The journalist and researcher Rolando Cartaya, affiliated with the Foundation for Human Rights in Cuba (FDHC), presented this week the monthly report of the Cuban Observatory of Conflicts (OCC) for May 2026, which recorded 1,311 protests, complaints, and critical expressions throughout Cuba during that month.
In an interview with journalist Tania Costa, Cartaya was clear in identifying where the greatest social unrest is concentrated: "Havana is, for me, the social powder keg of Cuba," he stated, describing pot banging almost daily in the capital while the rest of the island, including Santiago de Cuba, experiences more isolated incidents.
The figure for May is approaching the historical record of the OCC: 1,333 protests, recorded in December 2025.
Cartaya emphasized that since August 2025, the monthly number has never fallen below one thousand, with the only exception being January 2026, when 957 were recorded.
The researcher explained that the report covers a wide range of expressions because in Cuba "there is a whole fence of laws" that criminalize them all: "If you block a street, that's already a public disorder. If you shout something at Díaz-Canel, that's contempt. If you write something on social media, it could be considered propaganda against the constitutional order."
The category that led the May report was "challenges to the police state," with 527 records, more than a third of the total.
The in-person street protests totaled 46 in May, far exceeding the 10 to 15 recorded in previous months.
In March, when there were three nationwide blackouts, that number reached 52: "People were in the streets shouting for freedom, making fire barricades," Cartaya recalled.
The researcher identified blackouts as "the biggest trigger for street protests there is," surpassing food shortages, the housing crisis, or health issues.
"Cubans are experiencing a multisystem humanitarian crisis. But what completely destabilizes their lives are the blackouts. You can't sleep, your food spoils, you can't go to work," he pointed out.
In March, there was a brief respite when a ship arrived with Russian fuel, which partially stabilized the electricity supply during the second half of the month, leading to a decrease in protests during that period.
The May report also recorded 186 entries in the repression category, 144 protests regarding public services, 129 over citizen insecurity, 79 for public health, 75 for food and inflation, and 42 for housing.
Cartaya highlighted the concerning comparison between December and May: "It's somewhat discouraging that we had more protests in December when the economic situation, despite being bad, was somewhat better than it is now. The situation now is extreme."
In April 2026, the OCC had recorded 1,133 protests in Cuba, an increase of 29.5% compared to the same month in 2025, confirming a sustained upward trend that, according to the observatory's data, shows no signs of reversing.
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