On July 22, the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) posthumously awarded its highest honor, the Democracy Service Medal, to Oswaldo Payá, one of Cuba’s most principled advocates of peaceful democratic change. Held in the Cannon House Office Building and hosted by NED’s Board of Directors, the ceremony commemorated the 13th anniversary of Payá’s murder by the Cuban regime and celebrated the enduring movement he sparked for a free Cuba. [Watch the event here.]
Accepting the medal on Payá’s behalf were his wife, Ofelia Acevedo, and daughter, Rosa María Payá, who continue to carry forward his work for a free Cuba. Their presence underscored the resilience of the Payá family and the ongoing impact of a movement rooted in faith, dignity, and nonviolent resistance. The ceremony also included reflections from Payá’s family and a tribute to Harold Cepero, a fellow activist who was killed alongside Payá in the 2012 car crash orchestrated by the Cuban regime. Sabas Cepero, Harold’s father, attended the ceremony in remembrance.
“Oswaldo’s legacy is clear, unwavering, and urgent. Rights come first. The people are the protagonists. Freedom comes first,” said Acevedo as she accepted the Democracy Service Medal on behalf of her late husband. “My father’s fight was a deeply human project. A project inspired by faith, rooted in non-violence, and centered on the dignity of the human person,” noted his daughter Rosa María.
The evening’s program also featured powerful tributes from Senators Ted Cruz and Dick Durbin, Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Chief of Staff César González, who spoke on behalf of Congressman Mario Díaz-Balart, and State Department Senior Bureau Official for Western Hemisphere Affairs Mike Kozak. Each speaker honored Payá’s moral clarity and the hope he gave to so many Cubans.
“Oswaldo was a fierce believer who worked tirelessly to liberate the Cuban people from Communist oppression. He had long been a thorn in the side of the Castro regime. In retaliation the regime harassed him, they arrested him repeatedly, and in 2012 they killed him. But in life and in death, they never succeeded in silencing the message,” said Senator Cruz during his remarks at the ceremony.
“Oswaldo Payá led a heroic decades-long effort to change a nation. From the first signature that he collected, he knew that he was risking his life for democracy,” noted Senator Durbin.
“We’re here today to honor Oswaldo Payá, because NED supports and celebrates heroes like him. Someone who demanded freedom, and respect, and the basic dignity of every person. Mr. Payá should be here with us today—if it wasn’t for the brutal regime and what they did to him,” said González.
“The execution of the Varela project was something to behold,” said Kozak. “[Payá] got not only the 10,000 signatures plus, and I think I had them ‘disappeared’ at one point, but [we] used the visit of [former] President Carter as a way of delivering them, so that the regime couldn’t repress him with former President Carter there.”
“Oswaldo’s spirit lives on in the hearts of millions of Cubans who have not given up hope for a democratic future,” said Wasserman Schultz. “Let us honor Oswaldo not only with our words but with our will…. Let us pledge that as long as there is injustice facing the Cuban people, they will never face it alone.”
NED Board Member and former U.S. Senator Mel Martínez and Board Vice Chair Ken Wollack—both of whom knew Payá personally—shared personal remembrances that underscored the depth of his impact and the power of conviction in the face of tyranny.
The event, held on the 13th anniversary of Payá’s murder alongside fellow activist Harold Cepero, also marked the 4th anniversary of Cuba’s historic July 11 protests. Their story has reached growing international audiences in recent years, with journalist David Hoffman chronicling their lives in his 2022 book Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death: The True Story of Oswaldo Payá and His Daring Quest for a Free Cuba. The following year, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights determined that the Cuban regime orchestrated the 2012 crash that killed Payá and Cepero.
In honoring Payá, NED underlines its support for frontline democracy advocates around the world—those who, like him, face oppression with principle and turn hope into action. Past Democracy Service Medal recipients include the Dalai Lama, Lech Wałęsa, Vaclav Havel, President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan, Bishop Silvio José Báez Ortega of Nicaragua, Laura Pollán of the Ladies in White (Damas de Blanco) of Cuba, and U.S. congressional leaders Tom Lantos, John McCain, Mitch McConnell, and Nancy Pelosi.
“Oswaldo Payá awakened a nation’s conscience through the power of truth and the strength of his convictions,” said Damon Wilson, President and CEO of NED. “His moral courage reflects the spirit of so many partners NED supports around the world—ordinary people who stand up to repression and demand the right to shape their own future. Honoring Payá affirms our commitment to those who, like him, risk everything for the cause of liberty.”
NED Chairman Peter Roskam stated, “This medal represents our deepest respect for those who confront tyranny with truth. Oswaldo Payá’s voice—rooted in faith and freedom—continues to inspire a new generation of democratic leaders in Cuba and beyond.”
The Democracy Service Medal, first awarded in 1999, honors individuals whose steadfast commitment has advanced freedom and human rights around the world. Oswaldo Payá joins this distinguished list not only for his leadership of the Varela Project—which mobilized over 25,000 Cubans to peacefully petition for democratic reform under one of the world’s most repressive regimes—but for a lifetime of moral leadership and nonviolent resistance. As founder of the Christian Liberation Movement, Payá anchored his activism in the belief that human dignity and democratic rights are inseparable, inspiring generations of Cubans to imagine a freer future.
