Vedado residents outraged after cutting down historic cedar by state company

Residents of the populous Havana neighborhood ofVedado showed their disagreement in recent days with thecutting down an emblematic cedar by a state company.

The disagreement of the group of neighbors was reflected by the official newspaperRebel Youth, which collected the complaint ofJulio Jesús Covered Peregino, who resides on 21st Street between F and G, in that neighborhood of the Plaza de la Revolución municipality.

“That tree is located in the area of a building, surrounded by a small wall.Its branches did not damage any electrical or telephone cables. Without being completely sure, I think that they cut it because it is cedar, a precious wood. ANDthe action may have been conceived with the purpose of trading the timber”, said Cubría in his letter, but not before telling the story related to the tree.

The complainant expressed in his letter the ineffectiveness of the Cuban authorities, complicit in this act, committed by the state company Aurora, in charge of communal hygiene.

“Some neighbors went to different places in order to report the incident. And, finally, we sent our displeasure about what happened in writing to the Aurora Company, asking for explanations. But Until now they have not commented on the matter.”he continued.

Likewise, he added that the objective of this public complaint is to be heard and to move the sensitivity of a government that is deaf and mute in the face of the claims of its citizens.

“We inform you of what happened, because perhaps in this way those responsibleThey feel motivated to give an explanation and prevent situations like this from occurring in the future.”, he stated.

The cedar was planted in 1958 by a young man of just 20 years old in a jar, on the terrace of his house. The boy, who was a resident of that neighborhood, was murdered along with three other companions by soldiers of the dictator Fulgencio Batista. As a tribute to him, residents of that area planted it in 1959 in the place where it remained until its recent felling.

Theexcessive and indiscriminate felling of trees in Cuba It is an activity that already borders on everyday life.

An unprecedented event related to this topic occurred inSeptember 2022 in Ciego de Ávila, when in the middle of the government campaign to achieve the approval of the Family Code, several trees were cut down near the Carmen cinema in the capital of Avila in order to paint a mural in defense of that law.

On that occasion, the official newspaperInvader published the population's disagreement with this measure and said that "cutting the trees that surrounded the Carmen cinema, in the main city, has raised more than one contrary opinion about the relevance of cutting instead of pruning."

Also, in April of this year,An urban planner asked the authorities for explanations for the felling of an almost 50-year-old tree in the city of Bayamo, in the Granma province.

"I would like to dream that an extraordinary meeting would be held in the city's Administration Council to analyze those responsible for the cutting of a tree that was growing freely almost 50 years ago, and that now - instead of pruning some branches to protect the power lines - was permanently cut off,"said José Zayas on Facebook.

The tree, which was cut from the very base of the trunk, offered its shade to workers and clients of a branch of the Bank of Credit and Commerce (BANDEC) of Bayamo, located on Amado Estévez Street in the Jesús Menéndez neighborhood.