The Cuban opposition leader José Daniel Ferrer García released a powerful video on social media in which he mocks the late dictator Fidel Castro and the current ruler Miguel Díaz-Canel, calling both of them "cowards."
Ferrer drew on a supposed anecdote about Fidel - recounted by him years earlier - in which he was swimming underwater when he saw a barracuda coming towards him, and instead of fleeing, he decided to confront it.
The story was narrated by Díaz-Canel at the Antimperialist Tribune, during the tribute to the 32 military personnel who died in Venezuela during the capture of Maduro.
But Ferrer, frustrated after more than six decades of oppression in Cuba at the hands of Castroism, has not hesitated to expose the false myths that the regime seeks to promote.
The coordinator of the Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU) sarcastically referred to the idea that Castro was "handsome" and brave in the face of underwater challenges, recalling that he never acted with courage in actual moments of confrontation, such as the assault on Moncada or the battle of Alegría de Pío, where, according to witness testimonies, he always avoided direct combat.
"(Fidel) was like an ostrich burying his head in the ground, in the soil, in the sugarcane field. And in the Sierra, he couldn't hear a plane, he couldn't hear a plane nearby because he would get very nervous, very scared, and didn't know where to hide," he said.
The opposition leader continued his tirade, asserting that Díaz-Canel, whom he describes as even more cowardly than Castro, attempts to portray the same exaggerated anecdote as an example of bravery, generating "nonsense" in official and propaganda speeches.
"Come on, Canel, no one can understand your nonsense anymore; you keep outdoing yourself all the time. First, 'the lemon is the foundation of everything'; then, I don't know how many more ridiculous things. And now what, the story of the picúa, the story of the bravado of the other guy with the picúa," he pointed out.
"Canel, hey, get ready and run away now, because you're going to have to run faster than Fidel Castro," she suggested.
Ferrer did not stick to the anecdotal. In his message, he also hinted that after events like Maduro's capture, the Cuban leader has lost weight, appetite, and physical strength, even joking with exaggerations about his health condition.
"Insomnia must be killing you, and on top of that... Someone told me you’ve been having issues with your anal sphincter, you haven't been able to control it since January 3," he mocked.
These provocative references aim to underscore the image of an unsettled ruler, one who is weak and lacking genuine control over power, in contrast to a populace that is weary of the official narrative.
Her critique goes beyond humor.
For the opposition, these mockeries are a way to dismantle the cult of personality that the regime has woven around Fidel Castro for decades and is now trying to replicate with Díaz-Canel.
The authorities' use of the history of the picúa to inspire patriotism and courage is a desperate attempt to revive outdated slogans in a context where the legitimacy of Castroism is declining in public perception both inside and outside the island.
Ferrer states that this is not just a simple anecdote, but what he describes as empty propaganda, which aims to conceal the reality of a system that has failed to guarantee basic rights and well-being for the Cuban people.
It states that the regime has employed all kinds of heroic narratives—like those from the revolutionary past—to distract from the current situation of crisis, social frustration, and constant repression.
Furthermore, it warns that the Cuban people no longer believe in those narratives and that the loss of faith in the Castro leaders is accompanied by the deterioration of the control apparatus and the government itself.
This is a point that sharply contrasts with the official attempts to revive the cult of personality around Fidel and to promote narratives of unity and resistance against so-called external enemies.
A call for peaceful action
The video is part of a broader series of recent statements by Ferrer from his exile, in which he not only critiques the historical and current leaders of the Cuban regime but also calls on the population to question the official narrative and to understand the crisis as a product of a system that has repressed, impoverished, and silenced entire generations.
On Thursday, the opposition leader emphasized that Cubans should seize the current conditions to drive change in their country, detach themselves from the regime's structures, and lead a broad movement for freedom and democracy.
In a message, he urged the population to sever ties with state organizations and to join pro-democratic groups either publicly or discreetly.
"They should create profiles with pseudonyms on social media, and express their true feelings while denouncing all the injustices and the many serious problems that affect Cubans," he requested.
"They should join the demands for the release of political prisoners; those who are in a position to do so should create graffiti with messages in favor of freedom. It's something easy to do and has a significant impact," she added.
For Ferrer, the current situation calls not only for denunciations and statements but also for concrete actions from the citizenry that reflect a genuine commitment to freedom, democracy, and well-being.
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