The recent case of Dr. Raúl González Hernández, creator of the anti-anemia medication TROFIN, exemplifies the story of neglect faced by many individuals in Cuba after years of loyal service to the system.
After decades of working as a scientist, Dr. González faced institutional abandonment upon his retirement. His daughter, who suffers from chronic anemia, cannot access the medication he developed himself. The doctor is forced to beg for his own creation. Could there be a more heartbreaking situation?
For decades, the propaganda of the Cuban regime highlighted the stories of famous athletes who retired in capitalism and ended up in misery. Fidel Castro proclaimed that under the revolution, no one would face such a fate; that athletes, scientists, artists, military personnel, and officials committed to the socialist project would enjoy a dignified old age. They may not receive high salaries, but they would not die in obscurity or poverty.
The everyday reality contradicts every word. Today, those who dedicated their best years to the socialist dream live in neglect; like the horse in Animal Farm, they have been condemned to the slaughterhouse in old age, when they are no longer useful to the system that exploited them.
My father used to say that retiring in Cuba was like getting a shot to the temple. And he was not wrong. Retirement, instead of being the well-deserved rest after decades of work, is a slow death sentence, an execution without bullets but equally devastating. It marks the end of any social relevance, a direct leap into oblivion, isolation, and utter poverty.
The pension received by retirees in Cuba is, quite literally, a mockery. It's an insignificant amount that fails to cover basic needs. Those who worked to build a country they never knew, and that we will never know, are relegated to the dustbin of history. Meanwhile, the regime's leaders, who preached equality and justice, enjoy privileges until the last day of their lives.
Who takes care of the retirees? No one, as my father used to say: "Everyone forgets about you." If you are fortunate enough to have family abroad (FE), they will be your only salvation.
What happens to those who have no one? Those who are left without children, without friends, without neighbors able to help, are condemned to search for food in the trash, to sell what little they have left, or, as sadly occurs, to die from hunger and illness in silence.
The streets of Cuba are filled with retired individuals begging, searching through trash bins, living in crumbling houses, malnourished and in inhumane conditions.
It is impossible to ignore the dozens of high-performance athletes, teachers, scientists, and even veterans of the Angolan war who struggle to survive on their pensions.
The abandoned of today are the same ones who were glorified in yesterday’s speeches; those whom Fidel Castro promised to protect have now become the face of misery in Cuba. The revolution took everything from them: their jobs, their youth, their rights, and the dignity of their final days.
If you are in your 50s or 60s, you only have 10 to 15 years of productive life ahead of you. Will you let your last years of active life pass by without doing anything, missing the final opportunity to create a future for yourself and have a dignified retirement? Don't rely on the regime, on "the revolution," if that is still your belief; in 10 or 15 years, you might find yourself in the same situation as those who are currently begging on the streets.
Do something! You know that giving your life for the revolution and socialism only leads to misery.
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Opinion article: The statements and opinions expressed in this article are solely the responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of CiberCuba.