Residents of the Havana municipality of El Cerro staged two protests recently, demanding the restoration of potable water and electricity amid an ongoing crisis in services that shows no signs of relief.
The first incident was documented by the activist Saúl Manuel, associated with the channel "Cuba Levántate," and it occurred on Tuesday night in the Atarés neighborhood. According to the video itself, residents had been without electricity for five days due to a damaged transformer that the authorities refused to repair, and in the days prior, they were receiving barely two hours of electricity per day.
"Today at 7:00 PM, here in Atarés, we have been without electricity for 5 days due to a damaged transformer, and they haven’t come to fix it. On top of that, they only turn on the power for two hours a day. We are crying out for freedom because we can’t take it anymore. We are closing the street, trying to stop traffic peacefully," the video text states.
The second protest was broadcast by the rapper El Funky, one of the creators of the opposition anthem "Patria y Vida."
In his video about the protest in El Cerro, a crowd of neighbors can be seen blocking an avenue. They used buckets and containers to prevent vehicles from passing.
"The Cerro municipality took to the streets. It has been more than three days without water," wrote El Funky alongside the hashtag #cubaestadofallido.
Both protests are part of a wave of social unrest that has shaken Havana since the end of May 2026.
Residents of Luyanó took to the streets to demand water and electricity on June 11, while in Regla, residents stopped a bus to protest the simultaneous lack of electricity and water.
In Los Sitios, hundreds held protests with pots and pans after receiving only 1.5 hours of electricity in 48 hours, and the people of Guanabo confronted the authorities on June 22, demanding water, food, and electricity.
The shortage of water is a direct consequence of power outages, as the pumping system relies on electricity. More than 376,000 people in Havana lack regular access to drinking water, according to data from June 2026.
Filed under: