The young Rodolfo Ramirez, best known as rapper El Primario, member of the dissident hip-hop duo El Primario y Julito, has been victim of a brutal beating which has left him with memory loss and serious scars on his face and head. The attack occurred on Sunday, July 21st, at the Malecon of Havana.
Julio Leon Fonseca “Julito”, offered declarations to the station ‘Radio Republica’ in regards to the situation, explaining that the repression was part of a series of hostile actions against both rappers that week. Fonseca had been verbally threatened in his neighborhood of Boyeros, in Havana, by a person at the service of State Security on July 16th. But the presence of various friends that came out in his defense forced the repressor to flee.
The ruthless violence, however, was reserved for El Primario while he was sitting along the Malecon of Havana alongside his girlfriend on Sunday morning.
“His girlfriend says that when they were sitting there he told her that there were two men following them and they looked like members of State Security. He told her they should leave that place“, explains Julito in the audio, “but in a little while, when Rodolfo and his girlfriend were already leaving, they see the two men again. One of them starts being rude to his girlfriend and El Primario responds, saying that it is a lack of respect. Quickly, one of the men throws Rodolfo to the floor and they both begin to kick his head“.
The musician has been left in a state where he forgets certain things and with worrying injuries.
“It’s a very difficult case”, expresses Julito, “Because El Primario is suffering from memory loss, he is repeating things and his face is completely disfigured“.
Fonseca says that it’s highly probable that the aggressors were sent by State Security, or that they are officials of some other vigilante organism of the regime. His reasoning is because both attacks – verbal and physical – occurred the same week, and mainly, because when the police arrived on the scene, they did not handcuff the attackers.
On her part, renown opposition leader and mother of Julito, Sara Marta Fonseca Quevedo, seconded this opinion in some declarations she made to this blog.
“I have more details about this case. I was able to sneak in through the backdoor of the police unit because they left it open. I could perfectly see Rodolfo. He was in a jail cell with both aggressors. He couldn’t even remember that they were the ones who attacked him. His girlfriend was the one who identified them“, recounts the activist, “both men were very confident and trusting with the political police agents. And it’s obvious that both of them had been trained with the way they beat Rodolfo. In addition, the family of one of them was there in the unit, chatting with the police with much confidence“.
“We do not think this is something casual, that in the same week both members of El Primario y Julito were assaulted. We hold the regime responsible for what has happened“.
El Primario is currently with his family, trying to receive medical attention for the damages on his head. This Monday, July 22nd, the young rapper was still suffering from memory loss. The duo is popular amongst everyday Cubans, mainly the young ones, for their hip-hop music with dissident lyrics. Both have described their sound as protest music and have been arrested and beat in the past by political police agents. Their music is completely censured on all mediums on the island.
–UPDATE– July 23rd, 2013: Independent news agency “Hablemos Press” has published a video-report showing the aftermath of the beating against El Primario. Check it out:
Pedazos de la Isla 