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Cuba’s Darkness and the Caribbean’s Moral Dimming

Mar 20, 2026 Letters

Dear Editor

When Cuba fell into nationwide darkness this week, the blackout illuminated something far more troubling than the failure of an ageing power grid. It revealed a deep moral outage—an erosion of empathy and duty within a region that once prided itself on solidarity and shared humanity. This catastrophe did not emerge from nowhere. Years of sanctions, external pressure, dwindling fuel access, and structural neglect have conspired to make Cuba’s energy system a fragile lifeline. Yet, in a world quick to politicise suffering, the human toll is what must command our attention.  Hospitals, homes, communities—millions of lives—were plunged into the void through no fault of their own.

But what should shake the Caribbean conscience most is not Havana’s darkness, but Georgetown’s silence. Guyana, whose new oil wealth could meaningfully ease this humanitarian shock, remains conspicuously mute.  A country that once benefited from Cuba’s unflagging solidarity—its doctors, its educators, its technicians—now hesitates to extend a hand when the tables have turned.

The moral failure here is not logistical; it is ethical. Prosperity without compassion is moral emptiness disguised as progress. If Guyana’s rising influence in the hemisphere cannot translate into principled action, then all claims to moral authority collapse under the weight of hypocrisy.

Cuba poses no threat to any of us. Its people have endured deprivation without surrender, and offered their humanity unconditionally. To leave them abandoned in their darkest hour is to betray the Caribbean creed of unity that our forebears envisioned. History will not remember the technicalities of this blackout. It will remember who cared enough to act—and who didn’t. The lights may return to Havana, but the shame of silence will linger far longer unless conscience prevails.

We strongly believe that moral leadership is not measured by rhetoric, but by the courage to act when others hesitate. In moments such as these, the Caribbean is tested not in wealth or power, but in heart. Guyana’s destiny as an emerging leader must be anchored in compassion, guided by solidarity, and proven through the choices it makes when its neighbour stands in need.

Sincerely
Hemdutt Kumar

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