“We are an island of zombies” – Cuban citizen October 2024
I find it fascinating that one of the nations with an extensive history of training and assisting the pro-communist FRELIMO military and security forces during and after the civil war against Portugal is now enduring problems of its own.
Mozambique, With Cuban Help, Is Shoring Up Its Internal Security – 1979, New York Times (Sub. required)
For those who do not pay attention to overseas issues, even those just 90 miles south of Key West, FL, Cuba’s economy is the basket case of Latin America and shows no signs of heading out of its death spiral. Russia has offered token assistance by upgrading some military bases and ports, but due to its own issues in Ukraine, it can not afford the level of support Havana needs as it received during the Cold War.
The protests became more visible in this nation’s dictatorship in March of this year:
Several of the key indicators of the recent growing problems have been the irregular schedule of Cuba’s international radio service, Radio Habana Cuba; in addition to domestic stations leaving the air at various times day and night due to electrical blackouts.
Yet after all of this, there still is no sign of the government relenting nor opening up for economic and political change.
Reuters highlighted this story in August:
Excerpt:
The blackouts, which disrupt daily life and the economy, have plagued the Communist-run country since 2021, sparking rare protests. They reflect a deepening economic crisis marked by shortages of basic goods, double-digit inflation and a lack of cash to import fuel and parts for infrastructure.
Ariel Rodriguez, a 52-year-old restaurant worker at the other end of the Caribbean island nation in eastern Santiago de Cuba, where protests broke out in March demanding food and lights, said by phone that the blackouts had eased since then but were worsening again.
“Over the last two weeks power cuts have averaged 10 hours a day, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. and at night from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m.,” he said.
“Yesterday they added 11 p.m. to 3:15 a.m.,” Rodriguez added.
El Pais (Spain) further reported on just how severe the collapsing infrastructure problems in Cuba truly are on September 9th:
The latest protests in Cuba are about thirst: Over 600,000 people live without drinking water
Fast forward to this past week when the blackout issues worsened and then the impact of Hurricane Oscar hit the island, further damaging the aging infrastructure.
With the collapse of the grid, the anger and frustration is now visible once again with the communist dictatorship blaming the United States for fomenting the anger.
Reuters also covered the story highlighting the aging power grid.
Cuba's power grid has collapsed again, plunging the island nation into darkness for days without power and sparking protests. pic.twitter.com/BQ2C6ahD2H
— Shiv kumar (Shastri) (@Jplands81Patel) October 22, 2024
Even the CBC covered the crisis of the grid collapsing four times in 48 hours:
Needless to say, the anger is not going to subside any time soon. The banging of pots and pans is a traditional form of protest for this communist nation as the citizenry was long ago disarmed and the military elites at the moment still have a firm grip on the country.
🪖The Cuban regime is militarizing parts of Cuba in fear of public protests amidst national blackouts. Cuban citizens have been threatened with up to 20 years in prison if they go out and protest publicly.
— Jóvenes de la Resistencia (@jar_cuba) October 22, 2024
🎥 @ClickCuba #SOSCuba #PRAYFORCUBA #FreedomForCuba pic.twitter.com/M6i7Yf1eHb
The communist President Miguel Díaz-Canel has begun to roll out the military, secret police and regular national police to squash the protests. Only time will tell if this will be effective in the face of the crushing economic and societal problems impacting the small island nation.
Will this be the crisis that finally pushes the nation over the edge and into reform, something that even their allies in Beijing have been pushing the old line communists into adopting, so their economy can finally be modernized?
Only time, or a military coup d’etat appears to be the solution now.
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