Kilo Cinco y Medio
Pinar del Río prison holding dissident rapper Maykel Osorbo, on hunger strike May 2026.
Last refreshed: 7 May 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic
Why is the Latin Grammy-winning rapper still on hunger strike in a Pinar del Río prison?
Timeline for Kilo Cinco y Medio
- Where is Kilo Cinco y Medio prison in Cuba?
- Kilo Cinco y Medio ('Kilometre Five and a Half') is a detention facility in Pinar del Río province at the western end of Cuba. It holds dissidents from the western provinces and is one of the facilities documented by human rights organisations for deteriorating conditions in 2026.Source: entity background
- Why is Maykel Osorbo on hunger strike at Kilo Cinco y Medio?
- Osorbo began a hunger strike at Kilo Cinco y Medio in April-May 2026 denouncing degrading treatment, in parallel with Otero Alcántara's strike at Guanajay; both men had been named in a US dissident-release deadline that lapsed on 24 April 2026 without either being freed.Source: Cuba Dispatch reporting
- Who is Maykel Osorbo and why is he in prison?
- Maykel Osorbo (Maykel Castillo Pérez) is a Cuban dissident rapper and co-author of 'Patria y Vida,' the protest anthem of the July 2021 uprising that won a Latin Grammy in 2021. He was arrested after the 2021 protests and is serving a nine-year sentence at Kilo Cinco y Medio with approximately four years remaining as of 2026.Source: event 3085
- What happened at Kilo Cinco y Medio in 2026?
- Maykel Osorbo conducted a hunger strike at Kilo Cinco y Medio in April-May 2026 denouncing degrading treatment. His protest ran parallel to Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara's hunger strike at Guanajay and occurred in the same weeks as the lapsed US dissident-release deadline of 24 April 2026.Source: event 3085
- What is Patria y Vida and who sang it?
- 'Patria y Vida' (Homeland and Life) is a Cuban protest song that became the anthem of the July 2021 mass protests against the Castro government. It was co-authored and performed by Maykel Osorbo, Yotuel, Gente de Zona, Descemer Bueno, and El Funky. The song won a Latin Grammy in 2021; both Osorbo and Otero Alcántara, who were associated with the movement it represented, are now imprisoned.Source: entity background
Background
Kilo Cinco y Medio (literally 'Kilometre Five and a Half') is a Cuban detention facility in Pinar del Río province, at the western end of the island. It holds Maykel Osorbo, the dissident rapper and co-author of 'Patria y Vida,' who conducted a hunger strike there in April-May 2026 denouncing degrading treatment, a parallel protest to Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara's strike at Guanajay. Osorbo has approximately four years remaining of his nine-year sentence.
The facility holds dissidents from Cuba's western provinces. Cuban human rights organisations have documented conditions at Kilo Cinco y Medio as consistent with the broader pattern of deterioration described in the OCDH April 2026 report: restricted access to family visits, poor nutrition, and punitive cell transfers during periods of prisoner protest.
Osorbo's case carries international weight because 'Patria y Vida' won a Latin Grammy in 2021 and his imprisonment has been adopted by Amnesty International. The hunger strike became a running test of whether US-Cuba diplomatic engagement in 2026 produced any prisoner welfare improvements. Both Osorbo and Otero Alcántara were named in the US dissident-release deadline that lapsed on 24 April 2026 without any releases.