HAVANA, Cuba – In Cuba, and possibly in other countries in the region, a “cambolo” is a rock, specifically a large rock. This term is very common among children. Expressions like “throw a cambolo” or “crack someone’s head open with a change” refer to incidents or fights where someone throws a large rock at their opponent or at something.
In any case, change is used as an informal synonym for “crack cocaine.”
Crack is cocaine a highly addictive and potent drug derived from powdered cocaine through a simple conversion process. It is typically found in the form of small rocks, which has earned it the nickname “rock” in street slang.
TO cambolero—derived from change (rock)—is a term in Cuban street and drug slang for a dealer and/or user of crack cocaine (stone or “rock”).
These cambolerosor “rock” dealers, often roam the streets or remain at specific spots in the city. They carry the rocks with them and can identify, just by looking, when someone is seeking their product. Generally, they know who the crack users (camboleros as consumers) are, just as users recognize the camboleros who sell. If they have any doubts about an unfamiliar person, they usually make a gesture or ask the person what he or she is looking for.
They are primarily found in the municipalities of Centro Habana and Habana Vieja, historically known as marginalized areas and major drug consumption hubs. One of the neighborhoods where this drug is most sold, and which CubaNet visited, is Los Sitios, located in Centro Habana. In this area, the trade continues non-stop, day and night.
“All night long they hung out there. They don’t leave the corner. They stand there, and, like on guard duty, they take turns rotating shifts,” says Julia*, a local resident referring to the crack dealers who gather daily at the corner of Rayo and Maloja streets. “They also stand farther up at Estrella and Maloja streets, at Ángeles, and at Águila Street.”
Lazarito*, a young man from Los Sitios, says that while “the chemist” (another drug very popular among young people) grabs all the attention, the crack cocaine business (the stone) is also growing overwhelmingly, right in front of everyone, including the authorities. “There are lots of people hooked on crack, hardcore camboleros who have sold everything for a gram of it,” he explains.
to be “snitched” or “to be snitched” on a drug means to be hooked, sick, or to have developed a severe addiction and dependency. Crack-addicted camboleroslike those addicted to any other stimulant, often reach the point of selling or pawning their belongings—even those of other people.
Israel*, for example, recalls with great pain and frustration how his ex-girlfriend started by selling the jewelry he had bought for her, until she eventually “made off” with some household items. He admits he realized what was happening too late. Although neighbors in the neighborhood had approached him to tell him that his girlfriend was secretly smoking crack, he didn’t want to believe them.
“One day she started by selling a pair of sneakers I gave her; she made up some story, and over time I began to notice my things were missing—my clothes, my belongings, household items—until I discovered she was stealing from me and selling everything to buy crack. It’s very sad,” recounts this young man from Havana, who ultimately ended the relationship.
Crack is easily accessible and affordable, although not as cheap as “the chemist”which can be consumed for 150 or 200 Cuban pesos. Crack is inexpensive to produce. It’s made by dissolving powdered cocaine in a mixture of water and ammonia or baking soda. The mixture is boiled until a solid substance forms. The solid is separated from the liquid, dried, and broken into chunks (stones) that are sold as crack cocaine. These rocks are white or white and vary in size and shape. They are almost always smoked. When smoked, large amounts of the drug enter the lungs, producing an intense and immediate euphoria.
Cocaine, in any of its forms, is a highly addictive drug, and that addiction appears to develop more quickly when the drug is smoked, as with crack cocaine (stone), compared to when it is snorted, as is generally the case with powdered cocaine.
In addition to the usual risks associated with cocaine use (blood vessel constriction, elevated body temperature, heart rate, and blood pressure, as well as the risk of cardiac arrest and seizures), crack users experience respiratory problems such as coughing, shortness of breath , lung trauma, and bleeding. It can also cause aggressive and paranoid behavior.
Marlon*, a young man from Santiago de Cuba, found in stone a way to establish himself in Havana, pay his rent, and cover his food expenses along with those of his family back in Oriente. “You make quite a bit of money, you have no idea,” he says.
When he was involved in the production and sale of crack, his investment was around 15,000 Cuban pesos. That was the cost of one gram of cocaine, which I cooked with baking soda and water to extract the stones. Depending on their size, I sold each stone for between 2,000 and 2,500 Cuban pesos, while smaller ones went for 1,500 or 1,000 pesos. “And from the churrupia [waste, leftovers] that was left, I would cook it again and get three more rocks,” he explains.
“It would sell like water,” he recounts. “If you made six rocks, for example, the same customer who bought one would come back to buy the other five later. Every half hour, they’d come looking for another.”
“The police can spot a crack addict (snitching moneylender) from a mile away and use them,” he explains. “They know they’re deeply hooked on crack, and they don’t do anything to them. They use them to get to the dealers—but not the ones selling grams, the real big ones, the ones selling kilos or more.”
Understanding how an addict’s brain works, the police offer them a dose or a gram of the drug in exchange for information and tips.
“When you’re really hooked, you don’t think about the fact that if you snitch on the person who sells to you, that person won’t be able to sell to you anymore. All you think about is the gram they’re promising you for free,” continues Marlon*, who admits to having been addicted to crack for a short period of time.
In April of this year, Cuban authorities acknowledged that the use of illegal drugs has increased on the island. Despite the Cuban government’s decades-long promotion of a “zero-tolerance” policy against drug trafficking and use, many people believe it is not doing enough—and some even think the government is involved in the business.
Armando*, who lives on Rayo Street, is around 50 years old, old enough, he says, to know how things really work. Like many others, he believes there is no strong police control over drug consumption and distribution.
“They [the authorities] know everything that’s happening; they know that on every corner in Los Sitios, there’s at least one cambolero. Of course, they know—just like many of us also know that the drug trade benefits the leaders and the big fish in this country. This isn’t negligence or something they can’t control. This is called state-sponsored distribution.”
In a report for CubaNet on the drug known as the chemista source made a similar claim: “In Cuba, not a single gram moves without the police knowing about it. “This moves thousands and thousands of pesos and attracts tourists who come looking for drugs and prostitutes.”
In these types of conversations, like the one with Armando, names of important authorities or people associated with the Castro regime often come up. In this case, The Crab—who is actually Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castro, one of Raúl Castro’s most influential grandsons. “He’s the one who controls the drug trade in this country. Everyone knows it. He’s the owner of the cocaine found in the expensive bars that neither you nor I go to,” the man says.
*The real names of the individuals interviewed have been changed to protect their identities.
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