The Nuestra América Convoy to Cuba (NACC) delivers tons of food, medicine, and solar equipment to the island nation amid protests against U.S. sanctions. High-profile participants include U.K. MP Jeremy Corbyn, Irish band Kneecap, and Colombian Senator Clara López, alongside other international parliamentarians and activists.
Fuel Crisis Grips Cuba
A U.S. oil blockade disrupts non-private foreign fuel shipments for months, though a recent Russian oil tanker arrival signals potential easing. Cuba still battles a humanitarian crisis triggered by fuel shortages and widespread power outages.
The convoy aims to challenge sanctions, yet it divides opinions among Cubans on the island and abroad. Many view it as vital solidarity, while others decry it as propaganda bolstering the Cuban government.
Mixed Reactions from Cubans
Cubans across the island express varied views via phone and text, often anonymously due to government repression. A Havana construction manager praises the effort: “It’s great that, on a humanitarian level, foreigners sympathize with everything happening to the Cuban people now, and their decision to bring food and other aid is laudable.”
Distribution concerns persist. Reports indicate Mexican government food aid, meant for free distribution, resurfaced in military-linked dollar stores. A Havana resident in his late twenties, working in private business, warns: “The functionaries will keep the best of the aid for themselves and donate the rest as they see fit.”
In Santiago, a young man in his early twenties questions the convoy’s sincerity: “The people from the ‘humanitarian aid’ (NACC) are ignorant or not honest … or both. Many Cubans are complaining about those people wasting the little power we have left.” Critics note delegates’ use of electric vehicles but fault concerts and hotel stays amid blackouts.
An older Santiago tourism worker offers measured critique: The aid “could help a tiny part of the population, and I appreciate that anyway. However, this convoy is, from my point of view, a political move to support the Cuban government … They actually know nothing, neither about the hardships of daily life for most Cubans, nor about the undeniable violation of human rights that takes place in Cuba every day.”
A University of Havana student adds: “We (Cubans) think that those in the convoy defend the regime; they only mention the embargo part but never that Cuba is a dictatorship that we didn’t vote for.” Human rights organizations highlight suppression of free expression, dissident imprisonments, and the Cuban Communist Party’s monopoly on power.
Expert Concerns Over Politics
Cuban journalist Jorge Alfonso, based in Mexico City after detention for covering 2021 protests, emphasizes aid needs: “Material help is sorely needed in Cuba. The NACC took tonnes of medicine, food, and other supplies that are necessary.” He questions timing: “But that help was also needed six months or a year ago. Cubans abroad have been organizing this kind of support for years, long before the fuel blockade. So why now? Because it is a good time to take a photo on the island to show opposition to Donald Trump and commitment to anti-imperialism.”
Alfonso acknowledges U.S. sanctions’ impact but faults the convoy: Delegates focus “only on condemning the policies of the United States without denouncing the violations of human rights that the Cuban government commits.” On March 20, President Miguel Díaz-Canel meets delegates including Corbyn and Progressive International coordinator David Adler. Many praise Cuba’s political model, prompting Alfonso’s worry: “If this humanitarian aid is accompanied by the whitewashing of the Cuban government … then what this flotilla of solidarity is doing seems quite questionable to me.”
Voices in Support
Not all feedback is critical. Ileana Giménez, spokeswoman for Italy-based Cuban solidarity group Comité Marianas Cubanas Contemporáneas and NACC participant, frames the mission as reciprocity: “When Covid happened, two Cuban medical brigades came (to Italy) … and they did an amazing job; they saved lives in very difficult conditions. Now it is my turn to help my country; this is why this mission has to happen.”
She blames U.S. policy: “There is a blockade that has existed for more than 60 years, a financial and commercial blockade which means that we (Cubans) need help at this moment.”
