Cuba: after massive protests, the Castro dictatorship temporarily allowed the importation of medicine and food

Cuba announced on Wednesday that allow travelers the free temporary importation of food, medicine and hygiene products, three days after the unprecedented demonstrations that erupted on the island.

The government has agreed to “exceptionally and temporarily authorize the importation by passengers, that is to say the luggage that accompanies the trip, food, toilets and medicines without limit of import value and without payment of customs duties ”, declared Prime Minister Manuel Marrero on Cuban television .

Yes indeed, Travelers arriving in Cuba will be able to bring unlimited food, hygiene products and medicine from next weekMarrero announced, at a time of extreme scarcity and social unrest that has sparked an unprecedented wave of protests across the country.

The measure, approved as a matter of urgency with a decision from the Ministry of Finance and Prices, It will enter into force next Monday and will remain so until at least December 31, announced the number two of the executive chaired by Miguel Díaz-Canel.

The announcement comes after a series of protests in various parts of the country, the largest in six decades, in which some of the protesters expressed their dissatisfaction with the government due to the shortage of food, hygiene products and medicines, as well as other problems such as power cuts or lack of electricity. freedoms.

It was one of the measures called for by academics and intellectuals in a recent open letter to the government, to alleviate the shortage of food and medicines, which were among the motivations of the massive demonstrations of July 11 and 12 in some forty towns on the island.

Cuban laws allow the non-commercial import of 10 kg of drugs, duty free, while it places limits on food and other products, for which it charges taxes.

“You can bring whatever amount of food, cleaning supplies, and whatever amount of medicine you want, The limit is not set by us, the country does not set it, it is not set by customs, the limit can be set by the airline “said Marrero.

A group of artists and intellectuals, including filmmaker Fernando Pérez and economist Carmelo Mesa Lago, called for “Facilitate and make viable the process to allow the entry of drugs and medical supplies into the country.

Since Monday All these restrictions will be removed at points of entry into Cuba except at Cayo Coco and Varadero airports., said the Prime Minister.

It is expected that the The effect of this measure is limited, at least in the short term, because due to the pandemic, international flights operating from Cuba are limited to a few per week, some of them on the Havana-Madrid route, and links with neighboring countries such as the United States, Mexico and Panama are reduced to a minimum.

Cuba saw its endemic economic crisis worsen with the pandemic -which left the tourism sector at a low level-, the economic sanctions imposed by the United States during the last administration of Donald Trump and the internal shock measures of questionable effectiveness, among other factors.

Yes indeed, Food, hygiene products and medicines have become increasingly scarce in recent months, during which the number of thefts and therefore the number of items have also been drastically reduced. imported from abroad by individuals who, in many cases, sold them on the Cuban black market.

Precisely The shortage of basic commodities, coupled with relentless power cuts, has prompted residents of San Antonio de los Baños (30 km east of Havana) to take to the streets to demand change., which sparked similar protests in dozens of cities across Cuba, with numerous clashes and arrests.

On another side, Campaigns were launched from Cuba and abroad earlier this month to collect drugs and find ways to send them to the island. which is also suffering its worst outbreak of covid-19 with a record number of people infected and dead each week.

(With information from AFP and EFE)

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