The researcher Alejandro González Acosta, from the Autonomous University of Mexico, made a compelling statement at a gathering of CiberCuba: the blackouts experienced in Cuba are not merely an energy crisis but a deliberate tool used by the regime to cut communications, technologically isolate the population, and repress without anyone noticing.
«Behind the blackout that obviously cuts off the power, it's not possible to cook, but there is something more important: it disrupts communications. They know that their enemy is the Internet,» stated González Acosta on the program hosted by Tania Costa, alongside historians Jorge León and Omar Sixto.
The investigator's argument goes beyond the electrical crisis. According to his analysis, by cutting off the power, the regime simultaneously isolates the island: "By turning off the lights, communications are severed, and then the island is completely under their control. They can massacre the entire population, and no one will find out."
González Acosta was explicit in stating that "these blackouts have a secondary function, which is technological isolation and the possibility of massacring the island without anyone finding out until much later."
This thesis is supported by documented facts. The fourth total blackout of the year occurred on July 10, and on June 25, the generation deficit reached a record of 2,208 MW, leaving 70% of the country without electricity simultaneously. In Matanzas, outages were recorded for up to 87 consecutive hours.
At the same time, the regime has implemented targeted internet outages in protest neighborhoods such as Centro Habana, Regla, and Playa, to prevent live broadcasts and documentation of the repression. On May 14, a massive internet outage in Havana coincided with the deployment of police forces that detained at least 14 people. The direct precedent is July 11, 2021, when the regime blocked WhatsApp, Telegram, Facebook, and Instagram for more than 48 hours while detaining over 1,500 people.
The Cuban Observatory of Conflicts recorded 1,311 protests just in May 2026, the highest monthly figure to date, many of which were directly related to the lack of electricity and water.
González Acosta also warned about the 176 economic measures approved by the regime on June 18, which open sectors to private and foreign investment. Citing Lenin —“the bourgeois are so foolish that they sell us the rope with which we will hang them”— he warned that entrepreneurs who invest within that framework would be financing the regime itself.
To illustrate the political moment, the researcher drew a historical parallel. "In '98, it was the explosion of the Maine, the battleship Maine. Now, what could that be? A situation at the Guantanamo base, something that happens there that could trigger a spark to ignite the powder keg."
The reference gains significance amid the military escalation of 2026: intelligence reports on more than 300 Cuban drones of Russian and Iranian origin, the deployment of the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier in May, and the visit of Secretary of War Pete Hegseth to Guantánamo on June 10.
"The whole island is a vast dry desert," concluded González Acosta. "A spark ignites it."
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