About thirty students staged a sit-in on Monday at the University of Havana. They were protesting the severe crisis in the country, its impact on education, and the ineffectiveness of institutional channels for their complaints. The protest on the iconic staircase of the capital's university was peaceful, discreet, and highly unusual. After about two hours of negotiations with academic staff, the students agreed to move to another location to continue the dialogue.
Students claimed that access to the Ministry of Higher Education was blocked. One student mentioned that this sit-in was a last resort. First Deputy Minister of Higher Education Modesto Ricardo Gómez addressed the youth directly, trying to end the protest. He argued that this would not solve their problems. A young man replied that this was the response because the authorities had not listened to them from the very beginning.
The sit-in began at 10:00 AM when a single student sat on the first step with an umbrella and a backpack. This followed a social media call that both the university and the official Federation of University Students (FEU) had tried to discourage, labeling it fake. Gradually, more students joined, while university staff and state security agents gathered nearby.
Rector Miriam Nicado García and Deputy Minister Gómez approached the protesters. Students complained about the lack of electricity and internet. They asked how many hours of power they had the previous week, noting that students from other provinces could not submit anything due to poor connectivity.
The erosion of trust began last June over a massive hike in mobile tariffs by the state telecom company. Ultimately, the students voluntarily left the staircase to meet with the rector. Gómez told the media that authorities never dismissed dialogue. He blamed the severe situation on the US oil embargo, calling it a genocide against the Cuban people.
