Julio César Gandarilla Bermejo | |
---|---|
Minister of the Interior of Cuba | |
In office 10 January 2017 – 24 November 2020 | |
Preceded by | Carlos Fernández Gondín |
Succeeded by | Lázaro Alberto Álvarez Casas [1] |
Personal details | |
Born | 1943 Matanzas Province, Cuba |
Died | 24 November 2020 Havana, Cuba | (aged 76–77)
Occupation | Politician |
Julio César Gandarilla Bermejo (1943 – 24 November 2020) was a Cuban politician who served as Minister of the Interior from January 2017 until his death.
Gandarilla Bermejo was born in 1943 in Matanzas Province, Cuba. [2]
Gandarilla Bermejo was a founder of the National Revolutionary Militia. [2] He was a vice admiral in the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces, [3] and fought in the Angolan Civil War. [2] He was head of the Military Counterintelligence Directorate for 16 years. [2] Gandarilla Bermejo was a member of the Communist Party of Cuba, and a deputy in the National Assembly of People's Power. [4]
In 2015, Gandarilla Bermejo became First Deputy Minister of the Ministry of the Interior, replacing Carlos Fernández Gondín, who became Minister of the Interior. [5] In January 2017, he became Minister of the Interior, succeeding Carlos Fernández Gondín who had died earlier that month, [6] becoming the sixth Minister of the Interior since the role was created in 1961. [2] In the same month, he signed a memorandum of understanding with outgoing US president Barack Obama. [5] Whilst Minister of the Interior, he introduced legislation aimed at repressing opposition and dissent. Some of the legislation was criticised by human rights organisations for allegedly violating freedom of speech. [5]
In October 2019, Gandarilla Bermejo signed a memorandum of understanding with the Russian Security Council. [5] The following month, the US banned Gandarilla Bermejo from entering the country due to Cuba's support for socialist Nicolás Maduro during the Venezuelan presidential crisis. [7] His two sons were also sanctioned by the US. [5] [8] Gandarilla Bermejo did not have a Twitter account, even though Cuban president Miguel Díaz-Canel said all senior leaders should have one. [8]
Gandarilla Bermejo died of cancer [5] on 24 November 2020. [9] He was cremated without a public funeral ceremony. [2] [5]