The Revolutionary Communist Group and Rock around the Blockade send our solidarity to the people of Cuba in the face of the 6.8 magnitude earthquake that shook the eastern part of the island on 10 November. This comes on the heels of Hurricane Rafael, which landed in eastern Cuba on 6 November, and Hurricane Oscar on 20 October, which killed eight people. October also saw a major electricity grid failure that plunged millions into darkness.
On the morning Friday 18 October at local time, Cuba’s largest power plant failed, resulting in a nationwide electricity blackout. The Cuban government announced emergency measures to conserve energy and ensure key sectors and emergency services remain online while power is gradually restored to the population of around 10 million people. Commercial activities have been suspended, workers have been told to stay at home and schools are closed until 25 October. Energy and Mining Minister Vicente de la O Levy announced that the government aimed to have power restored to the majority of the population by Monday night. This is the largest blackout in Cuba in several years and was ongoing even as Hurricane Oscar battered Cuba’s eastern provinces with dangerously high winds and torrential rain on Monday 21 October.
Earlier this week thousands of Cubans, lead by their President Miguel Diaz Canel marched in Havana to express solidarity with the Palestinian struggle.
By Reagan Gray 28 September 2024
On 29 August, The Revolutionary Communist Group (RCG), through its campaign Rock Around the Blockade (RATB), held a public webinar on ‘What is really happening in Venezuela.’ When the Venezuelan Presidential elections on 28 July resulted in a victory for incumbent Nicholas Maduro of the Party , violent riots and media attacks ensued. This chaos was organised by the US backed opposition, Edmundo Gonzalez and Maria Corina Machado, who serve as imperialist puppets in order to foster instability in Venezuela through violent sanctions, media lies, and government backed coup attempts since the Bolivarian Revolution began in 1999.
RATB and the RCG organised this public meeting to affirm the anti-imperialist perspective on the situation in Venezuela and to amplify the Venezuelan voices on the ground who are being actively suppressed, as they challenge the narrative and interests of the ruling class.
Carolina Graterol, a Venezuelan journalist and filmmaker, joined us to speak about her experience as a participant and electoral observer in the election on 28 July. She shared her extensive knowledge of Venezuela’s electoral process, and explained the rigorous processes that the government follows to ensure democratic integrity of elections. Her first hand accounts of the election process were an invaluable perspective and a testament to the democratic processes that Venezuela has upheld despite unceasing media attacks.
Earlier this month the World Congress against Fascism, Neofascism and other similar expressions was held in Caracas, Venezuela. Solidarity organisations, social movements and political parties from over 190 countries participated in the two day long conference. Amongst the numerous political outcomes of the congress was the declaration that the weekend of the 28th/29th of September would be an international weekend of solidarity demonstrations, a demand which Rock Around the Blockade supporters answered enthusiastically!
On 20 September, protesters gathered outside the London offices of the Guardian, to demand an end to its hostile media blitz against Venezuela.
In the build up to, and since the Venezuelan presidential election on 28 July, The Guardian and its sister newspaper The Observer have churned out a steady stream of hostile coverage calling into question the result which saw the re-election of socialist party candidate Nicolas Maduro.
The Guardian's Latin America correspondent Tom Phillips produced over 30 articles on Venezuela’s election in a single month, constantly repeating the lie that the election was rigged, in order to soften up public opinion to accept more sanctions and intervention (see ‘In defence of the Bolivarian revolution’ on our website).
Friends and supporters of the RCG and RATB spoke outside the Guardian exposing its role as a mouthpiece of the British ruling class, all the more dangerous for its supposedly progressive garb. They highlighted the Bolivarian Revolution’s achievements such as free healthcare and education for all Venezuelans, and over four million social housing units constructed since 2011 in spite of deadly US, EU and British sanctions which have devastated the country’s economy. Over $1bn of Venezuela’s sovereign gold reserves have been illegally confiscated by the Bank of England, which refused to release them even in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic to allow Venezuela to purchase urgently needed medicines.
We say: hands off Venezuela! Victory to the Venezuelan masses against imperialism! No more British media lies!
Thursday 29 August, 7pm (British summer time)
Venezuela’s presidential elections on 28 July offered the electorate a choice between a right-wing opposition backed by US imperialism, or Nicolas Maduro, leader of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV), whose progressive government continues to defend the gains of the Bolivarian Revolution in the most difficult conditions. President Maduro’s victory has been denounced by the opposition as a fraud; the United States and its allies refuse to recognise the result. The opposition has fomented violent uprisings while the defeated candidate of the opposition United Democratic Platform (PUD), Edmundo Gonzalez, had declared himself president and called on the armed forces to support him. The mainstream media is on manipulation overdrive.
Hands off Venezuela! No right wing coup! No imperialist intervention!
The Revolutionary Communist Group, FRFI and Rock around the Blockade stand against the attempts by the US imperialist-backed opposition in Venezuela to overturn the result of the 28 July election. Imperialist media and right wing opposition forces announced well in advance that they would not accept any outcome except the installation of a pro-imperialist candidate as president. They are provoking violent protests and street blockades in a replay of previous violent coup attempts in 2019, 2017, 2014 and earlier.
Supporters of Rock Around the Blockade held protests across the country this week in solidarity with Cuba and Palestine, marking the anniversary of the 26th July Moncada attack.
The activists emphasised the connection between the anti imperialist struggles in Cuba and Palestine, and the attacks that both of these causes face from countries like Britain and their institutions.
Here is a roundup of actions from around the country:
On Sunday, July 7, the international #1c4Cuba campaign has called a webinar to show solidarity with the news outlets Cubainformacion and Euskadi Cuba, who have been persecuted for reporting the truth about the blockade of Cuba. Cuba Informacion and the Euskadi-Cuba Association are under attack for reporting on counter-revolutionary groups slandering Cuba’s medical solidarity brigades.
Join us for an important display of solidarity with these outlets and to hear from the following guests:
- Jose Manzaneda – editor of Cubainformacion
- Milagros Acea – Basque based Cuba organisation ‘Desembarco del Granma’
- A speaker from Euskadi Cuba, which until 2020 hosted Cubainformacion
To register and join the webinar, click here.
Sunday July 7, 10:30am (Vancouver/Pacific) / 1:30 pm (Havana/Eastern) / 6:30 pm (London)