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On the International Day for the Abolition of Slavery, the Cuban regime's chancellor, Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, ignited a wave of outrage among Cubans both on and off the island, as is customary with his propaganda messages.
On the social network X (formerly Twitter), the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MINREX) published a message stating that “Cuba has embraced the abolition of all modern forms of this global scourge as an uncompromising principle” and assured that the government maintains a “zero tolerance policy toward human trafficking, forced labor, and any other form of slave labor.”
The message, which aimed to portray the regime as an example of commitment to human rights, sparked an immediate and massive reaction on social media, where dozens of outraged users described Rodríguez's statements as “cynical, hypocritical, and offensive” in light of the reality of labor exploitation and social control that the Cuban people experience.
“What a fine irony... Cuba talking about abolishing slavery, when it has spent 65 years perfecting it”, responded the Cuban doctor Alexander Figueredo, exiled in the United States, in a message that quickly went viral.
Figueredo recalled that the same regime that boasts of fighting against slavery “exports doctors like commodities, takes away their passports, appropriates 80% of their salaries, and threatens their families if they leave the missions”.
Other users were equally decisive. “Look who’s talking, those who keep slave medical missions all over the world”, wrote the internet user @DiazVismar38292.
For his part, @Taoro8 demanded that "Cuba should also abolish the slave labor of Cuban medical missions", referring to the more than 26,000 health professionals that the regime keeps working abroad under contracts that, according to international organizations, constitute a form of "forced labor."
The outrage also highlighted the contrast between the extreme poverty that Cubans endure and the official rhetoric about "dignity and social justice."
“The Cuban salary is modern slavery in every sense”, denounced the user @marcosdruizs. Others recalled that the UN sets the extreme poverty threshold at 65 dollars per month, while in Cuba salaries barely reach 10 or 15 dollars.
“Cuba continues to suffer the ravages of slavery, and it is not colonial, but Castroist. The people live in absolute misery to ensure the luxurious and pleasurable life of a small group of communist bourgeois”, wrote the user @requin65, reflecting a widespread sentiment among internet users.
The publication by Rodríguez Parrilla coincided with new revelations about the luxury travels of Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castro, alias "El Cangrejo," grandson and former bodyguard of Raúl Castro, who, according to an investigation by the Panamanian newspaper La Prensa, allegedly made at least thirteen private flights to Panama since May 2024.
Many Cubans took advantage of the coincidence to denounce the hypocrisy of a political elite that lives in luxury while the people struggle to survive without medicine or basic food.
“They talk about abolishing slavery, yet they keep 11 million slaves in the 21st century”, wrote a user under the pseudonym @lagaviota000. Others compared the regime to a “modern slave ship,” accusing the Communist Party of “renting” doctors, athletes, and soldiers, confiscating their salaries and benefits.
The message from the chancellor also reignited international criticism towards Cuban medical missions, described by the European Parliament and the U.S. Department of State as a form of "human trafficking and forced labor."
Meanwhile, social media was filled with irony, memes, and incisive phrases. “Cuba experienced slavery... and continues to live it. Only the master has changed,” wrote a user. Another summarized the collective feeling: “Communism in Cuba did not abolish slavery, it nationalized it”.
Far from silencing criticism, Rodríguez Parrilla's publication once again highlighted the deep disconnection between the regime's official discourse and the reality experienced by millions of Cubans.
In a country where the salary is insufficient to eat, where doctors are regarded as state property, and where freedom remains a privilege, the chancellor's words did not sound like a commitment to human rights, but rather a cruel mockery of the suffering of an entire people.
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