Tensions between some of the leaders of the evangelical community and the government in Cuba have increased over the past three years, as the main Protestant churches have demanded more independence from state organizations, reports Yoe Suarez on the website Religion Unplugged (January 19). Protestant churches have been at the forefront in rejecting Cuban government mandates, such as the Comprehensive Sexuality Education Program, with its focus on gender, sexual and reproductive rights, and the promotion of same-sex marriage. In an article originally published in the Diario de Cuba and Cubanet, Suarez notes that clashes with the state and “acts of punishment or intimidation of these churches” escalated after massive protests against the government that occurred last July 11. Protestant leaders who had never before taken to the streets to protest did so. Since then, state repression of Protestant pastors has continued and “contributed to an increasing number of religious leaders and churches questioning police repression or speaking out against the government.” The group Justicia 11J, which keeps track of those who have been arrested and subject to legal proceedings, finds that Protestants are the religious group with the most leaders repressed as a result of the protests on July 11. Evangelical Protestants represent about seven percent of Cuba’s population.
Suarez cites a source inside the religious freedom group, Christian Solidarity Worldwide, who says that the government views “religious groups as the largest independent civil society sector and fears their potential to mobilize large groups of people.” The source, who asked to remain anonymous because of the organization’s work in Cuba, adds that “The involvement of believers and some religious leaders in the [July 11] protests fed the government’s paranoia…The government wants exemplary cases to show other religious leaders what the consequences will be if they don’t follow the rules.” The Methodist Church, which had one of its pastors spend two days in detention for his involvement in the July 11 protests, published a statement on the church’s social networks with “unusually direct language critical of the government.” Other large churches, such as the Pentecostal Assemblies, issued similar statements.
(Religion Unplugged, https://religionunplugged.com/news/2022/1/19/the-rebellious-evangelicals-of-cuba)
