[1] In 2016, Amnesty International reported that the re-establishment of diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba in December 2014 "renewed hope for an end to the US economic embargo, which has had a direct impact on the human rights of ordinary Cubans.
[4] Around the time of Pope Benedict XVI's 2012 visit,[5] the government blocked NGO communications from abroad to prevent them from obtaining information on Cuban prisoners.
[6] According to the Foundation for Human Rights in Cuba, "Cuban citizens are experiencing severe restrictions on their freedom of speech and expression and that extends also to the issue of free press.
Death sentences, in accordance with Article 91 of the country's penal code, are imposed on journalists or bloggers who act against "the independence or the territorial integrity of the state".
[8] The government removed exit-visa requirements in 2013, and Cubans (particularly journalists and bloggers, including Yoani Sanchez and independent news agency Hablemos Press founder and director Roberto de Jesus Guerra) began traveling abroad.