Artist 'El Sexto' walks out of prison in Cuba

Artist 'El Sexto' walks out of prison in Cuba
Artist spends 2 months in prison after celebrating Fidel Castro's death
By Andrea Torres - Digital Reporter/Producer , Liane Morejon - Reporter
Updated: 6:42 PM, January 21, 2017

HAVANA - Cuban authorities freed artist Danilo Maldonado on Saturday.
The Cuban government had been holding the artist known as "El Sexto"
since Nov. 26.

International human rights U.S. human rights lawyer Kimberley Motley
took up his case and was later detained for hours in Havana.

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Danilo 'El Sexto' Maldonado shares work from prison
Maldonado's family said they were grateful to Motley and international
civil rights attorney Centa B. Rek Chajtur from the Human Rights Foundation.

"It was the growing awareness about his case that has led the Cuban
government to liberate him," a statement on the artist's Facebook page
said. They added that Maldonado plans to "continue doing meaningful art
towards a free and democratic Cuba."

The artist was released after the Geneva-based United Nations Working
Group on Arbitrary Detention started to review a legal petition filed in
his behalf.
The graffiti writer had been in prison before. Cubans held him for about
10 months after he attempted to release two pigs he had spray painted
with the names of Raul and Fidel Castro.

Maldonado's latest arrest happened before an exhibit he was supposed to
host in Miami during Art Basel. Cuban authorities showed up to his
apartment after he celebrated the death of Fidel Castro with graffiti.

Source: Artist 'El Sexto' walks out of prison in Cuba -
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