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The tallest hotel in Havana, the controversial Torre K, illuminated amid widespread blackouts, has become a symbol of the contrast between the official narrative of the "blockade" and the reality of a country where sacrifice seems reserved only for the population.
The building, located in the heart of Vedado in Havana, was constructed during the peak of the COVID pandemic and the worsening of the economic crisis. It stands out not only for its height but also for its constant energy consumption in a city where entire neighborhoods—including Vedado itself—spend nights in the dark, hospitals lack supplies, and families cook with firewood due to the shortage of electricity and gas.
While millions of Cubans suffer from daily blackouts, the hotel shines as a bastion of abundance reserved for tourism and the elite connected to power, reflected in a post on Facebook by citizen Orestes Reyno Amer.
"Where is the blockade when tons of steel, cement, armored glass, modern electrical systems, state-of-the-art elevators, central air conditioning, and high-power lights were imported? Who paid for all that? Who authorized spending millions of dollars on luxury while the country was falling apart?" Reyno asked in reference to the construction of the controversial skyscraper.
In his opinion, this deployment reveals that “there is no blockade for the dictatorship's businesses, there is no blockade for the hotels, there is no blockade for the military or for the ruling elite. The 'blockade' only exists to justify the hunger of the people.”
The contrast is even more evident when observing the national context. Cuba is experiencing one of the worst economic crises in decades, with a sustained decline in production, high inflation, prolonged blackouts, and a visible deterioration of basic infrastructure.
Despite this scenario, the State has prioritized millions in investments in the tourism sector, even though the arrival of visitors has not fully recovered.
Recently, the president Miguel Díaz-Canel acknowledged serious failures in agricultural production, food collection, and commercial circulation, while once again calling for a “change in mindset” to reduce imports.
However, the hotel lit in the midst of the blackout reinforces the perception that the adjustment and scarcity are not distributed equitably.
Beyond the semantic debate between "embargo" and "bloqueo," the image of the illuminated skyscraper serves as an uncomfortable piece of evidence for the official narrative.
"Cuba trades with dozens of countries, imports food from the United States, receives remittances, tourism, credits, and international aid. If there were truly a total blockade, this hotel could never have been built. But it was built. And not for the Cubans, but for foreigners and the elite in power," emphasized Reyno.
In his view, “this building is living proof that the problem of Cuba is not external, it is internal. It is not Washington, it is Havana. It is not the embargo, it is corruption, waste, and an absolute disregard for the people. While Cubans are asked for 'resistance,' 'sacrifice,' and 'patriotism,' the dictatorship thrives in light, air conditioning, and luxury.”
For many Cubans, the building does not represent development or modernity, but rather a snapshot of imbalance.
For many, the hotel investment is just another demonstration of the lack of strategy and vision in the Cuban political and economic model that has lost the ability to retain its people and sustain the country from within.
The Cuban government continues to allocate enormous resources to hotel construction amidst an internal economic crisis, with tourist infrastructures underutilized and no clear prospects for recovery in the short term.
The logic of "tourism first" has led to the systematic deterioration of the rest of the productive sector, yet the government remains anchored to a strategy that yields no results, despite economists' warnings about the need to settle debts, decentralize payment schemes, and adjust supply to real demand.
Experts and citizens have questioned this strategy, considering that it does not address the real demand or the urgencies of the country, while a devastating contrast deepens: majestic hotels rise even as overflowing dumps proliferate on the corners of Havana, and more and more citizens lead lives marked by misery.
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