Cuba 2021 - Protests
Thousands of Cubans took part in rare protests Sunday 11 July 2021 against the communist government, chanting, "Down with the dictatorship," as President Miguel Diaz-Canel called on his supporters to confront the demonstrators. Public anger was driven by long food lines, worsening power shortages for several hours a day and a critical shortage of medicines since the start of the Covid-19 epidemic, with Cuba under US sanctions.
Exploding infection rates, a stalling economy, and skyrocketing food prices fueled a feeling among the population of government impotence and neglect. The anti-government rallies started spontaneously in several cities as the country endures its worst economic crisis in 30 years, with chronic shortages of electricity and food. Several hundred protesters marched through the capital Havana chanting, "We want liberty," with a heavy military and police presence deployed after demonstrators massed outside the Capitol building. Police used tear gas to disperse crowds, and at least 10 people were arrested, while officers used plastic pipes to beat protesters.
Starting July 11, thousands of protestors swept across Cuba, affecting Havana and over 30 cities, in a rare public display of dissatisfaction with the government. The central refrain of demonstrators is “Homeland and Life” – a twist on Che Guevara’s famous “Homeland or Death” slogan. Encapsulating the bread and butter demands of many demonstrators, it is displayed on make-shift signs, sung in the streets, and has become a hashtag on social media. Videos of protestors in Camaguey chanting “no more death, there’s no food” speak directly to the dire situation affecting Cubans. The main thrust of these slogans are shortages in healthcare supplies, vaccines, and food – issues that the government has not been able to address. Similar reasons for protests have emerged in much of the world since the onset of the pandemic.
US President Joe Biden on 12 July 2021 urged Cuba's communist government to "hear" protesters demanding an end to "repression" and poverty. "We stand with the Cuban people and their clarion call for freedom and relief from the tragic grip of the pandemic and from the decades of repression and economic suffering to which they have been subjected by Cuba's authoritarian regime," Biden said in a statement. "The United States calls on the Cuban regime to hear their people and serve their needs at this vital moment rather than enriching themselves."
The strongly worded statement was sure to anger Cuba's leaders, who say Washington is stirring up the rare mass street protests in the authoritarian country. Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel said US economic sanctions were the cause of the turmoil, calling it a "policy of economic suffocation to provoke social unrest in the country."
For most of 2020, the government was able to keep the pandemic under control. However, the spread of new variants has caused a surge in cases. Public Health Minister Jose Angel Portal explained that in the first months of 2021, 88 percent of the patients hospitalised had the new variant with a 68 percent mortality rate. The Friday before the protests, Cuba hit a record 6,422 cases.
The mounting case numbers in the wake of rapidly spreading variants is only one aspect of the pandemic the Cuban government is struggling to deal with. The 4 million tourists that annually flooded Cuba’s beautiful beaches were reduced to just 80,000. It’s tourist-dependent economy contracted by 11 percent last year and 15 percent the year before. The sharp 40 percent rise in global food prices because of the pandemic hit Cuba especially hard as it imports up to 70 percent of its food.
The protest movement in Cuba does not seek to topple the government and is not aimed against the counter-epidemic restrictions, albeit it was sparked by the coronavirus outbreak, Russian Ambassador to Cuba Andery Guskov said in an interview 12 July 2021. "No, this is not an attempt [to topple the government]. This is not against Covid restriction, but it is connected to the Covid outbreak," the diplomat said. According to the Russian envoy, "serious supply disruptions" are currently observed with food, medication, fuel and electric power, due to the protests. "People express their desires, express certain frustrations. And the government reacted to all this operatively," Guskov continued.
The United States on 14 July 2021 urged Cuba to end internet restrictions imposed after unprecedented protests and renewed a call for the release of detained demonstrators. "We call on Cuba's leaders to demonstrate restraint (and) urge respect for the voice of the people by opening all means of communication, both online and offline," State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters. "Shutting down technology, shutting down information pathways, that does nothing to address the legitimate needs and aspirations of the Cuban people," Price said.
"We commend the people of Cuba for showing great bravery," Price said, adding that Havana has responded by trying to "silence their voices." "We call for calm and we condemn any violence against those protesting peacefully. And we equally call on the Cuban government to release anyone detained for peaceful protest," he said.
Cuba had arrested more than 100 people including independent journalists and opposition activists after major protests in the communist-ruled island over the worst economic crisis in decades. Web monitoring group NetBlocks reported disruptions in Cuba on major social media and communications platforms including WhatsApp and Facebook.
Cuba was quick to blame a half-century of US economic pressure for the crisis but the downturn also comes amid strict measures against Covid-19 and an uptick in cases. Price pointed out that Cuba -- which is proud of its health care system and is rolling out an indigenous vaccine -- has not joined Covax, the UN-backed program for low-income countries to which the United States under President Joe Biden has been a major contributor. "Cuba has made a sovereign decision regarding how it will address a pandemic," Price said. "The Cuban government could always decide to receive outside vaccine donations but the Cuban government has decided not to do so yet."
In response to police repression, videos show protesters peacefully chanting “we are not afraid” while walking through the streets with their hands up. In other cases, protestors responded by attacking symbols of the state. Rare episodes of violent tactics include flipping police cars and sacking Communist Party offices.
Initially, the police were unable to deter the protestors so they withdrew. Eventually, anti-riot police were deployed to contain the outpour of anger with rubber bullets and batons. In some cases, police in plainclothes infiltrated protests to arrest unsuspecting demonstrators. By nightfall, the military openly patrolled the streets of Havana. More than 200 people were detained during or following the protests, according to exiled rights group Cubalex, and only a handful have been released. Local rights groups said more than 5,000 people, including 120 activists and journalists, have been arrested, according to reports compiled by online news site 14ymedio.
Cuba announced on 14 July 2021 it was temporarily lifting restrictions on the amount of food and medicine travelers could bring into the country in an apparent small concession to demands by protesters who took to the street.
Diaz-Canel said there were three kinds of protesters; counter-revolutionaries, criminals and those with legitimate frustrations. State-run television showed images of a crowd looting a store and another attacking an empty police car. Interior ministry officials said in a program televised later that some of the detained would be pursued for crimes like incitement to violence, contempt, robbery and damage to public property, which carry lengthy prison sentences.
While the Cuban president reiterated his accusations against the United States, he also offered some self-criticism. "We have to gain experience from the riots," he said. "We also have to carry out a critical analysis of our problems in order to act and overcome, and avoid their repetition. "Our society is not a society that generates hatred and those people acted with hatred," Diaz-Canel said, calling for "peace, harmony among Cubans and respect." Diaz-Canel added that Cubans must "overcome our disagreements between all of us. What we have to promote, even though we have different points of view on certain issues, is between all of us to try to find solutions."
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