Children attack a young man because he took away a paper with "the chemical" in Havana.

A young Cuban recounted on social media a bitter experience he had after witnessing three minors preparing to drug themselves with the substance popularly known on the island as “el químico,” something he claims he was able to prevent despite being assaulted by the children from whom he took the drugs.

The protagonist of the incident - who goes by the name “Galletica Zokata de la Bodega” on Facebook - recounts that he was walking up the Obelisco in the Havana municipality of Marianao when he stopped to have a coffee at an establishment, at which moment he witnessed how the minors requested three cigarettes.

It says that one of them, from whom she removed the paper, and who was no older than 10 years, already showed evident symptoms of being high.

Upon seeing the concerning scene, he approached the older boy—a teenager of about 16 or 17 years old—and reproached him, but the one addressed only looked at him with a scowl, which led the young man to snatch the drug from the child's hand.

"How the hell am I going to allow in front of me that a little kid who could perfectly be the son of one of my friends does something like that? The three of them slapped me a couple of times and wrestled my wallet," he described.

He recounts that the teenager took out a knife and that he only managed to graze him on the hand and abdomen, as he lost his grip on the bladed weapon.

"Fortunately, I neither opened my fist nor were they able to take anything from me. The three of them ran away when they saw other people passing by whom they seemed to confuse with the police," added the protagonist of the unfortunate scene.

In the final segment of his harrowing account, the whistleblower indicated that, although the Cuban Revolution in 1959 promised a dignified life and the elimination of all kinds of "social evils," the implementation of communist ideology has resulted in a failed social system that has not fulfilled its promises.

He then listed the "achievements" of the last six decades in Cuba, among which he mentioned high levels of corruption, inflation, child prostitution, and an emerging drug trade, all under the shadow of a decaying public health system.

"So, friends. What have we achieved? Well, nothing. This is for all the mothers, fathers, and my dear friends: Don't let your children out of your sight. Drugs are on every corner, and it's clearly a business for someone up there. It's not going to stop; the police do nothing, just eliminate unnecessary competition," concluded "Galletica Zokata de la Bodega," who complemented his account with several photos of the minor injuries he sustained.

Drug consumption on the rise in Cuba

In recent months, numerous videos posted on social media reveal the magnitude of the phenomenon by showing images of young people completely out of control due to drug abuse.

In April, the Cuban government acknowledged the increase in drug consumption in the country, particularly the damage caused by the "chemical," a synthetic cannabinoid sold at low prices on the island, which has become the drug of choice affecting increasingly younger individuals.

Doctor Alejandro García, a specialist in psychiatry and community mental health, explained in statements to the official press about a worrying trend of decreasing age of onset for drug use, which is now between 13 and 14 years old, as well as an increase among women, many of whom are pregnant.

The situation is exacerbated by the phenomenon of poly-drug use, that is, the mixing of different substances, which complicates clinical cases.

García also highlighted the low perception of danger among Cuban families and urged them to be vigilant about the symptoms of intoxication that often manifest as a result of drug use in adolescents.

The official source assured that 99% of consumption occurs outside of schools, and for this reason, authorities have urged families to report and break the cycle of drug distribution.

However, many Cuban families do not perceive the risk of the phenomenon because they believe that the phenomenon exists but that it will not affect them.

He also acknowledged that intoxicated patients arrive at the hospital emergency rooms and are difficult to treat because they consume substances without knowing the components of the product.