Deprived of electricity again, for more than a dozen hours this time, hundreds of Cubans defied the regime and let their anger explode on Sunday, March 17, in the southeast of the Caribbean island. . In the streets, in Santiago de Cuba, the country’s second city, and in Bayamo, in the province of Granma, they chanted “Food and power”as evidenced by videos compiled by independent media 14ymedio, Diario De Cuba Or El Toque.
” Freedom “, “no more chatter”they also demanded during these protests which quickly went viral on the social networks of the diaspora. “Homeland and life”we could hear on certain videos: “homeland and life”title of a song written by opponents of the regime – one of whom, Maykel Osorbo, is in prison – which takes the opposite view of the Castro slogan “homeland or death”. At night, pan concerts were heard in Santa Clara, near Matanzas, in the West. Arrests were filmed, without an assessment being able to be drawn up by human rights organizations.
“People are hungry, there is almost nothing to eat and power cuts mean that what little they have in their fridge will rot, explains journalist Luz Escobar, exiled in Madrid for a year and a half. To calm the anger of the demonstrators, in Santiago, the local authorities brought a truck of rice and one of milk. But this anger will not go away, because people have lost hope and hunger has killed fear…”
Nervousness of the president
For weeks, unease had been growing in Cuban society, faced with serious shortages. In February, several towns warned the population that the milk rations, provided for in the libretas – the supply books supposed to guarantee residents minimum rations of food at very low prices – are now reserved for those under 14 years old. As for the rest, rice, chicken, flour or sugar, these basic products are more and more often missing. You have to wait for days and wait in endless queues to have a chance to get one.
On the so-called “informal” market, the minimum wage, of 2,100 pesos (around 80 euros), is not even enough to buy a box of eggs. At the end of February, the Cuban government had to request help from the World Food Program to guarantee the supply of powdered milk to children under 6 years old.
“Several people expressed their disagreement with the situation of electrical service and food distribution”recognized Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel on Sunday evening on the social network X, while seeking to minimize the scope of the protest and discredit the demonstrators. “This context is used by the enemies of the revolution, for destabilization purposes”he added, attributing the unrest to “terrorists based in the United States”, who seek to “burning the streets of Cuba” and to “sow chaos”.
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