Reports from the island: fishermen rounded up

The rare independent journalism that exists in Cuba gives an important glimpse into daily happenings in the country and provides a good idea of what it means to live in a nation that identifies as Communist/socialist. I find that events in Cuba can actually succeed in surprising me every so often, which in turn reminds me that I still cannot fully grasp the daily reality of living within such a system.

For instance, today I read that over the weekend, members of the Border Guard (Tropa Guarda Frontera, TGF) and the national police (Policía Nacional Revolucionaria, PNR) cooperated to raid the fishermen, boaters and divers that catch fish off of Havana’s Malecón—the small wall that runs 7 kilometers along the coast in the capital. Those rounded up had their modest fishing equipment, supplies and catch confiscated. Police sank the makeshift boats and fined each individual up to 1500 pesos.

I’ve seen the photos of Cuban Malecón fishermen before; some are like the one above, some have a grand sunset backdrop, and most feature tired-looking men using tired-looking makeshift rods. Never had it occurred to me that what they were doing was illegal. But of course! They call it “trying to provide food for their children,” but the fact is, Cuban law says that citizens do not have the right to fish without official permission.

Reports of this sort of event are rare, and their dissemination is key to creating a more complete understanding of the island.