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Sixth-year Medical students in Santiago de Cuba, just weeks away from graduation, reported that the regime will suspend their hospital rotations during the week of May 12 to 16 to force them to participate in a "concentrated week of Defense Preparation", an activity that is mandatory and whose grade will be included in their academic average.
The report was published on Saturday by independent journalist Yosmany Mayeta Labrada, who shared internal messages—allegedly from messaging groups—sent to the affected inmates.
One of those messages is explicit: "The health preparation course that will take place during the week of May 12 to 16 is mandatory for all interns. Rotations will be suspended during that week, but MEDICAL ON-CALL will continue. All interns must report on Tuesday, May 12 at 8:30 AM to the PPD department of Fac No2."
A second leaked message confirms the coercive nature of the measure: "A week of concentrated Defense Preparation will be held; the date and location will be announced soon. During this week, the current rotation will be interrupted, attendance is mandatory, and the grade will count towards the average."
The affected students are completing their final clinical rotation before graduating, a stage in which every week of hospital practice is deemed invaluable.
A source who requested anonymity for fear of reprisal summarized the widespread outrage: "They want to turn a week of medical training into political propaganda, without the consent of the students, who are the most affected."
The measure is part of the official declaration of 2026 as the "Year of Preparation for Defense," announced in January by the Ministry of Revolutionary Armed Forces (MINFAR) in response to tensions with the Trump administration.
The National Defense Council, presided over by Raúl Castro, approved plans for the "transition to a State of War" and designated Saturdays as permanent days for civil military training.
This progressive militarization has reached all of higher education.
On March 27, the "University Student Bastion Exercise" took place, where students from across the country practiced shooting with AK rifles and the assembly and disassembly of anti-tank and anti-personnel mines. Days later, the regime escalated the warlike tone to include children in its defense plans.
The geopolitical backdrop includes statements by Donald Trump in Miami on March 28, when he asserted that "sometimes military force must be used, and Cuba is next," along with the deployment of U.S. warships in Haiti in February, located not far from the Island. The Cuban ambassador to the UN, Ernesto Soberón Guzmán, responded on April 24, stating that "Cuba is prepared to respond militarily."
Las facultades de Ciencias Médicas cuentan con departamentos específicos de «Preparación Para la Defensa» (PPD), lo que evidencia que esta estructura es institucional y permanente dentro de las universidades médicas cubanas desde el convenio firmado en 1975 entre el MINFAR y el Ministerio de Educación Superior.
However, the current intensity is unprecedented in recent times.
Even Cuban diplomats have been filmed practicing shooting as part of this widespread militarization campaign, which makes no distinction between civilians, officials, or students in the final stretch of their professional training.
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