of Article 17 of the Convention and Article 51 of the Cuban Constitution.
The State also maintained that Félix Navarro's right to communicate with his family has been respected. However, Cubalex has documented that his wife, Sonia Álvarez, has been repeatedly prevented from seeing or speaking with him. During recent visits to the prison, authorities informed her that Félix was not entitled to visits or phone calls, despite his serious health condition. In a brief previous conversation, Navarro had managed to tell his wife, “I think I’m on my last legs. I have a pain in my lung that I can’t stand.” Furthermore, Sonia has been subjected to constant surveillance and institutional harassment, even when she tried to visit her daughter, who is also detained. These reprisals, far from being isolated incidents, reflect a pattern of intimidation that violates Articles 18 and 30 of the Convention.
Given this situation, Cubalex requested that the Committee reject the State's request to close the case of Félix Navarro and that it maintain the active urgent action AU 2033/2025. It further demands that the State provide an official, independent, and verifiable medical report on his state of health; guarantee his family's right to visit him without intimidation; and ensure compliance with its international obligations under the Convention. The persistence of the reported conditions justifies continuing to consider the case as an ongoing enforced disappearance.
In short, Cubalex maintains that the Cuban state's request lacks legal, evidentiary, and ethical basis. The situation of Félix Navarro—marked by incommunicado detention, severe health deterioration, lack of judicial guarantees, and harassment of his family and friends—constitutes an enforced disappearance under international standards. As long as these conditions persist, the case should not be closed, and international monitoring must remain active.