English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar, Havana/Santa Clara | 26 June 2018 — Gloria Peralta has been sitting at the door of an old house with a gabled roof for at least two hours waiting for an onion seller to pass by to “give some flavor to the beans,” but the floods caused by the rains of tropical storm Alberto have … Continue reading “Keys to Survival in Cuba: The Ration Book, Remittances and Theft”
14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 13 September 2017 — Hundreds of people demonstrated in Havana’s Diez de Octubre neighborhood on Wednesday afternoon, protesting the lack of electricity and water after Hurricane Irma. The protest began spontaneously, according to witnesses who spoke with 14ymedio. “We want light! we want water!” and “The people, united, will never be … Continue reading “Hundreds of Havanans Protest in Neighborhood Five Days Without Electricity or Water / Updated”
Ivan Garcia, 8 August 2017 — When night falls on Havana’s Malecon, an optical illusion gave the impression that on the horizon the sun was devouring the sea. This is the hour when Daniel, a retiree of 66, sat himself down on a wooden bench and, along with several neighbors, and drinks the worst quality … Continue reading “The Day Havanans Shouted "Down With Fidel!" / Iván García”
14ymedio, Mario Penton, Miami, 26 June 2017 — Independent communicators in Cuba are victims of an escalating repression, according to a complaint filed Monday by the Cuban Observatory of Human Rights (OCDH), based in Madrid. The alarm sounded by the organization coincides with an increase in complaints from journalists on the island as a result of … Continue reading “Persecution Grows Against Independent Journalism In Cuba”
14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar, Havana, 13 June 2017 – In less than 72 hours President Donald Trump will declare in Miami the new basis for the United States government’s policies towards Cuba. At that time the decisions of his predecessor Barack Obama, during the process of normalization of diplomatic relations with the island, could be paused … Continue reading “Trump And Cuba, Or How To Bet On The Wrong Winner”
14ymedio, Havana, 27 December 2016 – Cuban faces of 2016: The journalist José Ramírez Pantoja starred this year in one of the most publicized cases of censorship within the official press. The reporter was fired from his job at Radio Holguin after being accused of printing on his personal blog the words of Karina Marron, vice … Continue reading “Cuban Faces of 2016: José Ramírez Pantoja, Journalist (b. Holguín) / 14ymedio”
14ymedio, Miriam Celaya, Havana, 26 November 2016 — The official media have just announced the last and definitive death of Fidel Castro, and I think I have perceived more relief than bereavement in the mournful message. If I were a religious person, I would feel at least a tiny bit of grief, but that is … Continue reading “The Ancient Dictator Died Long Ago / 14ymedio, Miriam Celaya”
Cubanet, Miriam Celaya, 27 October 2016 — “Ruperto ‘In Reverse’“ is the nickname the popular Cuban sense of humor has bestowed on General-President Raúl Castro, referring to a character in the popular sit-com “Living on Tall Tales” broadcast on Cuban television Monday, just after the National News’ prime time broadcast. We could not dream of … Continue reading “Ruperto “In Reverse” / Cubanet, Miriam Celaya”
14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez, Generation Y, 14 October 2016 – Authoritarians aren’t very given to calm. They need the citizens to feel widespread discomfort to be able to govern them with ease. This scenario of fears has sharpened recently in Cuba, where the government has strengthened or opened new fronts against the opposition, against the self-employed, … Continue reading “Information as Treason / 14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez”
Vicente Botín, Annual Meeting of the Association for the Study of the Cuban Economy (ASCE), The Hilton Miami Downtown Hotel, 29 July 2016. Once upon a time… A female cat fell in love with a handsome young man and prayed to the goddess Aphrodite to turn her into a woman. The goddess, pitying the cat’s yearning, … Continue reading “Cuba: Tallies and Tales of the Reforms / Vicente Botín”
14ymedio, Mario Penton, Miami, 29 September 2016 – Today the National Ethics Commission of the Cuban Journalists Union (UPEC) will finally hear the appeal filed by Cuban journalist Jose Ramírez Pantoja, who was fired from his job at Radio Holguin last August. Ramírez Pantoja was accused at that time of republishing on his personal blog, … Continue reading “Ethics Committee Hears Appeal From Expelled Holguin Journalist / 14ymedio, Mario Penton”
Juan Juan Almeida, 5 August 2016 — In Cuba 1994 marked the low point of an economic downturn which has been ongoing since the demise of the Eastern bloc in 1989. At the time the government was anticipating social unrest in the east of the country. Discontent within the military had reached dangerous levels due to … Continue reading “Cuba, 5 August 1994: Spontaneous Revolt, Expected Response / Juan Juan Almeida”
14ymedio, Havana, 6 August 2016 – Radio Holguin journalist, Jose Ramon Ramirez Pantoja, will find out this Friday if a labor tribunal will punish him with the permanent loss of his job for having published in his blog some controversial words from a deputy directory of the newspaper Granma about the current economic crisis in … Continue reading “An Official Journalist Calls For Justice / 14ymedio, Havana”
14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez, Havana, 6 August 2016 — She split the plate into two meager rations. “Mommy, you’re not going to eat?” asked one of the daughters voraciously swallowing the mashed banana without oil, free of protein and with hardly any salt. The image of this skimpy dinner in the summer of 1993 is recalled by Maria … Continue reading “The Special Period: The Return Of The Cuban Middle Ages / 14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez”
Iván García, 23 July 2016 — It was announced on Friday, July 8 that Cuba had experienced an economic recession in the first half of this year and that there would be cutbacks in fuel consumption. If the country had a stock exchange or a convertible national currency, their fall would have been dramatic. It was … Continue reading “A Lighter Version of Cuba’s Special Period / Iván García”
