Latin America The tsunami of riots
Latin America The regional left maintains its unconditional support for the Cuban dictatorship
A week after the largest wave of citizen protests in more than six decades,
the police and military are exhaustively monitoring the streets of Cuba,
especially in the city of San Antonio de los Baños, where it all originated.
The accesses to this town 30 kilometers west of Havana and famous for its International Film School were mostly
cut off or guarded by security agents
this Sunday.
Although the streets showed a normal movement of people, Efe was able to observe
trucks full of soldiers
and the central square of the town was taken by more than a dozen policemen, soldiers and agents of the Department of State Security, the intelligence organ and Cuban counterintelligence, labeled by opponents as the "Cuban political police."
Uniformed and non-uniformed officers were also widely deployed in the neighboring town of
Bauta
, where "there was a policeman on every corner," a woman who was there Sunday morning told Efe.
Internet access was cut off
in and around San Antonio de los Baños, while in the rest of the island it is mostly restricted, although it works occasionally on some mobile phones.
Neither the Government nor the Cuban telecommunications monopoly (Etecsa) have explained
why mobile data remains partially or totally down
since Sunday, July 11, the day when thousands of Cubans took to the streets to protest and there were clashes, altercations and even looting in some localities.
They have also not reported when the service will be restored and will function normally.
The tranquility in San Antonio de los Baños this Sunday
contrasts with the agitation that was experienced the previous Sunday,
when thousands of neighbors took to the streets to protest peacefully.
The protesters launched slogans against the Government, whom they
blame for the shortage of food, basic products and medicines,
the proliferation of shops with exclusive payment in foreign currency and the usual power outages, at a time when Cuba is going through a serious economic crisis , with its coffers empty and unable to face its debts, to which is also added a dangerous boom in cases of covid-19 in recent weeks.
Live videos recorded by the J 11 protesters in San Antonio de los Baños
lit the fuse for dozens of protests by disgruntled citizens in other towns on the island,
harshly stopped by the security forces, leaving hundreds injured and detained. and generating strong criticism from the international community to the Government chaired by
Miguel-Díaz-Canel.
In fact, the president went to San Antonio de los Baños on the day of the protests together with security forces and a group of acolytes to send the message that
"the street belongs to the revolutionaries,"
in reference to the supporters of the system. of a single party and centralized economy that has prevailed in Cuba since 1959.
Another argument constantly repeated by the Cuban authorities since 9/11 is that
the "blockade" is to blame for the economic ruin of Cuba
and the protests have been instigated by the United States Administration through a sophisticated system of opinion manipulation. throught social media.
With the internet restricted and a strong police presence, one of the few notable events that occurred this Sunday in Cuba was
an act of government supporters in La Güinera,
a lower-class neighborhood in southern Havana where riots took place last Monday that resulted in the only officially reported death.
Led by
Gerardo Hernández,
president of the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution (CDR, the "eyes and ears" of the State in the neighborhoods), Cuban authorities accompanied dozens of partisan neighbors "in support of the Revolution, Díaz-Canel and to the Party, "as the ex-spy and member of the famous Cuban" five heroes "tweeted.
The day before, on Saturday, the Cuban government was building muscle with a mass event attended by thousands of people (100,000 according to the authorities) in Havana to
show their support for the government and the leader,
backed by his predecessor
Raúl Castro.
Meanwhile, organizations and family members denounce that there are still people detained in Cuban prisons for their participation in the protests, with lists ranging
from more than one hundred to thousands.
Part of those arrested were released throughout the week and it is unknown how many remain locked up, as the government has not provided data.
According to the criteria of The Trust Project
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