The activist Leonardo Romero Negrín celebrated on Saturday the second consecutive day with electricity in Havana, but warned that the return of power is not an achievement of the regime but a concession forced by organized citizen pressure, in a message posted on Facebook: “They have more fear than money in GAESA's accounts,” he stated.
"Second day in which our pupils hurt and we do not know what to do with so much light," wrote Romero Negrín with irony, before launching one of the most striking phrases of his post: "If we knew the fear they have of us, WHEN WE ORGANIZE, even Díaz-Canel would be willing to give up his ecoflow just so that Timba and Fanguito could have power from 9 PM onward."
The activist interpreted the restoration of electrical service not as a real improvement of the system, but rather as a calculated maneuver by the regime. "This is a façade and a temporary truce against a people that is organizing," he stated, urging the residents of Havana not to abandon the practice of banging pots and pans: "Even with the lights on, hit your pots so you don't lose your training, because darkness can return at any moment."
The publication arrives at a time of heightened political tension. On the night of Friday, the 24th, just days before the anniversary of the Moncada assault, the Assembly of the Cuban Resistance had called for a national pot-banging event at 9:00 p.m.. Images of neighborhoods being "strangely" lit up were shared, and despite that, sounds of pots were reported in Lawton, San Agustín, La Coronela, and La Lisa, as well as in Santiago de Cuba and Cienfuegos. In Lawton, residents near Dolores Park used pots and fire extinguishers to amplify the noise of the protest.
Romero Negrín did not overlook those who paid a higher price for demanding electricity. “Remember that to some extent we owe it to you and the anonymous brothers who are now sleeping in the Vivac for claiming what you and I are ‘enjoying’ now,” he wrote, and he asked to “take a minute to think of them and the hundreds of political prisoners who have forged the loss of fear that we have progressively achieved.”
Romero Negrín himself is acutely aware of this repression. He was violently arrested on July 1, 2026 during a protest in Centro Habana over power outages and water shortages, and released two days later with a fine of 2,000 Cuban pesos. His record of arrests dates back at least to May 2021 and includes detentions during the events of July 11, the March 2025 protests, and in February 2026.
The energy context surrounding your message is devastating. On July 14, only 4% of customers in Havana had electric service, and on July 6, Cuba experienced its eighth total blackout of the National Electroenergetic System in nearly 24 months. On the night of July 23, the Electric Union reported a deficit of 2,315 MW, nearing the historical record of 2,341 MW recorded on the 8th of the same month.
This crisis has sparked an unprecedented wave of protests. The Cuban Conflict Observatory recorded 253 protests in Cuba during June 2026, a record number. Repression has been the systematic response: Prisoners Defenders reported 1,306 political prisoners at the end of June. In January 2026, a court sentenced six people to up to eight years in prison for protesting during a blackout in Encrucijada, Villa Clara.
Romero Negrín closed his publication with a clarification that also serves as a statement of principles: "This post is not inciting anyone to commit a crime... on the contrary. It clearly and fearlessly states: DOWN WITH THE DICTATORSHIP and LONG LIVE THE ORGANIZED PEOPLE!" He added a nod to the date: "If you want, shout FREEDOM!... and just say that tomorrow is the 26th," referring to July 26th, the day on which the regime commemorates the beginning of the Revolution, coinciding this year with a more organized citizenry that is less willing to remain silent.
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