27 Families Evicted in Guanabo, Havana

HAVANA TIMES – A total of twenty seven families living in the beach town of Guanabo, east of Havana, lost their homes amid a strong police special troops operation to evict them on May 4, reported Diario de Cuba on Tuesday.

The settlement known as Los Tanques, built by the residents own efforts, was demolished beginning with the wooden houses of the poorest families. Then a bulldozer razed the foundations of those which were still under construction, while finally destroying those homes already completed or in advance construction.

Two days later, the victims of the eviction tried to stage a protest in front of the Plaza de la Revolution, where the Council of State offices are located, but were impeded by the police, who stopped the bus in which they were traveling there.

According to information from Hablemos Press, one of the Housing officials said that “more than 15 days ago these people had been alerted to return to their place of origin, because these constructions were illegal and would be demolished”.

Although the official discourse says there are no evictions in Cuba, these actions called “extractions” happen regularly on the island.