Crime surge blamed in part on shortage of officers
14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, 23 February 2025 — Rolando retired from the police a decade ago. All his life he was an office worker and patrolman in Havana, and after retiring, he looked for small jobs, finding gas and standing in line for the neighbors who hire him. He hadn’t felt linked to the Ministry of the Interior for some time, and, therefore, the call he recently received from a unit of the municipality of Diez de Octubre, asking him to return to work, left him perplexed.
“They asked me if I was working and if I wanted to do something with them again because they lack staff,” the retiree, whose name was changed for this article, tells 14ymedio. Rolando thought for a moment about his answer, not because he wasn’t clear about it but because it’s always better to choose your words carefully with the authorities: “I’m old now, and I don’t have what it takes for that kind of work.”
While it is true that his 75 years have not passed in vain, his age is not the only reason why he declined the offer, although it was the only one he gave out loud. “I will work for anyone but the State. The costs of transportation and living are too high for me to work in a police unit. What does the State offer that is worth that sacrifice?” he asks.
On the other side of the phone they insisted that he come back. “They told me that they could pay me 6,000 and up to 7,000 pesos. They asked me what I was doing for work and even offered me a position as a duty officer. It’s a pretty simple job, because you spend the day sitting, although you’re usually on call 24 hours and then off for 48. But no, I don’t want to do anything with the State,” he says.
On the other side of the phone they insisted that he come back. “They told me that they could pay me 6,000 and up to 7,000 pesos”
It is not the first time that they tried to recruit Rolando to be a police officer again. “In 2023, Transportation called to offer me a position issuing fines. When I turned it down, they even said that they would help me, I’m not sure if that meant with resources or with the work, but I refused again,” he recalls.
As he explains, the lack of personnel in the police units is critical. “Recently they had a meeting in that same unit of Diez de Octubre looking for sector heads, officers on duty and even file clerks and receptionists, he says. And he adds: “the units are bare.”
Although without specific data, the Ministry of the Interior has acknowledged on several occasions that it lacks staff. In interviews on Cuban Television and with the official media, some managers have attributed the increase in crime in part to the shortage of police. For Rolando, that is another weighty reason to categorically refuse the offer from the Ministry.
“Because of that shortage of officers, the streets are very dangerous. I can’t go back to the police at my age. I wouldn’t be able to defend myself. I could kick someone, but that’s about it,” argues the habanero, who knows that in terms of danger, younger people also think like him. “People ask for leave and go to work in stores, where they are paid between 5,000 and 6,000 pesos, or to MSMEs, where they can earn even more depending on the work,” he says.
“Because of that shortage of officers, the streets are very dangerous. I can’t go back to the police at my age. I’m old and can’t defend myself”
At this point, the police are desperate to hire people, explains Rolando. In the middle of last year, the Ministry of the Interior offered several courses that were shared by local governments and the State press, for anyone who wanted to join their ranks in Pinar del Río.
From enrolling in a Law Degree to being a patrolman, the offers for those who accepted a one-year course were broad and the requirements minimal: “Must be between 17 and 40 years old, with 12-years’ education and a degree completed, and in good physical and mental condition.”
A 75-year-old retired officer “is now working with them,” says Rolando. “But what the hell! Don’t let them count on me!”
Translated by Regina Anavy
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