Author: 14ymedio

Reports of State Security Threats Toward Elections Observers in Cuba

Signs with information and propaganda related to the upcoming elections in Cuba. (EFE)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Havana, 20 March 2023 — On Monday, Zelandia de la Caridad Pérez, the national coordinator of the Cuban Commission for Electoral Defense (Cocude) denounced that several Cuban activists are being threatened with arrest by State Security if they persist in their intent to observe the electoral process on Sunday, March 26th, when the delegate candidates to the National Assembly of the People’s Power (ANPP) will be voted on and approved.

During a telephone conversation with 14ymedio, De la Caridad Pérez stated that for several days, the political police have been conducting this type of threat and also stated that “they are strongly repressing those who are campaigning for abstention, alluding to the recently approved Criminal Code.”

“A number of citizens and activists who promote and participate in a campaign for abstention are being threatened with judicial proceedings for supposed law violations,” signaled a joint statement by Cocude, Observadores de Derechos Electorales [Electoral Rights Observers], and Ciudadanos Observadores de Procesos Electorales [Citizen Observers of Electoral Processes].

Activists pointed to the electoral law which does not prohibit citizens from “demonstrating their preferences,” although it does prohibit formal election campaigns.

“The right to observe is consecrated in the current electoral law, thus, these repressive actions and operations by State Security against activists interested in exercising that right is a clear violation of the law,” insisted the activist who added, “We’ve received reports of these threats from Santiago de Cuba, Artemis and especially here in the capital.” continue reading

These threats, insists De la Caridad Pérez, are in contrast to the statements made by Alina Balseiro Gutiérrez, president of the National Electoral Council, “who called for the entire population to participate in the voting this coming Sunday. We can only conclude that they do not want our reports, which are serious and well-documented, to belie their propaganda.”

“One of the things we will audit is whether, in the polls, when the process ends, they prominently post information with the results. That is one step they often violate, in the same way they also violate the deadlines for posting voter lists at each polling site,” explained Concude’s coordinator.

For their part, Electoral Rights Observers (ODE) decried on its Facebook page that during a test run on Sunday ahead of the March 26 vote, there was not “access to independent national and/or international actors” who could participate and “audit the process.”

“In fact, in all prior processes, as well as the current one, the regime’s willingness to impede any independent citizen monitoring exercise that would expose the multiple irregularities in the process is made clear,” exposed the organization.

Of the test run, ODE stated that it visited ten polling sites in Havana and Holguín and confirmed that “there is no detailed information” about how the process will be carried out, “what the evaluation criteria are” nor “how the staff who will participate in the process are selected.”

“Generally, it was another demonstration of the secrecy with which they conduct electoral processes in Cuba, as well as the lack of participation from those who should attend. Independent citizens in different locations reported there were many voting centers where they did not conduct the test, and that were not even open,” concluded ODE, but only after saying that in some centers there was strong police security, State Security agents and the presence of local authorities.

In the Parliamentary elections next Sunday more than eight million Cubans are called to the polls to vote, 1.5 million of whom are in the capital.

A total of 470 candidates are running for an equal number of seats on the Cuban unicameral legislature and voters can support them or not. Only those with more than 50% of the submitted votes may occupy their seat. There are several legal provisions to fill seats that might remain vacant.

Candidates were selected by the so-called mass organizations, associations within the orbit of Cuba’s Communist Party (PCC, the only legal party), and approved by the municipal assemblies of the People’s Power, where their militants are the majority.

Translated by: Silvia Suárez

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COLLABORATE WITH OUR WORK: The 14ymedio team is committed to practicing serious journalism that reflects Cuba’s reality in all its depth. Thank you for joining us on this long journey. We invite you to continue supporting us by becoming a member of 14ymedio now. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.

In Cuba, Food Prices Increased by 73 Percent in One Year

Among other goods, the prices of urban transportation have increased notably. (Nycecile)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Madrid, 20 March 2023 — In the first months of the year, the cost of living in Cuba has increased by 5% compared with December, while the Consumer Price Index (CPI) was only slightly better in February than in January. The second month of the year ended with an increase in CPI of 2.61% compared with 2.74% the previous month and 44.50% higher than February 2022. In addition, the estimate is double the year-to-year increase at this time last year, which was 23% compared with February 2021.

Once again, the figure is worse if we focus on the food and non-alcoholic beverage sector, which experienced a year-to-year increase of 72.62% or on restaurants and hotels, 62.51% over last year.  These two areas, directly related to food, are the ones that once again drive inflation in Cuba–4.4% for the month and 9.5% since the beginning of 2023, in the case of gastronomy, 3.3% in February and 6% for the first two months of this year for food an beverages.

In more detail, this month white cheese contributed most to the price increases, with an increase of 13% followed by taro root (9%), rice (7.7%) and poultry (7.4%). The price of pork increased only slightly in this period and costs 1.6% more than last month, but its impact, along with that of rice, on inflation is greater.

With regard to gastronomy, snacks once again drive the increases, with a 5.7% increase, followed by prepared foods and breakfast (both at 5%), soft drinks (4.4%) and lastly, lunches and dinners, with a 3.3% increase. This sector is gaining importance when it comes to driving price increases and is once again, just like last month, the sector that experienced the most increases. continue reading

The sector in third place for price increases was furniture and home goods (2.3%), its impact is not as great as the transportation sector, fourth place in terms of inflation, but third for its impact on citizens day-to-day. In January, it was already 1.6% higher than in December and rose again in February to 2%.

Thr price of urban transportation in diverse vehicles is growing rapidly (7%), followed by urban taxis and rickshaws (5.2%). Long distance taxi prices increased by 3.3% and other types of transportation in this area by 1.87%. Finally, buses, the price of which continues to increase, although moderately — at less than 1%.

The report, published online on Friday by the National Information and Statistics Office (ONEI), focuses, as usual, on the goods that experienced the greatest variation in prices in February and that, along with cheese, rice and taro root are mostly foods. The price of cooking oil increased more than 10% and the price of flours, highly desirable during this time of great scarcity, increased more than 8%.

On the opposite end are price decreases, with peppers (-15.8%) and tomatoes (-13%) in the lead, and red beans (-2%) and black beans (-1.8%). Somewhere in the middle are cigarettes, which for several months has been one of the products that has contributed most to softening the calamitous price increases of the last several months.

This division, which began to register price decreases in December and January, once again declined notably with a decrease greater than 5%. So far this year, the decrease is almost -11%, moderating the year-to-year increase, which is only 12%.

With regard to the rest of the sectors, home services is the only one that experienced a price increase greater than 1%, with the following areas all less than that: education (0.9%), recreation and culture (0.6%), clothes and shoes (0.47%), health (0.3%) and communications (0.03%).

Although the official statistics help us monitor the evolution of inflationary trends, to understand the real CPI, it must be calculated taking into consideration the informal economy. American economist Steve Hanke, who does that calculation constantly, placed inflation at the beginning of March at 81%, 12 points above the prior month.

Furthermore, on March 8th Hanke published the evolution of the value of the currency, where the Cuban peso continues to be the fourth most depreciated against the dollar, at 60% and only surpassed by Zimbabwe, Venezuela, and Lebanon.

Translated by: Silvia Suárez

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COLLABORATE WITH OUR WORK: The 14ymedio team is committed to practicing serious journalism that reflects Cuba’s reality in all its depth. Thank you for joining us on this long journey. We invite you to continue supporting us by becoming a member of 14ymedio now. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.

The Cuban Players Returned From Miami Without the Cup but With a Lot of Purchases

The Cuban delegation to the World Baseball Classic returns to Cuba from the Miami airport. (Collage)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Havana, 20 March 2023 — The players of Team Asere, the Cuban team that lost its pass to the final of the World Baseball Classic to the United States, returned to the Island this Monday without the event’s cup but loaded down with purchases.

Flat-screen televisions, air conditioners, car tires and many, many suitcases: this is how the representatives of the Island were captured before boarding their flight back to Havana this Monday morning.

The luggage to Cuba is very different from the few suitcases they carried when they entered the United States and arrived in Miami on March 16, as seen in the images of reports from several Florida media outlets.

According to the La Familia Cubana [The Cuban Family] page, directors of the Cuban Baseball Federation, the team’s management body and the players residing on the Island returned on the flight.

The catcher of the national team, Iván Prieto, was the only one who did not board the plane after escaping from the hotel where the group was staying, as confirmed by several sources from Miami. The native of Holguin  became “the first player to leave the Cuban national team in a World Baseball Classic,” journalist Francys Romero posted on his social networks.

On the other hand, it is still not known how the 1,500,000 dollars that Cuba obtained for having reached the semifinal of the World Classic will be distributed. According to the journalist of Pelota Cubana [Cuban Baseball], Yordano Carmona, the Cuban Baseball Federation (FCB) “cannot collect anything from that money” and “it is in writing.”

The sanctions of the United States Treasury Department do not allow payments to institutions on the Island. Given this, the 50% that corresponds to the FCB will go to the organizers of the tournament. continue reading

The rest, 750,000 dollars, must be distributed among the 30 members of the sports delegation, that is, $25,000 for each one. For professional athletes, Carmona explained, these amounts are deposited, but those who returned to the Island do not know if they will be given the money and under what procedures.

For the second and third editions of the World Baseball Classic, according to data from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the players “are owed $2,300,000” because “the blockade prohibits transferring money to Cuba.” What was awarded to the Cuban baseball team was donated to the victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Cuban athlete Sergio Reinaldo González Bayard could not receive 28,000 dollars, which he won as a prize at the World Beach Volleyball Circuit. Other cases include referees Ricardo Borroto Iglesias and Lourdes Ester Pérez who were unable to receive 9,282 and 8,680 dollars, respectively, for their services provided at different international events.

Meanwhile, the Cuban Volleyball Federation could not access the prizes obtained by the men’s team in the Challenger tournaments held in Portugal (4th place in 2018) and Slovenia (2nd place in 2019), for a total of 7,000 dollars.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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COLLABORATE WITH OUR WORK: The 14ymedio team is committed to practicing serious journalism that reflects Cuba’s reality in all its depth. Thank you for joining us on this long journey. We invite you to continue supporting us by becoming a member of 14ymedio now. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.

Former Cuban Collaborator of ’14ymedio’ Hector Reyes, Robbed and Murdered in Mexico

Journalist Héctor Darío Reyes collaborated with 14ymedio between 2014 and 2015. (H.R.)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Havana, 21 March 2023 — Cuban photojournalist Héctor Darío Reyes, who collaborated with 14ymedio at its beginning, was found dead in his home in Mexico, according to his friends on social networks. The version that circulates among his acquaintances is that he was killed by some strangers whom he had invited to his house and who stole his phone and computer. The killers are allegedly on the run.

Reyes, originally from Santa Clara, studied journalism at the Faculty of Communication of Havana and took his first steps in the official press, working at the Cuban News Agency and the Villa Clara newspaper Vanguardia.

At the end of 2014 he began a series of collaborations with 14ymedio, expressing his passion for photography with photos of the deplorable condition of the streets in Camagüey, and another series on the Island’s satellite dishes. Among his articles published by this newspaper are some that reveal the stormy life and personality of the author, who is remembered by his friends.

Reyes was a great traveler and lived almost like a nomad in many countries, passing through Spain, Russia, China, Laos, Cambodia and Thailand, where he said he had arrived by swimming across a river. In 2015, Reyes left Cuba and lived in different Latin American countries, from Ecuador to the jungle of Peru and Mexico. continue reading

In an interview in 2019, he declared his love for this lifestyle. “There is still a long way to go, to photograph and write about,” he said, adding that he preferred to go on his way “without credits or a fixed salary. With my tent and my backpack in search of other frontiers, like a Cuban whose profession is to be a backpacker.”

His body was found by his partner and buried in Mexico, apparently in a mass grave.

“He was a great friend; I was talking to him two days before that tragedy happened,” wrote the Cuban poet Ibis Martín. “We had a joint project, which will come to light one day. I will do as much as I can to make it happen. He was very good as a poet, not to mention his chronicles. I just hope that those murderers are found and pay for what they have done. Wherever he is, may he rest in peace and know that I loved him, because with me he was always super kind and respectful.”

Translated by Regina Anavy

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COLLABORATE WITH OUR WORK: The 14ymedio team is committed to practicing serious journalism that reflects Cuba’s reality in all its depth. Thank you for joining us on this long journey. We invite you to continue supporting us by becoming a member of 14ymedio now. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.

The Regime Tries To Ease the Sports and Political Defeat of the Cuban Team With an Act of Reparation

Photo of the live broadcast on Cuban national television of the reception of the team that participated in the World Baseball Classic. (14ymedio)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Havana, 20 March 20, 2023 — It was with long faces and forced smiles, that the return home of the members of the Cuban baseball team that lost this Sunday in Miami to the US team by 14-2 was “celebrated.” And not only did Team Asere suffer the defeat, but its catcher, Iván Prieto, deserted, as confirmed by US sources.

According to journalist Francys Romero, Prieto is “the first player to leave the Cuban national team in a World Baseball Classic.” The reporter for Pelota Cubana, Yordano Carmona, confirmed that the athlete “escaped from the hotel.” The baseball player “was not on the team that boarded the flight” to Havana and was reported as “taken off” the National Team due to abandonment,” Carmona said.

A native of Holguín, Prieto was part of the Cuban team for the Olympic Qualifier of the Americas in May 2021 and also in the Under-23 World Cup in September-October 2021.

Meanwhile, the members of the group landed at the José Martí International Airport in Havana at 9:20 in the morning and began a tour of the capital, which ended at the Coliseum of the Ciudad Deportiva with an official act. The celebration in the streets was obviously forced by the regime. On G Street, between 25 and 23, the crowd was made up of students. “An unfortunate show,” said a neighbor from the area.

On the tour of Team Asere, most of the attendees were students who had been forced to go. (14ymedio)

Juliette Fernández, wife of independent journalist Boris González, said on her social networks that there was “a handful of people on the corner of 23 and G to receive Team Asere.” Among the attendees were “high school students… They couldn’t carry their backpacks; they had to leave them at school, to avoid desertions.” continue reading

For his part, Boris González exposed the “ridiculousness of Castroism” for mounting a “charade to receive the players. The authorities have closed schools and workplaces for people to attend, and the streets are empty. Only four spouses went to the reception for Team Asere.”

Despite an unmitigated defeat, in sporting and political terms, that brought applause from numerous exiles who took advantage of the event to protest against the regime, the ruling party didn’t skimp on compliments towards a team that against all odds managed to reach the semifinals and remain in an honorable fourth position. This is a victory after the many troubles that Cuban baseball has accumulated in the last decade. It’s now been 17 years since Cuba qualified for such a high position.

In any case, the mobilization, more than for the sport, focused on the political. That nothing unites more than a common enemy is well known by the Cuban leaders who have turned Team Asere into a long-suffering champion against the pressure of Miami’s exile.

Despite the efforts of the Cuban leaders to put a good face on the loss, the official photo of the players with the highest authorities (Díaz-Canel, Prime Minister Manuel Marrero and the president of Parliament, Esteban Lazo Hernández) had an air of state funeral, which contrasted with the tweets of congratulations.

“Congratulations, admirable Team Asere. You won three times: when you formed a team, when you qualified first and when you played until the last out against a great team and against a hatred of the worst kind. You made history. Cuba is proud of you,” wrote Miguel Díaz-Canel himself shortly after the defeat.

The president of the National Institute of Sports, Physical Education and Recreation (INDER), Osvaldo Vento Montiller, pointed out that the Cuban team had already won the great battle of this event, but he also  recognized the “power” of the American team. “They were able to beat us by their quality and the advantage established by the game’s historic context.”

Randy Alondo Falcón, director of Cubadebate, warmed up hours before the reception with an article entitled Odio canijo [Weak Hate], in which he describes as “unique specimens on earth” the “anti-Cuban haters” who went to the stadium this Sunday, “united in that abominable combination of antagonism and malice.”

The spokesman for the regime directly pointed to Orlando Gutiérrez, of the Cuban Resistance Assembly, as the leader the attack, although without naming him and referring to him as a “veteran organizer of the anti-Cuban street demonstrations and a friend of the terrorists in front of Versailles [a popular restaurant for Miami exiles] to take his resentment out on the Cuban team.”

In the text he also spoke of the “not just a few Cubans” who attended the game to support Cuba in the face of “the true defeated (…), those with poor souls, the champions of hatred and lies, the inquisitors and party poopers, the eternal sowers of poison. They lost what they have never really had: a people,” he said.

Independent journalist Boris González described as “ridiculous” the “charade mounted” to receive Team Asere for forcing people from schools and workplaces to attend. (14ymedio)

While the Cuban authorities turned to a message of unity that they planned to keep alive until the holding of the elections on March 26, in Miami, the opponents who jumped onto the field this Sunday with protest posters, Danilo Maldonado El Sexto, Antonio Fernandez and Carlos Manuel Álvarez, spent the night at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in Miami. All three were charged with the crime of trespass (invasion of private property).

Álvarez, who was released after the payment of bail, made it known through his social networks that he tried to “rescue the gesture of Colin Rand Kaepernick — who in protest against racism knelt during the NFL matches when listening to the US national anthem — in front of the national team bench, but I got mixed up.”

A policeman asked him why he did it and Álvarez replied: “Because I have friends who are political prisoners, and because all political prisoners are my friends, I added later, when I thought about it better. Freedom and justice for Cuba, we can’t let ourselves fall.”

World Baseball Classic. While the Cuban authorities turned to a message of unity, in Miami the opponents who jumped onto the field to protest spent the night at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center 

Translated by Regina Anavy

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COLLABORATE WITH OUR WORK: The 14ymedio team is committed to practicing serious journalism that reflects Cuba’s reality in all its depth. Thank you for joining us on this long journey. We invite you to continue supporting us by becoming a member of 14ymedio now. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.

A Mother and Her One-Year-Old Son Injured in Central Havana Building Collapse

A video posted on Facebook shows medical services and the police arriving at the scene of the accident to treat the injured as a crowd of people look on.

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Havana, 19 March 2023 — A residential building on San Miguel Street, between Campanario and Manrique streets in Central Havana, collapsed on Saturday afternoon. Official media outlets reported that two people were injured: a mother and her nearly one-year-old son.

A video posted on Facebook shows medical services and the police arriving at the scene of the accident as a crowd of people look on.

In a short statement broadcast by state media, officials said that initially there were only two victims. However, speculation on social media suggested there was a third person, whose condition is unknown because “the entire building collapsed” on him.

Both Old Havana and Central Havana are regularly the scenes of building failures due to decades-long neglect of the areas’ many old buildings. The situation is made worse by the excessive dampness and salt residue — from proximity to the sea — found in these structures.

Frustration over the precarious state of one building’s infrastructure led a group of families living on Habana Street between Aguiar and Muralla, a block in the oldest part of the city, to move their belongings into the street in protest after the building’s roof collapsed and they spent days waiting helplessly for some solution. continue reading

Some buildings are in such bad shape, however, that they end up falling down completely. This  happened in November on Refugio Street, between Prado and Morro, where it took a huge deployment of fire trucks, and even rescue dogs, to pull three people out of the rubble.

A month before, one girl was killed and three people were injured in Old Havana after a roof fell on them. The incident occurred shortly after midnight on Monday, October 17, in the dilapidated building in which they were living on Sol Street, between Egido and Villegas.

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COLLABORATE WITH OUR WORK: The 14ymedio team is committed to practicing serious journalism that reflects Cuba’s reality in all its depth. Thank you for joining us on this long journey. We invite you to continue supporting us by becoming a member of 14ymedio now. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.

A Beating of Home Runs and Posters for the Cuban Baseball Team in Miami

The cameras avoided focusing on part of the public behind home plate, but posters saying “Cuba Libre” and “Down with the Dictatorship” could also be read. (14ymedio)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Havana, 19 March 19, 2023 — Rain splashed down on the game between the United States and Cuba in the World Baseball Classic. The match took place this Sunday afternoon at LoanDepot Park in Miami, but for Cuban spectators the intense downpours in Havana, together with the blackouts, made it difficult to enjoy a game that ended 14-2 in favor of the United States. The most important “plays,” however, did not take place on the ground.

A “beating” of posters was seen throughout the game, and an important moment occurred when the artist Danilo Maldonado, El Sexto, threw himself onto the field to protest, with a sign that said: “Freedom for the Cuban prisoners of July 11.” Instantly, hundreds of people began to shout “Freedom” to support the artist, who was quickly taken off the field by stadium security.

Almost at the end of the game, the writer and journalist Carlos Manuel Álvarez also ran a stretch on the field raising the Cuban flag. At another moment a fan came onto the field but did not carry anything in his hands. Both were approached by security personnel and referees and escorted off the field.

The artist Danilo Maldonado, ’El Sexto’, launches himself onto the field to protest with a sign that said: “Freedom for Cuban prisoners on July 11.” The current score: #Cuba 2 #USA 13

Meanwhile, in Cuba since the day before, the sky did not portend  anything good in Havana. The constant rain sunk the official plan to install giant screens in key points of the city. La Piragua* was a flooded area with kiosks closed just a few minutes before the start of the game, while some spectators took refuge in the closed room of the Yara cinema to follow the historic confrontation on its big screen. continue reading

“There were a few minutes left; friends were already gathered and we had even made an effort and bought some beer, but the power went out,” lamented Joseíto, a resident of the neighborhood of La Timba in the municipality of Plaza de la Revolución who had spent “a week planning to have no interruption” this Sunday afternoon and enjoy the World Baseball Classic, but the lack of power canceled his plans.

Shortly after the start of the game, the shouts of “Patria y Vida,” “Libertad” and “Díaz-Canel singao [motherfucker]” could be heard through the transmission of the Tele Rebelde channel, and despite the fact that the camera zoomed out and avoided focusing on part of the public behind home plate, posters could also be read with the phrase “Cuba Libre.” Between pauses in the game, the regime constantly transmitted advertising about the upcoming elections.

When the United States scored 9 runs at the end of the fifth inning, influencer Alex Otaola was also seen on national television behind the home plate area carrying a sign in his hands with the phrase “The street is the way.” Shortly after, the singer Dianelys Alfonso, La Diosa [The Goddess], was in the same place with another message in her hands: “Freedom.”

Before the start of the game, about 50 people demonstrated against “the dictatorship and in favor of the people of Cuba” in the vicinity of the stadium.

The Democracy Movement, organizer of the protest, placed a series of photographs of children with their names and white crosses, and a banner that read: “Castro, do you recognize these children? You must recognize them because you murdered them,” in reference to the “March 13 tugboat massacre” as it is called.

Another banner in English, with a heading that said “dictator Castro and President Biden,” included the petitions of the Democracy Movement and other exile organizations: freedom for all political prisoners, including “children,” free elections and the end of the division of Cuban families.

If those requirements are met, “then we will play too,” the poster said, referring to the World Baseball Classic in Miami with the participation of Cuba for the first time in more than two decades.

After this semifinal between the United States and Cuba, Mexico and Japan will play on Monday to define the other team that will contest the final on Tuesday.

*Translator’s note: La Piragua is a large plaza-type open space along Havana’s Malecon overlooked by the Hotel Nacional.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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COLLABORATE WITH OUR WORK: The 14ymedio team is committed to practicing serious journalism that reflects Cuba’s reality in all its depth. Thank you for joining us on this long journey. We invite you to continue supporting us by becoming a member of 14ymedio now. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.

High Tension a Few Hours Before the Cuba-US Semifinal in the World Baseball Classic in Miami

Cuban baseball player Yoenis Céspedes joined Team Asere’s training this Saturday at Miami’s LoanDepot Park. (Jit)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Havana, 19 March 19, 2023 — Cuba’s official press doesn’t  hide the tension before the semifinal of the World Baseball Classic, which will take place today in Miami when the Cuban national team faces the United States team, which beat Venezuela yesterday by 9 to 7. The day has already taken on political overtones, and Cubans from both the Island and the exile have been fully engaged  to answer several questions: What should be the attitude of the exile community towards the so-called Team Asere? Is the Cuban team an example of national reconciliation? Who will win or fail today?

The Cuban government seems to have made things clear: musical themes, speeches, tweets, uniform raffles, analyses that promise the victory of the Island’s team and proclamations of several leaders are part of the team’s presentation machinery as an initiative of the regime, which needs a hit of popularity a few days before the election of deputies to Parliament.

Knowing that several exile activists have called for protests in the vicinity of the stadium, the official press has also released “messages” to counter these calls.

Both President Miguel Díaz-Canel and his wife, Lis Cuesta, have tweeted several times a day about the Cuban national team. The president transcribed the lyrics of the official theme of the selection, interpreted by the singer Alexander Abreu, while Cuesta motivated the criticism of users by asking that “water with eggshell powder” — ritual elements in Santería — be thrown on the field. continue reading

The project related to the regime’s Puentes de Amor [Bridges of Love] intiative, led in Florida by Carlos Lazo, declared that the game was a “historic event” and that the organization rejected “the attempts of individuals or groups to organize protests,” and “politicize or sabotage the event.” “We have already won!” Lazo said in his statement, in line with the Government’s forecasts.

Cubadebate promised a shirt and a cap from the Cuba team, in addition to a cellphone recharge of 125 pesos — in collaboration with the state telecommunications monopoly Etecsa — to whoever could answer a trivia question about Cuban baseball.

However, the readers continued to be suspicious of the announcement, by Etecsa, of a maintenance scheduled for Sunday on the telephone lines and Internet: “While these technical actions are being carried out, it may affect the operation of services, so the work will be carried out at the times with the lowest voice and data traffic.” “They’re going to take away our Internet so we don’t see what’s going to happen in the ball stadium. Miami warmed up,” a Facebook user joked.

Another controversial announcement was the placement of screens in parks, theaters and squares in different provinces, considered insufficient by readers; strong police surveillance is predicted. It is also expected that the game will not be broadcast live, but that the authorities will leave a margin of time to censor any problematic event or image.

Several fans and intellectuals recognize that in Team Asere there is a paradox that will have to be solved in Miami: Who does the team really represent?

“This is a country that doesn’t want them to take away the only thing it no longer has, but that it counts on,” Cuban translator Jorge Ferrer said on his Facebook profile. “The name of Team Asere for the hybrid team is a semantic, sociological and even poetic finding of enormous caliber.”

Writer Carlos Manuel Álvarez, for his part, pointed out that “people don’t know where to classify them right now, when a type of national series drives a major league series. It can be said that they generated an identity from the mixture, which is the only possible identity.”

Journalist Gilberto Dihigo complained that, as in all the “Byzantine fights” in which Cubans are involved, the one that takes the best advantage of the division is the Government of the Island, which washes its hands and places the responsibility of the national division in the hands of the people themselves, both inside and outside the country.

“Cuba belongs to everyone and has nothing to do with that outdated and oppressive system of opinions; therefore, the ball team does not belong to Castroism,” he said.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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COLLABORATE WITH OUR WORK: The 14ymedio team is committed to practicing serious journalism that reflects Cuba’s reality in all its depth. Thank you for joining us on this long journey. We invite you to continue supporting us by becoming a member of 14ymedio now. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.

A Fire in Matanzas, Cuba Wipes Out 11,300 Tobacco Drying Sheds

The residents themselves warned of the fire in the tobacco sheds. (Yosier Argüeso)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Havana, 16 March 2023 — More than 11,300 drying sheds of recently harvested tobacco burned in a fire on Wednesday night in Jovellanos, Matanzas. The official press confirmed the news, advanced by a user on social networks, which shattered the calm of the neighbors of District 5 of the San Carlos People’s Council.

According to the author of the information, Yosier Argüeso Miranda, an official of the Gelma group who is dedicated to agricultural logistics and is a resident of the area, it was the neighbors of the drying sheds, who belong to the Matanzas Tobacco Collection and Benefit Company, who realized that they were burning around 10:00 at night.

Rolando Tirse Fernández, of the Fire Department, explained that coordination with the firefighting forces of the neighboring municipalities allowed the fire to be controlled relatively quickly. Together, the main tasks focused on cooling down the premises and the surrounding structures to prevent a spread, according to the expert.

They could not, however, prevent up to 100 homes from being affected by the incident. They lost power due to the overheating of the network and the damage to the power lines that the Unión Eléctrica de Cuba is working to solve. continue reading

With regard to the events, several things remain unclear, such as the number of tobacco sheds that burned and how the fire could have started. Although the damage is only preliminary, the loss of such a number of drying sheds, from which between 2,300 and 2,800 cigars could be produced, has had a great impact on the local company.

The national panorama with respect to the tobacco harvest is also bleak, after the disaster caused in September 2022 by the passage of Hurricane Ian, which was particularly damaging for Pinar del Río, the island’s leading province in the sector, from which about 65% of the leaf comes.

The damages were described as “the largest in history” for Cuban tobacco by the provincial Agriculture delegate, Víctor Fidel Hernández, who found 90% of the drying sheds affected by the hurricane, out of a total of 12,000. In addition, “about 11,000 tons of tobacco” that were already in the dryers got wet, and had to undergo a new process or be discarded.

Much of that leaf, about 6,000 tons, was taken to other provinces to continue the process, including Matanzas, Sancti Spíritus, Villa Clara and Cienfuegos.

At the end of the year, the Government estimated that some 12,544 tons of the damaged leaves were recovered, and more than 1,640 hectares were planted, only 26% of the 6,300 planned for a cycle that closed in January.

In November 2022, a fire also swept through the cargo of a train that transported Pinar del Río leaf, although the amount of tobacco lost in the event was not offered to the public.

This product is one of the most profitable for the Cuban Government, which last year pocketed 545 million dollars, thanks to the exports of Habanos S.A. Only one year before, the earnings were 568 million dollars (with these figures affected by the change in the value of the dollar).

At the recent Cigar Festival, February 27 to March 4, the Government raised the “record figure” of 11,220,000 euros for the auction of six humidors, one of them signed by Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel, which sold for 4,200,000 euros.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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Three US Senators Ask Biden To End the Embargo and To Help the Cuban Private Sector

US Senator Ron Wyden and Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel, at their meeting in Havana last December. (Minrex)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Havana, 17 March 17, 2023 — The letter sent on Wednesday to US President Joe Biden by three senators, calling for the end of the embargo on Cuba and more aid for the private sector of the Island, was answered the next day by the US-Cuba Commercial and Economic Council (Cubatrade), with several clarifications.

“The US embargo against Cuba has failed,” categorically affirmed the letter signed by Democrats Ron Wyden (Oregon), Chris Van Hollen (Maryland) and Republican Cynthia M. Lummis (Wyoming). The legislators believe that the measure, in force for 60 years, “has not facilitated regime change nor promoted any notable improvement in human rights, democracy or economic freedom in Cuba.”

On the contrary, they say, “it has limited the capacity” of the United States Government to defend its interests in Cuba, has stifled opportunities for American companies, farmers and ranchers and has harmed “both Americans and Cubans” on the Island. In addition, they consider it to be an easy “scapegoat” for the failures of the Cuban government.

Faced with this, they propose a series of measures, in addition to the lifting of the embargo, among which are supporting small Cuban private companies by providing “specific access” to US financial services, increasing trade in food and agricultural products between both countries and supporting access to information and “person-to-person” contact in Cuba. continue reading

While the senators claim to have “serious concerns about the Cuban Government’s repression of peaceful actions in favor of democracy” and to support the Biden Administration’s efforts “to hold the Cuban Government accountable for violations of human rights, civil rights and workers’ rights, including forced labor,” they insist that “unilateral sanctions have not caused democratic change.”

This Thursday, Cubatrade responded in a statement to several of the points in the letter, emphasizing that much of the regulatory changes in the trade relationship with Cuba depend on Havana’s decision. Thus, he suggests that they also send a letter to the Cuban president, Miguel Díaz-Canel.

For example, to the request of legislators that the United States make “specific efforts” for Cuban small private entrepreneurs to access US financial services, they state that in May 2022, the Biden and Harris Administration already authorized the first direct investment and direct financing to a private company in Cuba  owned by a Cuban. “Unfortunately, the Government of the Republic of Cuba has been two years — and counting — without specifically authorizing or publishing regulations for the delivery of direct investment and direct financing to private companies in the Republic of Cuba owned by a national of the Republic of Cuba.”

On the other hand, to the senators’ claim to establish a specific license from the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) to allow US banks to provide financial services to small Cuban companies in the private sector, the Council concedes that they are right to ask for “efficient banking” for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises and regrets that the Biden government continues to refuse to authorize correspondent banking*.

Incredibly, the Obama-Biden Administration (2009-2017) has authorized financial institutions based in the United States to have correspondent accounts in financial institutions located in the Republic of Cuba, but it did not authorize financial institutions based in the Republic of Cuba to have correspondent accounts with financial institutions located in the United States,” explains the organization, led by businessman John Kavulich.

It would be useful, the statement continues, for the three senators to advocate before the Government of the Republic of Cuba on the lack of regulations on investment and financing, because “to be issued” they must address the elements referred to in the letter to President Biden, which would be an incentive for him to authorize direct correspondent banking.

Another of the points made by Cubatrade is that part of what they are looking for, such as promoting the use of funds provided for in the programs authorized by the Agricultural Law of 2018 for US farmers and ranchers who want to export to the Cuban market, is not the responsibility of the US Department of Agriculture, but of those who requested it and haven’t used it.

It’s not the first time that Ron Wyden has made moves to bring the United States closer to the Cuban regime. Last December, the senator visited Havana, where he held a meeting with Díaz-Canel.

Two days later, he also met with opponents Martha Beatriz Roque Cabello and Julio Ferrer Tamayo. Roque, who recalled that the senator from Oregon is “one of the people who wants rapprochement with the dictatorship.” She said that the topic of conversation on that occasion was the political prisoners and that she had the confidence that the senator “will not leave out this issue and will bring it up in the different committees of the Senate in which he is going to participate.”

Wyden is also the president of the Senate Finance Committee, and in February 2021 he presented the United States-Cuba Trade Act to repeal sanctions against the Government of the Island and to try to normalize relations between the two administrations.

*Translator’s note: A correspondent bank is a financial institution that offers services to another financial institution, usually in a different nation. 

Translated by Regina Anavy

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With the Creation of a Regional Medication Agency, Cuba Will Capture ‘Strategic Inputs’

At this Thursday’s meeting between the drug regulatory agencies and the foreign ministries of Cuba, Colombia and Mexico, the creation of the joint body was announced. (Government of Mexico)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Madrid, 17 March 2023 — Mexico, Colombia and Cuba announced the creation of a Medication Agency of Latin America and the Caribbean (AMLAC), with which they plan to emulate the European Medication Agency (EMA). The initiative aims to “consolidate the self-sufficiency of strategic inputs in the region” and strengthen the authorization of drugs and vaccines during health emergencies through common regulatory frameworks.

The project had been proposed in January of this year by Mexico during the Summit of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), and although at that meeting many countries expressed their desire to join — Bolivia, Dominica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Honduras, Jamaica and the Dominican Republic — yesterday’s virtual meeting including only the Cuban, Colombian and Mexican health authorities, who announced the initiative.

The meeting was attended by directors of the National Institute of Drug and Food Surveillance (IMVIMA) of Colombia, the Center for the State Control of Medicines, Equipment and Medical Devices of Cuba (CECMED); and the Federal Commission for Protection against Health Risks (COFEPRIS) of Mexico, in addition to the foreign ministries of the three countries, according to a statement by the Mexican Secretary of Health.

The new organization, they added, also seeks to encourage and facilitate research and development of innovative projects. In this way, an attempt will be made to cover “the technological and organizational capacity gap for the development of raw materials, pharmaceuticals and health technologies to better respond to public health needs.” continue reading

In the absence of specifics, yesterday’s information points to a cooperation mechanism that would allow Cuba to have the resources that its economy — in critical condition — and the embargo complicate, and to obtain them through other countries that don’t have those impediments. In addition, regional regulation would facilitate the sale of drugs and vaccines to the Island.

In the same way as the EMA, all countries would maintain their own regulatory agency, but AMLAC would be responsible for centralizing the evaluation of medicines that, once they are are approved, could be marketed in all member countries without waiting for the approval of each and every one of the national regulators.

In addition, the approval of the World Health Organization (WHO) would not be a prerequisite for commercialization, as has happened with Cuban vaccines against COVID-19, which Havana has sold to several countries without the endorsement of the international regulator. The approval of several national regulators has allowed the Island to place its preparations, with the case of Mexico at the forefront. COFEPRIS gave the green light in December 2021 to Abdala, the Cuban vaccine, and bought at least nine million doses. However, a year later, Mexico had barely used 262,540 doses, less than 3%.

This integration process takes place at the beginning of the anti-inflation summit, also devised by Andrés Manuel López Obrador, which was planned for Friday but yesterday was confirmed for April 5. The virtual meeting was revealed by Argentine President Alberto Fernández — who is recovering from a herniated disc operation this Wednesday — on February 26 to the press, and it was planned that Brazil and Colombia — the other two large economies of the region — would unite together with Cuba to create a product exchange mechanism in order to contain inflation.

Finally, the meeting will be online and the guests are multiplying, according to López Obrador speaking this Thursday in his daily conference. In addition to those already mentioned, there will be the presidents of Bolivia, Chile and Honduras, as well as the prime ministers of Belize, Johnny Briceño, and of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Ralph Gonsalves.

Those present have the mission of “advancing the agreement,” said the Mexican, who responded that the list of countries “is going to be expanded little by little” when asked about some absentees, such as Peru.

López Obrador insisted that the objective is “to achieve good prices for the domestic markets of the countries, through the reduction of tariffs and other trade barriers,” and that the price of food plays a very important role in the second meeting. In addition, he stated that the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF) will provide “technical assistance” to the participating countries.

Christian Asinelli, corporate vice president of Strategic Programming of the entity, confirmed it on Twitter, where he said that the CAF “will continue to strengthen cooperation and financing to the countries of the region, in order to address inflation and its impacts.”

Pending more details on how they intend to coordinate the mechanism, the disparity in the economies of the member countries will be one of the main burdens, as well as debt, very different inflation rates and almost no trade exchange between the different countries.

Translated by Regina Anavy 

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Disguised as a Doctor, a Cuban Woman From Sancti Spiritus Exchanged False $100 Bills

The serial number was the same on all the false $100 bills: ME42703207A.

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Havana, March 14, 2023 — Three people were arrested in Sancti Spíritus for selling counterfeit dollars, but the report published on Tuesday in the official press suggests that there may be more involved in the scheme.

According to Escambray, the detainees earned about 160,000 pesos [$1,000]* for each operation, using counterfeit $100 bills. The provincial newspaper also says that each victim was given between 800 and 1,500 of these dollars at the exchange rate on the informal market (between 160 and 170 pesos per dollar), and for each transaction the profit was between 128,000 pesos [$800] and 255,000 pesos [$1,594].

Four people were affected, the newspaper continues, and it asks readers for help in finding other possible victims.

The scammers, accused of the crime of counterfeiting, advertised themselves as a couple through the Revolico classified ads portal, and once the potential victim was contacted, they were sent to a fake Facebook profile. continue reading

Using Messenger and a phone number, says Escambray, served to establish “a climate of greater trust.” For transactions, the woman used to go to the homes of those who wanted to buy. “She always tried to look friendly and dressed in a sporty style; to hide her identity she wore glasses and a backpack. But the final convincing touch was that she wore a doctor’s gown to the meetings,” says the provincial newspaper, which does not specify the presumption of innocence that should apply to every accused. “She arrived on time like a Swiss watch; sometimes on a bicycle and at others in a rented car. Now in the victim’s home, she did her job so well that none of the ’customers’ stopped to look closely at the American bills they had just bought.” The serial number was the same on each one: ME42703207A.

Escambray continues the story by quoting a source in the headquarters of the Criminal Investigation Department of the Ministry of the Interior: “Once the victim was swindled, the accused returned home to safely call the supplier of the counterfeit bills. She then gave him between 20,000 and 50,000 pesos [$125-$312], depending on the amount sold, as a reward for getting away with the scam.”

*Using the rate of 160 pesos to one dollar.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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Only 15 Percent of Cuban Private Enterprises Are Involved in Food Production

The services sector is confirmed as the leader among the new companies created on the Island, with 3,014 companies, 45% of the total. (EFE)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Madrid, 17 March 2023 — Cuban authorities were clear when they announced the creation of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and non-agricultural cooperatives: the priority would be food production. The reality is that, despite the indication of preferentially authorizing these companies, only 15.3% (1,029) of the 6,704 created, up to the end of January, were involved in food. They were surpassed by gastronomic premises or supermarkets, grouped as food marketers, which with 1,273 reach 19% of the total and highlight the scarce contribution of private individuals to a state sector that has collapsed.

The services sector is confirmed as the leader among the new companies created on the Island, with 3,014 companies, some 45% of the total. “Other productions” comes in last at 21%, with 1,388 new businesses.

The data come from an analysis published this Friday by the official press in which the numbers for SMEs and non-agricultural cooperatives created through January 31, 2023 are broken down. On Thursday, more were added to a list currently composed of 7,225 businesses.

Among the most enigmatic data is that of employment. The figures indicate that 179,317 jobs were created, a figure celebrated by the report, which indicates that “development will tell if they are more or less than those required by each business or project. In any case, it is relevant for bringing in family income.” continue reading

However, to know the scope of this data it would be necessary to know how many of those jobs have been deducted from self-employment, since 3,310 of these new entities are repurposed self-employed businesses. The scale, in this sense, is balanced, since there are already 2,302 newly created jobs, when initially they were a small percentage.

The most prominent data indicate that only 42 of these businesses are engaged in exports — always through a state entity. This is even more serious if you take into account that last year when there were only 1,286 SMEs, there were already 32 that did business abroad. The exponential growth of authorized enterprises is not reflected in their contribution to the foreign sector.

By province, and as expected, Havana is ahead as a center for new initiatives, of which 2,631 are private, 43 are state and 24 are private cooperatives. The western area of the Island accounts for 62% of these businesses. Granma province has 608 private, 6 state and 5 private cooperatives, and is the province that has the most, although it is a great distance from Havana. Santiago de Cuba, Holguín and Matanzas now have around 400.

“There are fewer in Artemisa and Sancti Spíritus. The concentration of SMEs and non-agricultural cooperatives is observed in the capitals,” says the report, which highlights the importance of the 1,080 local development projects — mostly located in the center of the Island — which, in its opinion, “can increase the supply of goods and services to the population; in particular, of food.

Although the authors of the text — Doctor of Science Victoria Pérez Izquierdo and a work culture research team from the Cuban Institute of Anthropology — tend to be optimistic when pointing out that the dizzying increase in “economic actors occurs despite an unfavorable economic context, which affects access to basic inputs for the development of enterprises,” their doubts are visible.

“The questions would be,” they conclude, “when will these actors generate greater availability of food in the medium term? What obstacles do they have today in the production and sale of their goods and services? What can be transformed or modified so that these actors can increase their productive results?”

Cubadebate believes that the data reveal the need for a “better articulation” of new SMEs, as well as increasing their access to the foreign exchange market, lessening bureaucracy and designing public policies for international trade, among other steps.

The optimism generated by the timid openness to the private sector through micro, small and medium-sized enterprises has been drifting among the population and the entrepreneurs, who themselves fear or are suspicious of those who manage to create a prosperous business, since their proximity to the Government is systematically perceived.

A report by Cuba Siglo 21, a center based in Miami, entitled “Entrepreneurship in Cuba suffocated by Gaesa,” describes the SME law as “false openness,” which has served to “drown” the private sector that was beginning to emerge on the Island after the reforms of Raúl Castro, to create a kind of caste that is close to the regime, to attract foreign investment and facilitate a new rapprochement with the United States.

The same organization pointed out in January that the meetings between the Governments of Cuba and Russia confirm that the transition from a “model with a nationalized economy” to the “Russian mafia market” scheme is being implemented.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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Giant Anti-Government Slogan Appears on Havana Street in Broad Daylight

The actor Edel Carrero claims to have witnessed someone creating the sign a little before three in the afternoon. (Captura)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodriguez, Havana, March 14,2023 — “Down with the dictatorship, the murderous Castros.” That was the slogan someone had written in sand, in broad daylight,  near the intersection of Crespo and Trocadero streets in Central Havana. Its broad letters can be seen stretching across the roadway in a video recorded sometime before three o’clock Tuesday afternoon. The video was posted online by the actor Edel Carrero, who claims to have witnessed the incident.

“I was heading home and saw him doing it,” says Carrero.”I waited for him to finish before recording so that he wouldn’t appear in the video, so that they wouldn’t catch him.” Carrero fears that might happen anyway because, as he notes, “There were other cameras at that corner, too.”

An hour later, a local resident could be seen sweeping up the sand after throwing several buckets of water onto the street from a balcony. The man, who was going about the task indifferently, did not bother responding when an elderly passerby asked, “Who you ordered to throw water on it?”

#Cuba “Down with the dictatorship, the murderous Castros,” written in broad daylight in Havana. Police agents supervise cleanup of the sign, written in sand on the asphalt

Meanwhile, the cleanup was being monitored by two policemen, a State Security agent and two people who appeared to be local officials of some sort.

Unlike at other such incidents, local residents distanced themselves from the site, though some could be seen whispering, making critical comments and even laughing from doorways and windows. “For this, they can find water,” said one woman sarcastically to a neighbor, with whom she was discussing the area’s supply problems.

It has been more than a year since anti-government graffiti has been scrawled anywhere, and act which had become common in the aftermath of mass protests on July 11, 2021. In February 2022, a huge sign appeared, painted on the asphalt with the slogan “Patria y Vida” on Gervasio and Enrique Barnet streets in Central Havana. It was erased during a large deployment of police at the site. The incident occurred at dawn.

A few weeks earlier, an entire mob of police as well as military and civilian agents on Suzuki motorcycles, plus a criminology vehicle, were mobilized in response to a sign of considerable size that had been painted on a wall on General Serrano Street, near the corner of Via Blanca, in the Havana district of Santos Suarez. The sign read: “Down with Canel singao [motherfucker].”

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A One-Eyed Eusebio Leal Watches Over Old Havana’s Decline

The mural of Eusebio Leal, which decorates the wall of a collapsed building in Calle Teniente Rey, has deteriorated in a very short time. (14ymedio)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, 16 March 2023 – The mural which has decorated for years the empty space left by a building collapse in Calle Teniente Rey (almost on the corner of Monserrate and next to the paladar [private restaurant] Kilómetro Cero) has deteriorated in a very short time. The portrait of the ’Historian of the City’, Eusebio Leal — with its caption “My footsteps still look after your streets, Havana my heart, because I have not left you. I will live with you forever” — was still bright and colourful barely only a year ago.

These days, a one-eyed Leal — one-eyed because of the peeling paint — appears to give passers-by a grimace of disgust.

Eusebio Leal was the grand author of the restoration of Old Havana — in large part with the help of public funds from other countries such as Spain — and he continued the work of Emilio Roig de Leuchsenring, as head of the Office of Historiography.

Under his command, that state organisation became a powerful instrument for the promotion of culture and tourism. In his charge, for example, he had the company Habaguanex, which managed some 300 tourist sites, including restaurants, shops, markets, cafes and accommodation (totalling 546 rooms). Among these, of course, was the unfortunate Hotel Saratoga, destroyed by an explosion on 6 May 2022.

All the glory ended in 2016, when the Ministry for Armed Forces put Habaguanex under the charge of the Gaviota group, which belongs to the all-powerful Grupo de Administración Empersarial (Gaesa) [Management Administration Group], at that time led by Raúl Castro’s ex son-in-law, the late Luis Alberto Rodríguez López-Calleja.

From that moment on, everything in the historic centre of the capital went into decline — a district where many inhabitants have felt themselves orphaned by the death, on 31 July 2020, of the historian who delivered to them, and on time, a number of benefits, such as improved primary school meals.

Translated by Ricardo Recluso

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