Havana/In the worst style of the Moscow trials and the self-criticism of the poet Heberto Padilla, this Saturday a video was circulated in which the young doctor Erlis Sierra, arrested after the Baire protests, in Santiago de Cuba, assures that he does not want to be a “leader of anything” and does not consider himself a “counterrevolutionary.” In the crude material, before the pediatrician speaks, the voice of a State Security agent is heard announcing that the recording has begun.
“I hereby report that I have not been mistreated,” says Sierra, who aroused a wave of solidarity after a film was broadcast of the moment in which he demanded, in front of several local officials, an improvement in living conditions in the town of the municipality of Contramaestre. The blackouts, the lack of drinking water and the high prices of food were, precisely, some of the reasons that led to protesters take to the streets last Thursday night.
Following the peaceful protests that occurred in Baire, several arrests have been reported, including that of Sierra, who was detained by two police officers in her own home. Later his mother, Ania Gómez Leiva, reported what happened in a video through social networks and asked “the Cuban people” for help because her son had been handcuffed in the Contramaestre Police Unit and was being transferred to the city of Santiago de Cuba. After the spread of that claim, Gómez was also detained for several hours.
Shortly after the demonstrations “a truck with powdered milk appeared”
The mother emphasizes that her son was not among the people who touched her cauldrons at the demonstration and that his statements to the secretary of the local Communist Party were not, in the least, disrespectful. Gómez also says that after three months without receiving milk from the rationed market for the community’s children, shortly after the demonstrations “a truck with powdered milk appeared.”
Sierra’s arrest sparked a wave of solidarity among Baire residents and social media users, who demanded his immediate release. Internet users also recalled that the commitment made by the provincial authorities, who assured that no one would be arrested after the demonstrations, was being breached.
For its part, the video of Sierra during her arrest, published in the Facebook group Revolico Baire, was shared anonymously along with a message that sought to calm spirits: “Good evening, brothers. Erlis is fine, he sends his regards to everyone. Thank you very much for your support,” the short text stated.
In the recording, Sierra appears to read a script and states that she has not received abuse “neither physically nor verbally” and that she is currently in a “dialogue with the relevant institutions.” It also urges that social complaints be channeled through “respectful dialogue so as not to divide our people.”
The protest took place in the middle of a blackout that lasted more than 24 hours.
His manners and words in the filming contrast significantly with those of the passionate and energetic young man who explains the problems of Baire, before local officials, in another recording that circulated hours before and that was made last Friday, after the popular protest. On that occasion, the young pediatrician strongly criticized the inaction of institutions in the face of serious problems that affect daily life, such as the poor condition of the streets and the accumulation of garbage.
His words in front of the officials are in line with the demands that were heard hours before in the streets of Baire, where on Thursday around 7:40 pm, residents began to play pots and shout slogans such as “We are not afraid!” and “Freedom!” The neighborhoods of La Salada, El Transformador and Abisinia were the epicenter of the spontaneous mobilization that quickly spread to other streets in the town.
Several neighbors documented the demonstration with their mobile phones. In the shared videos, people can be seen walking in groups, hitting pots and cauldrons, and sending direct messages against the Government, such as “Down with Díaz-Canel!”
The protest occurred in the midst of a blackout that lasted more than 24 hours, without drinking water and with an arbovirus outbreak that worsens the local health crisis. The protesters avoided the main road to avoid police checkpoints and walked through interior streets, passing through Avenida 8 and Avenida Central (Avenida 4), until they reached Baire Central Park. There they gathered in front of the Police unit and next to the residence of Salvador Heredia, president of the Popular Council, where they chanted slogans of freedom and justice.
