Cuba, which is immersed in a serious economic crisis, with devastating impacts that extend across different sectors of the country, may now be facing an even darker scenario: a significant increase in the number of people living on the streets.
According to information from the island’s independent media, this increase is a direct reflection of the poverty that has spread across the country and is intensifying day after day, a direct result of the policies of the Cuban communist regime, led by Miguel Díaz-Canel.
In September last year, the organization Cuban Observatory of Human Rights (OCDH) stated in a report that 88% of the Cuban population was currently living in a situation of extreme poverty, 13% more than in 2022. The most vulnerable population – children, the elderly and women – would be the most affected by this sad reality.
In this context, the Cuban dictatorship recognized, through a publication published in state media, that between 2014 and 2023, 3,690 people were registered living on the streets of the country. According to the portal CiberCubathe last data on these individuals had been released in 2015, when 1,200 homeless people were registered, in other words, Cuba has faced a significant increase in the number of homeless people.
Communist authorities say they are treating people in this condition in accordance with established protocols.
“We need to know that there has been a policy since 2014 to improve care for people who wander [termo utilizado para classificar os moradores de rua]. This agreement is being modified at this time due to deficiencies and the perception that there may be an increase in citizens wandering,” said Belkis Delgado Caceres, director of Prevention, Assistance and Social Work at the Ministry of Labor and Social Security of the Cuban regime, to the state website Workers
However, the reality on the streets contradicts the official narrative.
Independent journalists told the portal Marti that it has become increasingly common to come across many young women, elderly people and children left destitute by the State, who, in order to survive, ask for help from anyone passing by or rummage through rubbish bins, with the aim of finding something of value or something to eat.
This scenario, according to journalists, has been seen mainly in areas of the capital Havana and in provinces such as Holguín, located in the south of the country.
“Women with children, with babies in their arms, in this situation,” Julio César Álvarez, an independent Cuban journalist, told the portal Marti.
In Holguín, according to the Martithere is a center to assist homeless people, but, according to information, the demand for help has grown so much in recent years that the place is already overloaded and can no longer handle everyone in need.
In addition to dealing with this high demand, the center was also affected by a bed bug infestation (Cimex lectularius), which further compromised the already precarious conditions of the space and forced several people to leave, with nowhere to go.
“The bedbugs were eating people,” Álvarez told Martí.
Faced with this scenario, some churches and activists have tried to develop initiatives to help those most in need, but they can do little, as they are also being directly affected by the widespread crisis hitting the island.
“It is very difficult in all cases. But when you see young people asking for food on the street, it’s something a little more serious, and the situation has gotten worse, to the point that on every corner there can be seven or eight [jovens moradores de rua]”, said activist María López, who lives in Havana, to Marti.
Cuba has been dealing with an intense food, energy and medical crisis. Economic inefficiency, compounded by the controversial decisions of the Díaz-Canal regime, resulted in widespread shortages and rampant inflation on the island.
According to information, salaries and pensions are practically insufficient to cover the most basic needs of citizens, which may be contributing to more people starting to live on the streets.
In February, Cuba had to ask for help for the first time from the United Nations (UN) World Food Program (WFP), because it was no longer able to distribute milk and food to the families that needed it most.
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