Martha Ortega has been waiting in line for hours in central Havana. She wore a checkered blouse and a denim purse that gave her the appearance of an 80-year-old cowgirl, even though she suffers from both rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis, which drags her foot.
Ortega worked as a receptionist in a local Communist Party of Cuba office until five years ago. Her monthly pension is 15,575 pesos, but inflation has made it worth less than $5 for the past three years.
She explains, “I try to disperse it across meals, meds, whatever I can.”
She is just one of many elderly Cubans who have become nearly penniless as the communist government, reeling from a severe economic crisis, turns to private industry.
Ortega resides with her dumb and deaf daughter. They’re alone themselves. No other relatives are available to assist.
This was not how the revolutionary generation in Cuba was supposed to live. They received promises of free food and healthcare from birth to death in exchange for their selfless dedication to society.
Che Guevara declared, “Man [will] begin to free his thinking from the irritating requirement of feeding his animal wants through work.”
Even so, many older people are shocked at how quickly the revolution they dedicated their lives to has abandoned them, when they are most vulnerable, as private stores spring up all over the Caribbean island and the bodegas that supply state-subsidised rations become more empty.
According to Ortega, “We lived with a dream, with a commitment. And then, everything vanished.”
A growing segment of Cuban society is the elderly. The population’s increased life expectancy into the high 70s, matching that of the United States and the United Kingdom, was a victory of the 1959 revolution. Currently, 22.6% of people over 60 live alone, with 221,000 of them being women.
The current flight of young people has intensified these trends. Cubans have either joined the Latin American caravans heading for the US border or have discovered methods to migrate to Europe as the country’s economy declines. Although opinions differ, estimates generally concur that the island’s population has significantly decreased from the 11 million people listed in a 2012 census. It was as low as 8.62 million, according to an independent demographer’s assessment recently.
Former ambassador Carlos Alzugaray, 81, adds, “One of the hardest things for my colleagues is that their children are outside Cuba. And after making so many sacrifices, they are now financially dependent on them.”
Alzugaray, a member of the Communist Party, expresses such outrage at the circumstances that he declares, “I would go to a rally in front of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security if some elderly people gathered together tomorrow.”
That is an astonishing claim in a nation where protests are uncommon and virtually never accepted.
“I’ve worked in two different professions,” Alzugaray declares, as he continues, “Both provided assistance to the Cuban Revolution’s government.”
One was a 35-year career in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The other was fifteen years as a professor at a university. Additionally, I receive 2,330 pesos ($6.50) per month.
The government’s lack of reaction surprises Alzugaray. He claims that there is no indication that they are concerned about the issue. or that they intend to take action in response. They disregard the problem, as they always do when faced with one.
The six-decade American embargo on Cuba, the communist state’s ailing central planning, and the island nation’s inability to recover from the COVID pandemic are all responsible for the collapse of its economy. Since it appeared for a moment that the government couldn’t afford to import food, shops and other small and medium-sized private enterprises (Mipymes) were authorised in 2021.
Though not everyone has benefited from these establishments, some Cubans who get money from family overseas have found them to be quite helpful. Even an ambassadorial monthly pension is insufficient to pay for a tray of eggs, which costs 2,500 pesos. As a result, it is becoming common to see elderly people staring at necessities like cooking oil that they cannot buy.
The government has now decided to regulate the price of necessities like cooking oil and chopped chicken, blaming the Mipymes for their “speculation.” But even these commodities, should the private stores keep selling them, are too expensive for retirees (cooking oil has a restriction of 950 pesos).
The head of the Ministry of Public Health’s Department of Older Adults, Social Care, and Mental Health is Dr. Alberto Fernández Seco. He contends that Cuba is still in a better position than other nations to handle “a worldwide problem” of ageing because of its “high level of education, balanced nutrition, sports, and access to culture.”
He outlines Cuba’s remarkable efforts to care for the elderly, citing the establishment of 304 Casas de Abuelos, or drop-in centres, where senior citizens can congregate, get meals, and get medical assistance. Also, 158 care facilities provide beds for the poorest of the poor. Claiming the reverse to be true, he brushes away claims that care facility beds are disappearing and that fewer people are visiting the Casas de Abuelos as rates rise.
To share this duty with the private sector, he argues, “We’re starting to design policies.”
These are private businesses that would have been unimaginable a few years ago. For instance, TaTamania provides “personalised care” to senior citizens through the use of “health sector professionals” from six locations located throughout Cuba. Monthly costs begin at approximately $150 and quickly increase according to the individual’s demands.
Most of the money comes from overseas families. The government intends to let these businesses branch out into care homes in addition to home care, with 10% of the costs going toward meeting the needs of individuals without families.
According to Fernández Seco, “Sharing responsibilities with the private sector does not contradict the successes of the revolution.”
Elaine Acosta, a sociologist from Florida International University who founded Cuido 60 to investigate the living conditions of Cuba’s elderly, noted that the expatriate families are aware that 10% of their fees are being redistributed, but the money raised is insufficient to address the problem.
She said, “A bigger issue is that organisations in civil society that could be of assistance are unable to secure funding from foreign foundations or others.”
According to Fernández Seco, the government is also giving older people more rights, such as the option to postpone retirement.
“You can continue working and collecting your income and pension as long as you maintain the appropriate level of mental and physical fitness,” he explains.
He continues, saying that although it might not be what was promised, Cubans should keep in mind how fortunate they are in comparison to citizens of other nations where drug use, human trafficking, and organ theft are issues.
“There are moments when we are unable to recognise our blessings,” he added.
Elvio Agramonte de los Reyes, a bit stooped but carrying himself like the Camagüey man he is, raised in the most courtly of the Cuban provinces, pushes a wheelchair up San Lázaro Street. He is selling a basket of coriander and mangoes to bystanders from the chair.
The 85-year-old said, “I get 1,100 pesos from the government. That’s what I live with, along with what I search for on the streets. I am in a better position. I don’t drink coffee, smoke, or use rum. I did consume a lot of rum, but I developed cerebral ischemia, so they advised me not to touch it anymore.”
Like Martha Ortega, all he has to go on in life is a crippled daughter. She was born with a mental illness. She receives a 2,000 peso pension while not working.
He heard Che Guevara’s call when he was a young man.
“Cher invented volunteer labour. I took part in every activity. I cut, cleaned, and planted cane. Although there are benefits to building schools and hospitals with free medical care, it’s now backfiring like a cow’s tail. For those of us who are elderly and without relatives…” He pauses, and a woman who has come to purchase coriander says, “They are dying of hunger, to fill the void.”