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Cuba at a crossroads

People defy a ban on protests to call for an end to the government

Unauthorised public gatherings are illegal in Cuba and protests are rare. But this week the island nation has witnessed its biggest demonstrations in decades. People took to the streets calling for an end to President Miguel DΓ­az-Canel's government. They blamed him for food and medicine shortages, price hikes and the government's handling of the Covid-19 pandemic. Mr DΓ­az-Canel described the demonstrators as 'counter-revolutionaries' and blamed the United States and its economic sanctions - in place in various forms since 1962 - for both the protests and Cuba's wider problems. So how big of a challenge do these demonstrations pose to Cuba's Communist government? Fidel Castro ruled for decades and was succeeded by his brother RaΓΊl. How did their departure from the political stage change attitudes in the country and did it make protests more likely? And what is the Biden administration likely to do now? Ritula Shah is joined by a panel of experts to discuss Cuba at a crossroads.

Available now

49 minutes

Last on

Sat 17 Jul 2021 03:06GMT

Contributors

Maria Isabel Alfonso - Professor of Spanish, Cuban and Latin American Studies at St Joseph’s College in New York 
Vicki Huddleston - Former Chief of US mission to Cuba from 1999 to 2002
Jon Lee Anderson - Author and journalist who has written extensively about Cuba
Emily Morris - Development Economist specialising in Latin America and the Caribbean

Photo

A man wearing a face mask crosses a street in Havana by Yamil Lage/AFP via Getty Images

Broadcasts

  • Fri 16 Jul 2021 09:06GMT
  • Fri 16 Jul 2021 23:06GMT
  • Sat 17 Jul 2021 03:06GMT

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