The latest issue of the magazine ¡Hola! features exclusive images of actress Ana de Armas with Manuel Anido Cuesta, the stepson of Cuban leader Miguel Díaz-Canel. This revelation has sparked outrage, particularly among the Cuban exile community in Miami. The anger is especially strong among those who live outside the island and are not subjected to the state-controlled press, which is the only legal media accessible to the majority within Cuba.
To outsiders unfamiliar with Cuba's reality, the disgust directed at their Hollywood star might seem like just another emotional reaction. However, this time they would be mistaken. Ana de Armas is not being criticized by her fellow Cubans merely for dating the stepson of Raúl Castro's successor. The real issue is that her new romantic interest is an advisor to a dictator who keeps the Cuban people deprived of electricity, water, and the right to protest.
The Economic Collapse Under Communist Rule
The Communist Party of Cuba, the only legal political party, has failed to manage an inflation rate that hovered around 30% in the first half of this year. The situation has been dire since the implementation of economic reforms dubbed "Tarea Ordenamiento" by the Cuban communists. Initiated in 2021, these reforms were halted in 2023, acknowledging their failure.
This monumental blunder led to the exclusion of Marino Murillo, known as the czar of economic reforms in Cuba, from Parliament, followed by the ousting of the economy minister, Alejandro Gil, on charges of corruption. However, the crisis has only worsened. Nearly four out of ten Cuban pensioners receive a monthly payment of 1,528 pesos (approximately $4.60 at this week's exchange rate of 1 USD = 328 pesos). In Havana, a family-sized pizza costs 1,100 pesos, and a pound of sugar is priced at 550 pesos. This economic reality has plunged 89% of Cuban families into extreme poverty.
A Romance Amidst Darkness
Photos of Ana de Armas kissing Díaz-Canel's advisor on the streets of Madrid, dining with him and regime lawyers in a trendy restaurant, surfaced after a total blackout left the island in darkness for three days in October. In what other country would such circumstances not lead to massive protests? Only in a place where repression is even more severe than the daily four to ten-hour power outages. The lack of coverage in international news does not mean it isn't happening.
In Cuba, a person faces up to 9 years in prison for a hit-and-run attempt to flee the country. Meanwhile, those who protested on July 11, 2021, received sentences of up to 23 years. Ana de Armas, through her actions, has inadvertently whitewashed these harsh realities.
The Silence of Ana de Armas
The images in ¡Hola! with Manuel Anido Cuesta highlight Ana de Armas's silence, even when she was nominated for an Oscar for "Blonde," she did not utter a word calling for democracy in Cuba. In stark contrast to Celia Cruz, who left Cuba and died in exile without ever returning, Ana de Armas's silence is now seen as complicity and tacit support for a regime leader who, in 2017, boasted about the lack of freedom of expression, stating, "Let them say we censor; everyone censors."
Despite numerous eligible suitors worldwide, she chose an advisor to a leader responsible for over half a million Cubans fleeing the country in the past two years, for the population's 18% decline between 2022 and 2023, and for a crime rate that has surged to an average of 2.37 crimes per day, higher than the previous year.
Declining Social Services
Fidel Castro's flagship social services, healthcare and education, are in a state of decline. The Díaz-Canel government allocates 14 times more funding to tourism than to health and social services. Despite this, the influx of foreign tourists continues to dwindle, and the regime has already abandoned its 2024 target of 3 million tourists. In contrast, direct competitor the Dominican Republic attracted 5 million tourists in the first five months of this year.
The unsanitary conditions deter tourists. Havana generates 23,000 cubic meters of trash daily, but the Cuban regime collects only 68% of it. This means 32% (7,600 cubic meters, equivalent to three Olympic-sized pools) remains on the streets, turning the capital into a "critical public health hazard." Consequently, outbreaks of dengue, leptospirosis, and oropouche have resulted in children's deaths due to meningitis complications.
This is the socialist paradise where Ana de Armas celebrated her 35th birthday in May, with festivities broadcasted on social media by Cuba's elite actors. Those who live in poverty witnessed the birthday celebration held at El Cocinero, a restaurant in Havana, where the Marilyn Monroe actress marked another year of her idyllic life.
For Ana de Armas, Cuba is synonymous with beaches, nightclubs, and friends. In contrast, Cuban dissidents like Omara Ruiz Urquiola, who is barred from returning to her country, or Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara and Maykel Osorbo, imprisoned since the July 11, 2021, protests, cannot enjoy the same privileges.
By being romantically involved with Díaz-Canel's advisor, Ana de Armas has become part of the intimate circle of power that suffocates Cuba. This time, the actress has hit a nerve. Cubans are not willing to accept this, nor the fact that brands like Louis Vuitton and Estée Lauder continue to endorse her as an ambassador.