Cubans will not go for a walk to the Plaza de la Revolución this coming May Day, its most emblematic parade and in which Castroism exhibits its popular muscle inside and outside the island. “Due to the complex economic situation of the country and, in particular, due to the limitations in the insurance of fuel”, the Government of Miguel Díaz-Canel has “redesigned the conception” of the celebrations of its great annual propaganda act, according to Granma, official bulletin of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC).
Undoubtedly, Fidel Castro’s favorite platform, where he launched hundreds of proclamations since his arrival from Sierra Maestra in 1959. “The ideas for which I have fought all my life cannot die and will live for a long time,” he pronounced on the First of May 2003 as a legacy for continuity.
The spokesperson for such a message was Ulises Guilarte, general secretary of the Central de Trabajadores de Cuba, who ordered “small parades or mass acts in communities, bateyes, labor and student centers to commemorate International Workers’ Day “. For the capital, it has been determined that a march be carried out on the Malecón and small concentrations in central places, always under the premise of minimal use of transport.
The government logistics for the Plaza de la Revolución to shine every year to bursting needed hundreds of vehicles to mobilize workers from their companies and students from their schools. Everything was coordinated, down to the smallest detail, so that both sympathizers of the revolution and those hauled and forced to go to their positions, also determined, in the parade.
“Instead of the great workers’ parade, many voices in more places,” Díaz-Canel pointed out through his social networks.
Guilarte also detailed what will be the main premise for this year: economic progress is hampered by the “continued war” caused by the US blockade. The second complaint will be that Cuba remains on the list of countries that sponsor terrorism.
The fuel crisis has hit a country in perpetual economic crisis hard. Since the beginning of April, the queues to buy gasoline at the stations of the state-owned Union Cuba-Petróleo (Cupet) have stretched for hours, as have the few public transport services that survive, almost paralyzed. Even face-to-face classes at universities have been suspended while the blackouts, which already caused multiple protests in the summer of 2022, are once again part of daily life on the island.
Despite the fact that Díaz-Canel himself demanded better treatment for those who demand fuel at gas stations, the Cimex corporation has announced greater police control in the face of “the complex situation that exists.”
The situation is so desperate that Díaz-Canel, who has only been leading the country for a week in his second term, pointed out his great allies, Venezuela and Russia, for failing to meet their commitments to supply gasoline. According to his calculations, Cuba needs between 500 and 600 tons of gasoline per day, but receives less than 400.
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