Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel assured Friday, November 12 that his supporters are
"ready to defend the revolution"
in the face of the demonstration planned by the opposition next Monday to demand the release of political prisoners.
Read also In Cuba, demonstrators challenge the Castro regime
Faced with
"a strategy of the empire
(the United States, editor's note)
to try to destroy the revolution"
,
"we are calm, sure of ourselves, but attentive and vigilant, and we are also ready to defend the revolution, for to face any action of interference against our country ”
, declared the president during a televised address.
“We are a revolution open to dialogue, to debate,”
he added,
“but we are a society closed to pressure, blackmail and foreign interference”
.
For weeks, the opposition has announced its intention to demonstrate in Havana and six provinces of the country to demand the release of political prisoners.
She maintained her call to march next Monday despite the ban by the Communist authorities, who accuse the organizers of being paid by the United States to try to overthrow the regime.
Read also Cuba on the verge of food chaos
This unprecedented showdown comes in a context of deep economic crisis and four months after the historic demonstrations of July 11 which had seen thousands of Cubans take to the streets shouting
"Freedom"
or
"We are hungry"
. These rallies resulted in one death, dozens of wounded and the arrest of 1,175 people, 612 of whom are still imprisoned, according to the human rights NGO Cubalex.
Thursday, Yunior Garcia, 39-year-old playwright and main organizer of the demonstration, announced his intention to march alone on Sunday on an avenue in Havana, instead of Monday as the call for demonstrations provided for, to avoid any violence.
Friday, he denounced having been threatened by the police with being arrested if he carries out this project.
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