The Cuban government cracks down on protesters

The communist island has not seen such big displays of discontent for decades

Jul 13th 2021’ ON JULY 11TH thousands of protesters took to the streets spontaneously in more than 50 Cuban towns and cities. They had a long litany of grievances: recurring electricity shortages, empty grocery shops, a failing economy, a repressive government and an increasingly desperate situation regarding covid-19. In a display of discontent not seen on the communist island for perhaps six decades, people of all ages chanted and marched, some of them to the tune of clanging spoons and frying pans. “Patria y Vida” (Homeland and Life) – a riff on the revolutionary slogan “Patria o Muerte (Homeland or Death), and the name of a popular reggaeton song which criticises the government – was their rallying cry, along with “Libertad” (Freedom) and “Abajo la dictadura” (Down with the dictatorship). By the next day streets were quieter as the police went from house to house, rounding up protesters. Anti-riot police spread out across cities, plain clothes officers took to the streets and pro-government mobs brandishing images of Fidel Castro were called on to chant revolutionary slogans and wave Cuban flags. Miguel Díaz-Canel, the president and first secretary of the Communist Party, appeared on television to declare, “Cuba belongs to its revolutionaries.” At least 150 people have gone missing. There are rumours that young men are being forcibly conscripted to the army.

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