TV Program, Hacemos Cuba.

Havana, Jul 20 (RHC)-- Cuba ratified that there are no missing persons after the recent riots in the country and reaffirmed its commitment to respect the legal guarantees of the detainees.

Colonel Victor Alvarez, deputy chief of the General Directorate of Criminal Investigation of the Ministry of the Interior (MININT), made that statement on Tuesday in a TV program.

"When people are taken to a police unit, the first thing done is to register their detention. Therefore, people know from the onset why they are being retained, he added.

According to the officer, in the first 24 hours, the family is notified where the defendant is being held because the MININT units have a communication system linked throughout the country.

In the colonel's opinion, the lists of supposed missing persons in Cuba that different international media have presented lack seriousness and validity.

We have verified that many of these people were not even detained at this time. In addition,  there are names with only one surname without more data, he pointed out.

The MININT official assured that Cuba respects Article 17 of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance.

These lists are a fallacy of the enemies of the Revolution who insist on documenting supposed disappeared persons and have never been able to prove it because they have never existed', he said.

Alvarez denied using force to obtain a confession from the detainees and recalled that the island is a signatory of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

For his part, Jose Luis Reyes, head of the Department of the Directorate of Criminal Proceedings of the Attorney General's Office, said communication channels between the people and the prosecutor's office to denounce any violation by the central state administration agencies.

Since July 12, due to events associated with the riots, 63 people have gone to the prosecutor's office, mostly in person, to formulate specific concerns and seek information on arrests', he said.

The prosecutor commented that all those interested had been offered the requested information because there is close coordination with the MININT.

Reyes Blanco explained that all the accused can appoint their lawyers; 'if they do not have them at present, it is because they have chosen to do so'.

Of these lists of alleged missing persons, 'there is a group of people who have been released, some have received fines, and others have preventive measures.

In addition, the General Attorney's office representative said there are also detainees under provisional detention ordered by the competent authority, whose relevance is constantly evaluated.