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While several neighborhoods in Havana were protesting on Monday night against endless power outages and the regime cut off the internet to silence the demonstrations, right at the corner of 23 and 12 in Vedado, the government was screening movies on a giant screen as if nothing was happening.
The state-owned company MAMBO-Cuba, dedicated to services for the cultural industry, celebrated on Facebook the screening of the Paraguayan film “7 Boxes,” highlighting the festive atmosphere at 23 and 12 during the Latin American Film Festival: “On the screen at 23 and 12, we just enjoyed the Paraguayan film ‘7 Boxes.’ We are at Habana Mambo in the Cinema, a tribute through music to the seventh art as part of the Havana Film Festival.”
Hours later, this Tuesday, the capital has all six of its power blocks turned off, confirming a crisis that plunges thousands of families into darkness and despair.
The massive disruption highlights a widespread collapse of the system in the capital, where thousands of families endure extreme heat, water shortages, work interruptions, and a daily struggle characterized by energy uncertainty.
Monday of protests and internet outages
The night protests on Monday were reported in municipalities such as Diez de Octubre, Cerro, Marianao, and Centro Habana, where power outages lasted more than 10 continuous hours. The regime's response included internet shutdowns, increased police presence, and operations to prevent recordings or live broadcasts.
Neighbors held pot-banging protests, shouted slogans, and blocked streets in various areas, while the official press remained silent. In contrast, the State continued to promote cultural activities in prominent locations around the city, as if attempting to project an image of normalcy amidst the ongoing deterioration of the electrical system.
Six electrical blocks shut down: an unprecedented crisis
This Wednesday, the Electric Company reported that six electric blocks in Havana are affected simultaneously —something extremely unusual even by the standards of the current energy crisis— with a deficit of more than 277 MW.
In practical terms, this means that no sector of the capital is free from rationing, and the situation has worsened since Monday when the protests began.
A city fractured between darkness and propaganda
While thousands of families endure entire nights without electricity—food at risk of spoiling, children unable to sleep, and adults unable to work—the regime continues to organize giant screens, cultural activities, and propaganda in privileged public spaces in Havana.
For many Havana residents, the disparity between the "party" at 23 and 12 and the darkness of the rest of the city has become a symbol of the divide between everyday reality and the official narrative.
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