哈瓦那-成千上万古巴周日,ns在哈瓦那的Malecon长廊和岛上其他地方游行抗议食物短缺和高价格冠状病毒危机,在记忆中最大的反政府示威之一。
许多年轻人参加了下午在首都举行的抗议活动,抗议活动中断了交通,直到警察在几个小时后进入,并在几名抗议者投掷石块时驱散了游行。
当抗议者高呼“自由”、“够了”和“团结”时,警察最初跟在后面一名摩托车手拔出了一面美国国旗,但被其他人抢走了。
“我们受够了排队和短缺。这就是我在这里的原因,”一名中年抗议者告诉美联社。他拒绝透露自己的身份,因为害怕以后被逮捕。
古巴正在经历几十年来最严重的经济危机,同时冠状病毒病例死灰复燃,因为它正遭受特朗普政府实施的美国制裁的后果。
拜登政府的一名官员在推特上支持周日的示威活动。
“随着古巴人民行使和平集会的权利,对日益增多的COVID病例/死亡和药品短缺表示关切,和平抗议在#古巴日益增多。我们赞扬古巴人民动员捐款帮助有需要的邻居的无数努力,”负责西半球事务的代理助理国务卿朱莉·钟在推特上说。
古巴负责美国事务的总干事卡洛斯·德·科西奥(Carlos F. de Cossio)在自己的推文中驳斥了她的言论:“美国国务院及其官员参与了推动#古巴的社会和政治不稳定,应该避免对他们一直押注的局势表示虚伪的担忧。与美国相反,古巴现在是并将继续是一个和平的国家。”
在加莱亚诺大街附近,示威人数增加到了几千人,尽管警察和催泪瓦斯有一些指控,游行者还是继续前进。人们站在哈瓦那中心街区中央动脉沿线的许多阳台上,为路过的抗议者鼓掌。其他人参加了游行。
尽管许多人试图拿出手机直播抗议活动,但古巴当局整个下午都关闭了互联网服务。
游行开始大约2个半小时后,一些抗议者拉起鹅卵石向警察投掷,警察开始抓人,游行者散去。
美联社记者统计,至少有20人被警车或穿便服的人带走。
罗马天主教牧师豪尔赫·路易斯·吉尔牧师站在哈瓦那中心的一个街角说:“人们出来自由表达自己,他们正在镇压和殴打他们。
大约300名与政府关系密切的人随后举着一面巨大的古巴国旗抵达,高呼支持已故总统菲德尔·卡斯特罗和古巴革命的口号。该组织的一些人袭击了一名美联社视频记者,使他的相机失灵,而一名美联社摄影记者被警察打伤。
岛上其他地方也举行了示威活动,包括圣安东尼奥·德·洛斯巴诺斯小镇,那里的人们抗议停电,米格尔·迪亚斯-卡内尔总统也访问了那里。他走进几户人家,在那里回答居民的问题。
不过,后来他指责库班挑起事端。
“好像大流行疫情没有在世界各地爆发过,古巴裔美国黑手党在社交网络上向有影响力的人和优酷网支付高额报酬,发起了一场完整的运动...并呼吁全国各地的示威游行,”迪亚兹-卡内尔告诉记者。
Demonstrators in Havana protest shortages, rising prices
HAVANA -- Thousands ofCubans marched on Havana’s Malecon promenade and elsewhere on the island Sunday to protestfoodshortages and high prices amid thecoronaviruscrisis, in one of biggest anti-government demonstrations in memory.
Many young people took part in the afternoon protest in the capital, which disrupted traffic until police moved in after several hours and broke up the march when a few protesters threw rocks.
Police initially trailed behind as protesters chanted “Freedom,” “Enough” and “Unite.” One motorcyclist pulled out a U.S. flag, but it was snatched from him by others.
“We are fed up with the queues, the shortages. That’s why I’m here,” one middle-age protester told The Associated Press. He declined to identify himself for fear of being arrested later.
Cuba is going through its worst economic crisis in decades, along with a resurgence of coronavirus cases, as it suffers the consequences of U.S. sanctions imposed by the Trump administration.
An official in the Biden administration tweeted support for Sunday's demonstrations.
“Peaceful protests are growing in #Cuba as the Cuban people exercise their right to peaceful assembly to express concern about rising COVID cases/deaths & medicine shortages. We commend the numerous efforts of the Cuban people mobilizing donations to help neighbors in need,” tweeted Julie Chung, acting assistant secretary for state for Western Hemisphere affairs.
Cuba’s director general for U.S. affairs, Carlos F. de Cossio, dismissed her remarks in his own tweet: “US State Department and its officials, involved to their necks in promoting social and political instability in #Cuba, should avoid expressing hypocritical concern for a situation they have been betting on. Cuba is and will continue to be a peaceful country, contrary to the US.”
The demonstration grew to a few thousand in the vicinity of Galeano Avenue and the marchers pressed on despite a few charges by police officers and tear gas barrages. People standing on many balconies along the central artery in the Centro Habana neighborhood applauded the protesters passing by. Others joined in the march.
Although many people tried to take out their cellphones and broadcast the protest live, Cuban authorities shut down internet service throughout the afternoon.
About 2 1/2 hours into the march, some protesters pulled up cobblestones and threw them at police, at which point officers began arresting people and the marchers dispersed.
AP journalists counted at least 20 people who were taken away in police cars or by individuals in civilian clothes.
“The people came out to express themselves freely, and they are repressing and beating them,” Rev. Jorge Luis Gil, a Roman Catholic priest, said while standing at a street corner in Centro Habana.
About 300 people close to the government then arrived with a large Cuban flag shouting slogans in favor of the late President Fidel Castro and the Cuban revolution. Some people from the group assaulted an AP videojournalist, disabling his camera, while an AP photojournalist was injured by the police.
Demonstrations were also held elsewhere on the island, including the small town of San Antonio de los Banos, where people protested power outages and were visited by President Miguel Díaz-Canel. He entered a few homes, where he took questions from residents.
Afterward, though, he accused Cuban of stirring up trouble.
“As if pandemic outbreaks had not existed all over the world, the Cuban-American mafia, paying very well on social networks to influencers and Youtubers, has created a whole campaign ... and has called for demonstrations across the country,” Diaz-Canel told reporters.