AUTHORS – Translating Cuba

Cuban State Security Prohibits a Student Sit-In on the Steps of the University of Havana

The FEU (Federation of University Students) tried to prevent the protest called to express “the students’ dissatisfaction with the current teaching plan”

Image of students on the steps of the University of Havana, this Monday. / X/@CNN_Oppmann

Darío Hernández/Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, March 9, 2026 — About twenty students are meeting with education authorities after holding a peaceful protest on the steps of the University of Havana this Monday morning. Around 3:00 p.m. on Monday, the site showed no trace of what had happened several hours earlier, except for the internet connection being blocked

The students, around 25 in number, occupied the stairs in a peaceful protest. As stated on the poster circulated through a WhatsApp group, the “university sit-in” was scheduled for March 9th at 10 am “to publicly and peacefully demonstrate the student body’s dissatisfaction with the current teaching plan.”

The situation, an eyewitness reported to the organization Ciudadanía y Libertad, (Citizenship and Freedom), “remained calm at first,” but “changed when more students began arriving, interested in joining the protest.” Then, the sources continued, State Security agents blocked more people from entering the steps and the university grounds.

Police patrols in the vicinity of the University of Havana, this Monday. / 14ymedio/Courtesy

According to CNN correspondent Patrick Oppmann in Havana, who posted a picture of the protest on his social media, the students who had previously been on the steps entered the center to meet with officials and authorities.

The rector of the University of Havana, Miriam Nicado García, and the first deputy minister of Higher Education, Modesto Ricardo Gómez, approached the place where the young people were gathered.

“How many hours of electricity did you have last week? And do you have a connection when the power is cut off?” a student asked a dean, according to EFE.

“Many students from the provinces haven’t been able to submit anything because there’s no connectivity,” another student said.

These predominantly academic demands were gradually overtaken in the conversation by complaints about how university students can raise their issues and participate in the debate on solutions and decision-making processes.

“The paths to reach the Ministry of Higher Education are obstructed,” a young woman stated, to which a student added: “This sit-in, I’m afraid, is a last resort.”

The First Vice Minister of Higher Education directly addressed the young people in an attempt to end the sit-in: “This isn’t going to solve the problems we have. Why this, gentlemen, young men, when my whole life has been dedicated to educating you?”

The young people, around 25 in number, took to the stairs in a peaceful protest. / 14ymedio/Courtesy

“Because they haven’t listened to us from the very beginning: that’s the answer you have,” a young man retorted.

In fact, the students had started to feel sidelined last week and, faced with what they perceived as decisions made from above, they created several alternative discussion groups on social media and launched the call for the sit-in.

Both the University of Havana and the FEU quickly came out to say that this initiative was “fake” and stressed that the established dialogue spaces were working.

Several young people highlighted that part of the erosion of trust in the University and in the FEU began last June, when the students’ discontent over a very sharp increase in the rates for mobile service by the state-owned telephone company was not addressed as they wished.

On the other hand, in the early afternoon, in the WhatsApp group for the call, the students posted: “For all those who are following the situation, the group that responded to the call is in dialogue with the Minister of Higher Education, expect more information before the end of the day.”

“Defending institutional dialogue is correct, but pretending that it exhausts all legitimate forms of expression is a mistake.”

In a letter shared on their social media, the organizers addressed the Secretariat of the University Student Federation (FEU), responding to a statement in which the pro-government organization dismissed the call, calling it “completely false” and “unnecessary”.

“We feel an obligation to respectfully disagree with your posture,” the missive stated. “Defending institutional dialogue is correct, but claiming that it exhausts all legitimate forms of expression is a mistake.” In four points, the students explained why the sit-in “is both real and necessary.”

First, they said, because “it is not a denial of dialogue, but rather its deepening.” A sit-in, they explained, is a tool to demand dialogue “when it becomes insufficient or slow” and “means bringing concerns to the forefront,” so that the “actions” taken by educational authorities “do not remain in closed spaces, but rather become the focus of collective conversation.”

On the other hand, they alluded to the fact that the FEU Secretariat told them they had already been “receiving concerns.” “This is valuable, but it’s not sufficient,” they retorted. “The legitimate question many have is: what happens to these concerns once we communicate them to you?” The protest, they argued, “seeks to break down the intermediaries and create a horizontal space, student to student, to compare opinions and reach our own conclusions, unfiltered by a structure.” And they continued: “If the current channels were effective, there wouldn’t be this spontaneous need for hundreds of students to seek an alternative way to organize.”

“We appreciate your work, but the solution to the problems in teaching and the general discontent cannot simply be ‘waiting’ for them to be addressed.”

On a third point, they criticized the FEU for referring to their action as “symbolic,” “as if it were something negative.” They argued: “The history of the University of Havana is built on symbols. Sitting in a common place, looking each other in the eye, and debating the problems of teaching and the situation of the country is a profoundly transformative act.”

Finally, they referred to the “management of solutions” that the Secretariat had offered them. “We appreciate their work, but the solution to the problems in teaching and the general discontent cannot simply be to ‘wait’ for them to be managed. The university community must be an active part in creating those solutions.”

The worsening energy crisis has led to the suspension of in-person classes at all universities, a cancellation that has left thousands of students at home. Maintaining contact with teachers through WhatsApp groups and other virtual platforms is not a viable option in a country where internet access is becoming increasingly unreliable.

______________________

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.

Fires and Pot-Banging Protests: Cuba in Apocalyptic Mode

It doesn’t matter whether the neighborhoods are more central or farther out—the soundtrack of the capital at night is protest, and during the day the smell is burning garbage.

Even though they try to erase them, you can still make out a phrase written on various walls that feels like the final word: “Se acabó” (“It’s over” / “We’re done”).

14ymedio, Darío Hernández, March 9, 2026 – Havana at night these days has an apocalyptic feel. If you walk around after the sun goes down—when the fear of being recognized fades—the soundtrack is pot-banging (cacerolazos) coming from different neighborhoods. It doesn’t matter anymore if they’re more central, more touristy, or farther out, more combative or less. The noise comes from everywhere.

More and more walls are showing up with anti-government slogans. Even though they try to paint over them, you can still read—in several places—that phrase that sounds like the end of the line: “Se acabó.”

Fires are also popping up all across the capital. Some come from people burning trash piles, which has become super common because there aren’t enough trucks or fuel to collect garbage properly anymore. Others are from charcoal fires that families light to cook since there’s no electricity or cooking gas.

Sometimes those fires get out of control. Other times, with the constant power flickers and surges, you get a short circuit.

Sometimes those fires get out of control. Other times, with the constant power flickers and surges, you get a short circuit. People think that’s what caused the fire last Saturday in a pizzeria in central Santiago de Cuba, on Enramada Street between Reloj and San Agustín—it ended up burning down four houses. continue reading

No one knows yet what caused the fire at the Cubos Factory in Matanzas, located in Playa right next to the Cocal substation. Although firefighters put it out in just 20 minutes that Sunday night, people were terrified because right beside the affected area there were piles of plastic waste, neighbors warned.

Meanwhile in Granma province, El Ranchón (a traditional spot) burned down in the early morning at the Guisa lookout point. Alianna Corona Rodríguez, First Secretary of the Communist Party in the province, told the press that “the flames spread easily because this is a traditional structure made of palm thatch and wood.” While the cause is still under investigation, the official added another layer: “carteles con propaganda contrarrevolucionaria” (posters with counter-revolutionary propaganda) were found at the site.

In the capital, blackouts have got much worse over the weekend, with some neighborhoods going up to 20 straight hours without power. The lack of electricity has fuelled people’s anger, and in various parts of Havana the water supply problems have got even more serious because there’s no energy to run the pumps.

Translated by GH

______________________

The United States Creates a Group To Study Bringing Criminal Charges Against Cuban Leaders

The crimes that they are analyzing for bringing criminal charges are related to drug trafficking, immigration, and violence.

Trump said this Thursday that the fall of Cuba would be “the icing on the cake” after the January operation in Venezuela that ended with the capture of Nicolás Maduro. / Granma

14ymedio, Madrid, March 7, 2026 – The Government of Donald Trump is studying ways to bring criminal charges against leaders of the Government and the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC), according to several U.S. media outlets reporting on Friday. For this purpose, a task force has been created within the Department of Justice which, according to The Washington Post, could be “a significant step” in the current U.S. administration’s initiative “to overthrow the regime.”

The group will include, the Post reports, citing a government official familiar with the matter, employees from different government agencies, including the Department of the Treasury, which for the Washington newspaper could mean that Trump is considering imposing more sanctions against Cuba. The Wall Street Journal adds that agents from the FBI and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) will also be included.

According to NBC sources, the crimes around which they are considering opening criminal proceedings are related to drug trafficking, immigration, and violence. Charges of narco-terrorism were precisely the ones used by the United States to capture and depose Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on January 3, in a military operation in Caracas that resulted in the Venezuelan leader being prosecuted in New York and the installation of Delcy Rodríguez at the head of an interim government under Trump’s supervision.

At the same time, a federal prosecutor in Florida is also working to present criminal charges against high-ranking officials of the Cuban regime

At the same time, a federal prosecutor in Florida is also working to present criminal charges against high-ranking officials of the Cuban regime, according to The Wall Street Journal. This is also echoed by The Washington Post, which cites the views of several former prosecutors continue reading

from the Miami U.S. Attorney’s Office. They are not surprised that the office is leading an initiative specifically focused on legal proceedings related to Cuba. “The Miami office has a long track record of handling high-profile cases related to wrongdoing linked to the Cuban regime,” the newspaper says.

These reports were published the same day that Donald Trump again insisted to the media that Cuba “will fall very soon” and that Havana is “very eager” to negotiate with Washington.

A day earlier, the Republican warned that Havana is “desperate” to reach an agreement with his administration immediately and assured that it is “only a matter of time” before attention turns toward the Caribbean country, suggesting that the military campaign against Iran has somewhat diverted the White House’s focus.

The fall of Cuba would be “the icing on the cake” after the January operation in Caracas.

He also said this Thursday, in an interview with Politico, that the fall of Cuba would be “the icing on the cake” after the January operation in Caracas. Trump cited as an example the “wonderful” collaboration with the interim government of Chavista leader Delcy Rodríguez, with which Washington announced on Thursday that it will restore relations after decades of distance.

In recent weeks, U.S. media have reported on contacts between U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and a grandson of former Cuban president Raúl Castro, Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castro, known as El Cangrejo, and Trump himself confirmed that Rubio was handling the negotiations “at the highest level.”

The Cuban exile community in Miami hopes that, after Maduro, Washington will accuse Raúl Castro of the 1996 killing of four pilots from the group Brothers to the Rescue who were assisting rafters fleeing the island.

Translated by Regina Anavy

______________________

A Woman With a Beaten Face Is Released After Being Detained for Pot-Banging Protests in Havana

“They are going to take me now, they are going to take my phone,” says Marianela Peña Cobas before being captured during a protest over the blackouts.

Marianela Peña Cobas was detained for approximately 15 hours. / Facebook / Facebook

14ymedio, Havana, March 8, 2026 – Fifteen hours after being detained during the second night of mobilizations over blackouts in Havana, Marianela Peña Cobas was released this Sunday morning with marks of beatings on her right cheek, signs of injuries, swelling, bruises, and bleeding. The incident was reported by her sister, opposition activist Marisol Peña, through social media from the moment she learned of the arrest on Saturday night.

“Good morning everyone. They have now released my sister, not because they are good, but because there are not enough prisons to lock up all the Cubans who loudly demand freedom and the fall of that murderous regime,” opposition activist Marisol Peña wrote in her post. She has lived in the United States since 2023, where she fled after State Security summoned her seven-year-old daughter, Katherin Acosta Peña, for questioning. “Look at the beating they have given a woman for shouting Freedom! One and a thousand times freedom for the people of Cuba, freedom for all political prisoners,” she added in the post, which in just four hours went viral, with nearly 9,000 reactions, more than 2,000 comments, and 2,200 reposts.

The series of posts by the opposition activist about the mobilizations in the capital began shortly before her sister’s detention. In the first message about the pot-banging protests, she wrote that “Havana is in the streets banging pots and shouting ‘Down with communism!’ ” Only six minutes later she reported Marianela’s detention: “They have just arrested my sister and taken her away. Please share.” In her message she posted several audio recordings in which the sound of pots being struck can be heard in the background along with the voice of Marianela Peña Cobas. In the first one, she complains that they have been “five days without electricity and 67 years with hunger and misery.” continue reading

In her message she posted audio recordings in which the sound of pots being struck can be heard in the background along with the voice of Marianela Peña Cobas.

Then she says that “it is the entire people” who are protesting and immediately adds: “And now they are going to take me.” A moment later she sends another short audio message in which she says: “They are going to take my phone.” In another recording several seconds of pot-banging can be heard, and at the end Marianela’s voice shouts: “What the hell, let me go!” Finally, in the last message she cries out for “freedom!”

Although the place of the detention was not reported, one internet user indicated that it happened “in Guanabacoa on the street,” one of the districts where mobilizations took place on Saturday. In that area, 14ymedio could confirm simultaneous cacerolazos — pot-banging protests — to denounce the long blackouts affecting the entire country. Demonstrations of the same type were also reported in other parts of Havana, such as Marianao and Cotorro, and in other provinces.

In Guanabacoa, in the Corral Falso area, there was a group shouting “Down with the dictatorship!” as can be seen in the video filmed by this media. Pot-banging could be heard on several streets, some louder than others. Many of those banging pots were children, undoubtedly with the consent of their parents.

The detention occurred in the context of the mobilizations that began Friday night in western Cuba, especially in Havana. After the most recent collapse of the national electrical system four days ago, and given the difficulty of restoring it due to the lack of fuel, the noise of pots and pans has once again filled the darkness as a sign of protest. “Abusers! How long is this going to last?” “Turn the power on!” “Díaz-Canel singao*!” and “Down with communism!” were some of the shouts heard Friday night.

“Abusers! How long is this going to last? “Turn the power on!” “Díaz-Canel bastard!”, and “Down with communism!” were some of the shouts.

Accustomed to blackouts lasting more than 20 hours, this is the first time this year that simultaneous pot-banging protests have taken place in numerous municipalities. Last Wednesday, the shutdown of the Antonio Guiteras thermoelectric plant, the largest in the country, triggered a chain reaction that left two-thirds of the country without electricity, from Camagüey to Pinar del Río.

As for the violence used against Marianela Peña Cobas, it occurred on International Women’s Day, a date that Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel used to speak about “the achievements won” by women.

Through a thread on X this Saturday afternoon, after a meeting with a group of women, he said that “it always uplifts, emancipates, fills us with emotion and strengthens our convictions to engage in dialogue with Cuban women.” In that space he called for “continuing to fight any vestige of discrimination.” Nevertheless, he also used the forum to talk about “the energy blockade by the government of the United States” and reiterated that the country will not renounce “any of its dreams.”

He also spoke about the topic on Facebook, which unleashed a wave of complaints. In his message, accompanied by the image of a woman, Díaz-Canel wrote: “The light of our days has much of woman: sensitivity, talent, and commitment to the fate of the country.”

The word “light” was the trigger. One user replied: “Good morning, I ask please that no one talk to me about light, at least until service is restored; what sensitivity, commitment, or fate can you have after a blackout?”

Another user also referred to the lack of electricity and complained that there are “women who struggle daily, without electricity, with all the food spoiled, with children of school age, growing, with elderly parents. In short, women of today, not the ones highlighted on social media but those who every day give even their soul.”

*Translator’s note: “Diaz-Canel singao” rhymes. The epithet is variously translated as ‘bastard’, ‘motherfucker’ and other insults.

Translated by Regina Anavy

______________________

Despite the Heavy Cuban Police Presence, the Intensity of the Pot-Banging Protests in Regla and Guanabacoa Is Increasing

Outraged by the incessant power outages, the residents of these neighborhoods no longer hesitate to protest openly.

In addition to pot-banging protests, there were also garbage burnings in the streets of Guanabacoa and Regla. / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Havana, 8 March 2025 — For the second consecutive night, protests took place this Saturday in several Havana neighborhoods. In Regla and Guanabacoa, 14ymedio witnessed simultaneous cacerolazos — pot-banging protests — denouncing the prolonged power outages affecting the entire country. Demonstrations of the same type were also reported in other parts of the capital, such as Marianao and Cotorro , and in other provinces.

In Guanabacoa, near the Corral Falso area, a group was shouting “Down with the Dictatorship!”, as seen in the video filmed by this news outlet. The banging of pots and pans could be heard in several streets, some more intense than others. Many of those banging pots and pans were children, undoubtedly with their parents’ consent.

There was a heavy police presence, with patrol cars on every third corner. They didn’t seem inclined to intervene against the protesters, who, in their desperation, appeared to have lost all fear. Some even went so far as to burn trash in the streets.

Social media was flooded with testimonies and images of protests, such as those shared by José Raúl Gallego. The journalist, who lives in Mexico, posted a video in which people shout, “We don’t want electricity, we want freedom!” In others, shouts directed against Díaz-Canel can be heard. In Regla, amid the clanging of pots and pans around a bonfire, people shout “Freedom!” and “The time is now!” continue reading

In their desperation, they seemed to have lost all fear. Some even went so far as to burn trash in the streets.

In a video shared by Florida-based YouTuber Alain Paparazzi, a mother confronts a police officer, shouting in outrage that she has four children to care for and the authorities aren’t intimidating her: “Get the patrol car!”, “You’re all singaos*!”, “Don’t mess with the kids!” In the video, the officer can be seen remaining silent and walking away, looking resigned.

It is striking that the video of this desperate mother appeared on social media almost simultaneously with the congratulatory message that President Díaz-Canel sent to the women of Cuba, which was quickly criticized and ridiculed by users outraged by the blackouts and the critical situation in which most of the island’s population lives.

Alongside the banging of pots and pans, the burning of garbage bins is a recurring theme in several of the videos circulating online. The gesture is significant because the garbage that inundates the city reflects the misery in which the population lives. These bonfires serve both as a protest against the unsanitary conditions that the government has failed to address, and as a way to find light during the blackout. Some sing the national anthem next to a burning garbage bin while others shout slogans. The woman filming these images is choking on the smoke.

These bonfires also serve as a protest against the unsanitary conditions that the State has failed to resolve.

This Sunday, protest signs against the government also appeared in public spaces, with slogans such as “Down with communism” and “Come on Trump.” Images of these signs have been circulating on social media in the province of Matanzas and in San Antonio de los Baños. In the latter town, the signs also call for the release of Felipe Rodríguez Ledesma, arrested on March 3 for displaying a sign on his tricycle against “catfish and snitches.”

Regarding the blackouts, which are one of the main reasons for the population’s discontent, the recovery of the Antonio Guiteras thermoelectric plant in Matanzas was announced today – its disconnection aggravated the energy situation for several days – the Electric Union forecasts a deficit of 1,855 MW for tonight, which is equivalent to more than half of the national demand.

*Translator’s note: ‘Singao’ is a strong epithet often translated as motherfucker, asshole, or similar terms. As it rhymes with “Diaz-Canel” it is frequently chanted linked with the Cuban president’s name.

______________________

Cuban President Díaz-Canel Accuses the Miami Summit of Threatening Regional Peace

The Cuban Government maintains that the agreement opens the door to the use of U.S. military force in internal problems.

President Miguel Díaz-Canel together with Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez / Cubadebate

EFE (via 14ymedio), Havana, March 8, 2026 – The Cuban Government criticized this Saturday the summit held in Miami (United States), led by U.S. President Donald Trump and attended by more than a dozen regional leaders ideologically aligned with Washington.

Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel referred to the so-called “Shield of the Americas” as a “small reactionary and neocolonial summit in Florida” for “undermining the independence, security and peace of Latin America and the Caribbean.”

“It is an attack against the Proclamation of Latin America and the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace, an assault on the aspirations for regional integration, and a manifestation of the willingness to subordinate themselves to the interests of the powerful neighbor to the North under the principles of the Monroe Doctrine,” the Cuban leader posted on his X profile.

He criticized the summit’s agreement that commits the signatories to “accept the lethal use of U.S. military force to resolve internal problems”

He especially criticized the summit’s agreement that commits the signatories to “accept the lethal use of U.S. military force to resolve internal problems and maintain order and tranquility in their countries.” continue reading

For his part, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez also lashed out on social media against what he called “the mini-summit,” stating that it “seeks to force [the governments] to accept” a “greater subordination of their nations to the power of the North,” which he described as a “clear and dangerous setback” in the independence process of Latin America and the Caribbean.

“The only publicly known result is the signing by the attendees of a servile and dishonorable document that advocates the use of military force, particularly that of the United States, as a repressive weapon against criminal cartels in each country and to suppress internal and border problems,” Rodríguez said.

In conclusion, the foreign minister noted: “It represents a serious threat to peace, security, stability and regional integrity and a blatant violation of the Proclamation of Latin America and the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace,” which was signed more than a decade ago in Havana.

Translated by a Regina Anavy

______________________

In Guantánamo, Cuba, Horse-Drawn Carriages Have Replaced Vehicles, Which Have Run Out of Fuel

Cases have increased by more than 23% this week, although there is optimism for December. / Archive/ 14ymedio

14ymedio, Dayami Rojas, Guantánamo, 8 March 2026 — In Guantánamo, the sound of hooves on asphalt has once again become part of the everyday landscape. Where Lada and Moskvich engines or small private trucks once roared, now horse-drawn carriages slowly make their way, carrying passengers, sacks of food, water tanks, or any merchandise that needs to be moved around the city. The fuel crisis has brought these animal-drawn vehicles back into the spotlight, but the lives of those who drive them are far from easy.

Mid-morning, on a corner near Martí Park, Rodolfo holds the reins of his horse while waiting for customers in the sun. The animal shakes its head, shooing away flies, and the wooden carriage creaks each time someone climbs onto the running board after asking the fare.

“Before, I charged between 20 and 50 pesos for a short trip, but now I have to ask for more. Otherwise, I can’t afford to keep the horse,” the coachman explained to 14ymedio. The fare increase has led to frequent arguments with passengers. “People complain, and I understand them, but nobody sees what it costs to run this business.”

The scene repeats on several streets throughout the city. At makeshift stops, passengers negotiate the price before getting into the car. A woman with several shopping bags protests when she hears the price the driver is asking to take her to the Caribe neighborhood.

“That’s an abuse, chico. They raise the price every day,” she mutters. But she ends up settling into the back seat because she doesn’t have many alternatives. The buses hardly ever run, and private taxis are paralyzed by the lack of gasoline. In Guantánamo, as in many cities across the country, horse-drawn carriages have gone from being a quaint form of transportation to becoming an essential part of the urban landscape.

However, for the coachmen, the work has become increasingly complicated. Rodolfo lists the problems without letting go of the reins. “Horseshoes are incredibly expensive, feed is almost impossible to find, and you have to go far to find hay,” he says. Feeding the animal can turn into an extra day’s work. Many coachmen head out at dawn to nearby rural areas to cut grass or buy a sack of feed.

“If you don’t eat, you can endure it, but the horse can’t. And if the horse gets sick, the job is over,” he adds. continue reading

Restrictions on driving on certain streets have also reduced opportunities to find customers. In recent months, municipal authorities have limited the routes these vehicles can use, citing concerns for health and public aesthetics.

Feeding the animal can become an extra day of work. / 14ymedio

“They’re making us go around in circles like we’re in a maze,” Rodolfo complains. “There are streets we used to go down that are now prohibited. That means more detours, more fatigue for the horse, and fewer passengers.”

At a nearby stop, another coachman meets him. Leaning against the side of his carriage, he observes the almost nonexistent morning traffic. “What they want is to get us off the streets,” he says bitterly. “But when there’s no gasoline, who’s going to get people around?”

Fines are also part of the routine. Municipal inspectors check documents, authorized routes, and vehicle condition. A violation can cost up to 16,000 Cuban pesos, an amount that many find impossible to pay.

“A fine like that will bankrupt you,” says Rodolfo. “Some people have had to sell things from their homes to pay them.” The fear of theft is another constant worry. Horses have become a coveted target for butchers who slaughter them illegally to sell the meat.

“I sleep here, next to my horses,” Javier, a resident of Guantánamo, explains to this newspaper. He spends his early mornings away from his bed because he fears his animals will be stolen. Vandalism particularly targets those who own cows, pigs, or other animals that could end up being sold on the black market.

Javier usually spends the night in a small, makeshift shed in the yard. “If you leave him alone, he can be stolen. And without a horse, there’s no car or food for the family,” he explains.

Feeding the animal can become an extra day of work. / 14ymedio

Some of his colleagues have already decided to temporarily abandon the trade. The cost of supplies, fines, and traffic restrictions have made the work increasingly less profitable.

“There are coachmen who have stopped operating and are waiting for things to change,” Javier says. “But in the meantime, the city still needs transportation.”

Throughout the day, his carriage travels along dusty avenues, potholed streets, and corners where passengers raise their hands, searching for an empty seat. On each journey, the complaints of the passengers mingle with the worries of the driver.

“We keep people moving,” Rodolfo insists. “But nobody helps us.” The horse snorts as the coachman climbs into the front seat. A couple of passengers approach, asking if he can take them to the hospital. The coachman calculates the price and looks at the animal before answering. Then he gives a small tug on the reins, and the vehicle begins to move slowly down the street.
______________________

The ‘War of the Whole People,’ the Final Crime Against Cubans

The supposed strategic genius of Fidel Castro was always an intellectual fraud

The regime is not only defying military logic but dismantling the legal framework that protects human life. / Facebook / Minfar Cuba

14ymedio, Rolando Gallardo, Huesca, Spain, 8 March 2026 — In the corridors of power in Cuba, the nervousness is obvious. As the regime watches its ideological cronies burning out and staggering on the global stage, the leadership in Havana seems determined to “poner sus bardas en remojo” — to start taking precautions — as the international pressure tightens around it. The response from the Castro successor to the pressure of a U.S. administration closing the net around the regime has not been openness or dialogue, but the dusting off of a disastrous plagiarism from Fidel: the doctrine of the “war of the whole people.”

Under the varnish of national sovereignty, this strategy hides a grim logic: mobilizing a mass of citizens with no military training and effectively turning them into legitimate targets for any potential expeditionary forces. This is not heroic defense but the design of a pre-planned massacre, intended to be used as propaganda leverage to portray the regime as a victim before world public opinion.

A caricature of fanaticism

The supposed strategic brilliance of Fidel Castro was always an intellectual fraud. The “war of the whole people” is nothing more than a caricature of the desperate tactics used by Adolf Hitler in the final days of the Third Reich. Just as the German dictator mobilized women, the elderly, and children in the Volkssturm to resist the unstoppable advance of the Allies, the Cuban regime now intends to sacrifice its population under a nihilistic premise: if the system cannot survive, the nation must perish with it.
It was Hitler himself who said the German people did not deserve to live if they were incapable of defeating their enemies. Today the PCC appears to share that same contempt for the lives of those it governs.

The “war of the whole people” is nothing more than a caricature of the desperate tactics used by Adolf Hitler in the final days of the Third Reich. / Polish National Archives

In practice, concepts such as “sovereignty,” “popular will,” or “collective good” are nothing but empty packaging. The reality is a political caste ready to sink the population into the sea if it cannot keep hold of the helm itself. What is sold as patriotism is essentially a Caribbean mutation of Hamas tactics in Gaza, where the value of a citizen is measured by their usefulness as a human shield or as a televised corpse that helps win the battle of global narrative.

The collapse of logistics and the Sierra myth

The viability of this armed resistance, under the island’s current conditions, is nonexistent. The regime appeals to nostalgia for the civil war of 1956–1959, but it deliberately ignores a crucial economic factor: the rebel groups continue reading

back then survived in the mountains thanks to an extensive supply network of food, medicine, and provisions coming from private businesses and prosperous farms — the very same economic base that Castroism itself later destroyed.

In the impoverished Cuba of 2026, marked by energy collapse and chronic shortages, sending elderly people and armed youths up into the mountains would immediately trigger a logistical disaster. Without an economic base to sustain them, any attempt at prolonged resistance would end either in mass surrender due to conditions incompatible with life or in widespread death from hunger and treatable diseases. Logistics — not enemy fire — would be the first executioner of this improvised militia.

International law and the loss of “protected person” status

By reviving this doctrine, the regime is not only defying military logic but dismantling the legal framework that protects human life. According to the Geneva Conventions, a civilian enjoys immunity from direct attack as long as they do not take part in hostilities. But the moment a citizen picks up a rifle or carries out acts of sabotage, that protection disappears and the person becomes a combatant.

This strategy creates a situation of “unprivileged combatants.” When the state hands out weapons, it is deliberately erasing the line of distinction. This ambiguity is a deadly trap; historically it has led to tragedies where expeditionary forces, unsure and fearing ambushes in urban environments, fire at any suspect, exponentially increasing collateral casualties.

For the ruling elite, this scenario is not a mistake but an objective: the more civilian victims there are, the more material they will have for their victimhood propaganda machine.

The leadership’s shield and the end of the mystique

The regime tries to suggest that armed resistance in the Middle East can tip the balance, ignoring that such movements are sustained by mystical indoctrination and a culture of martyrdom that has little to do with Cuban society. The people of Cuba are not looking for glory in the afterlife or sacrifice for a dying dogma. What most people want is prosperity, food, and freedom. After decades of deprivation, many openly long for the capitalist consumerism that official discourse condemns.

Arming a population that lacks even the most basic necessities is the final act of immorality by a dictatorship that knows it is nearing its end. By turning every neighborhood into a barracks and every citizen into an improvised soldier, the Cuban state is not defending the nation but building a wall of flesh and blood to protect the privileges of the elite at the expense of the physical safety of the population.

The “war of the whole people” confirms that, for Cuba’s leaders, sovereignty does not lie in the wellbeing of citizens but in the preservation of their own power. If history is any guide, this “final crime” will not be remembered as a heroic act of resistance but as the last gasp of a ruling caste that preferred the possibility of a national holocaust rather than accepting its own obsolescence.

Cuba today does not need rifles in the hands of civilians; it needs the state to stop using its people as bargaining chips in a war that exists only in the delusions of those unwilling to let go of control.

Translated by GH

______________________

‘Cuba Is In Its Final Moments’ and ‘Will Have a Great New Life,’ Says Trump

The meeting in Florida brought together a dozen allied presidents and set new regional priorities

The meeting in Miami comes amid a tense international context for Washington, marked by the open war with Iran. / EFE

14ymedio/EFE, Miami, March 7, 2026 — US President Donald Trump convened a dozen allied Latin American leaders in Miami on Saturday for the Shield of the Americas summit, a meeting designed to strengthen the alliance of conservative governments in the region and chart a new course for hemispheric policy from Washington. During the event, held at a golf club in Florida, the US president outlined his strategic vision for Latin America, combining geopolitical warnings, diplomatic announcements, and headline-grabbing remarks.

Trump dedicated part of his discourse to the situation in Cuba, a topic he described as an imminent turning point. According to the US president, the island’s political system is in its final stages. “Cuba’s is in its last moments of life, as it was. It’ll have a great new life, but it’s in its last moments of life the way it is.”

The president also asserted that Washington is holding talks with the Cuban government. “I would think a deal would be made very easily with Cuba. But for 50 years, I’ve been hearing as a little boy, I’d be hearing about Cuba,” he stated. Trump added that both he and his Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, are “negotiating” with Havana.

Trump announced that his administration has formally recognized the government headed by Delcy Rodríguez in Venezuela.

The comment comes amid the severe economic crisis gripping the island following the collapse of Venezuelan oil supplies. After Nicolás Maduro’s capture during the US-led operation on January 3, Caracas ceased sending crude oil to Cuba.

Despite talking about a possible agreement, Trump made it clear that his immediate priority lies on another international front. He explained that his “focus right now” is on the war with Iran. continue reading

The summit was also marked by a diplomatic shift in US policy toward Venezuela. Trump announced that his administration had formally recognized the government led by Delcy Rodríguez and ordered the restoration of diplomatic relations between Washington and Caracas.

According to him, the decision entails the reopening of diplomatic and consular channels between the two countries after years of institutional breakdown. “She is doing an excellent job,” the US president said, referring to the Venezuelan leader, who assumed the interim presidency with the support of the Chavista institutions that remained in power.

Since then, Washington has pursued a gradual rapprochement with Caracas, including the partial lifting of some restrictions and the opening of diplomatic contacts. The stated objective of the US administration is to promote political stability and economic recovery in the country.

“We will not allow hostile foreign influence to gain a foothold in this hemisphere, and that includes the Panama Canal.”

The decision also reflects strategic interests, particularly in the energy sector. The White House has expressed its intention to revitalize Venezuela’s oil industry and strengthen economic cooperation with the country, especially in oil and minerals.

Trump presented the meeting as the start of a strategy to strengthen U.S. influence in the region and curb the presence of foreign actors. In this context, he warned that his administration would not allow “hostile foreign influence” in the hemisphere, a message he directly linked to the strategic importance of the Panama Canal.

“We will not allow hostile foreign influence to gain a foothold in this hemisphere, and that includes the Panama Canal,” the president stated. Trump reiterated his interest in the interoceanic waterway during his remarks and addressed the Panamanian president directly. “President of Panama, I love that canal, José. I think (Panama) made the greatest deal in history. They bought it for $1 from one of our brilliant presidents (Jimmy Carter in 1977). I can’t sleep about that deal. They got it for $1,” he said.

The president also defended his renewed interpretation of the traditional US doctrine toward the continent, which he called the “Donroe Doctrine,” an updated version of the historic policy of intervention in America to curb the influence of powers from other regions.

“I’m not learning your damn language. I don’t have time.”

Trump’s speech combined foreign policy announcements with more lighthearted moments. In one comment that drew laughter from the audience, the president asserted that he has no intention of learning Spanish.

“I’m not going to learn your damn language. I don’t have time. I have no problem with languages, but I’m not going to dedicate that much time to learning yours,” he stated, indicating that he prefers to rely on interpreters.

Trump added that his Secretary of State has “a linguistic advantage” because he speaks Spanish and recounted an anecdote about a negotiation with a foreign leader in which, he said, an interpreter did not translate his words correctly.

The Miami meeting comes at a tense international time for Washington, marked by the open conflict with Iran and the White House’s attempt to redefine its global role. In this context, the Shield of the Americas summit appears as a platform through which Trump seeks to reorganize regional alliances and strengthen the US presence in Latin America.

Among those in attendance were the presidents Javier Milei (Argentina), Rodrigo Paz Pereira (Bolivia), Rodrigo Chaves Robles (Costa Rica), Luis Abinader (Dominican Republic), Daniel Noboa (Ecuador), Nayib Bukele (El Salvador), Irfaan Ali (Guyana), Nasry Asfura (Honduras), José Raúl Mulino (Panama), and Santiago Peña (Paraguay), as well as the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Kamla Persad-Bissessar. Also participating was the president-elect of Chile, José Antonio Kast, who will assume office in the coming days.

______________________

Cuba: What Does Collapse Smell Like?

Burnt garbage, sewage, lack of cleanliness: finding a treat for your nose is a difficult task these days in Cuba

Shipping containers in Old Havana, in a photo taken this Thursday. / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Yoani Sánchez, Havana, March 7, 2026 — I take a mint leaf from the balcony and squeeze it between my fingers before adding it to the water I am going to drink. On my hands lingers a fresh and hopeful aroma. Entertaining the nose is a difficult task these times we are living in, in Cuba. The country’s collapse smells of burning garbage, sewage water, and a lack of cleanliness. Every pleasant scent is a rare and invaluable reward for the senses

It’s four in the morning and I jump out of bed. The electricity has returned after a blackout that began the previous afternoon. As soon as I get up, I head to the rooftop. My two dogs, the stars, and me. The city sleeps, and I scan the horizon. Havana no longer smells the same. At this hour, I’m hit by the stench of the garbage that piles up everywhere, and from the nearby Zoo on 26th Street, I hear the desperate roar of a lion. It must be hungry.

When I was a girl and would visit my relatives in the small towns of Villa Clara and Cienfuegos, when I returned to the capital the smell would hit me. This city always had a particular aroma. The manufactured gas service installed in many homes, the countless vehicles that traveled its streets, and the waters of the bay mixed with the oil that spilled into it, made the place where I was born and raised smell of industrial oils and tar. I never thought I would miss that stench.

Even the money smells of misery. It has a musty stench, as if it had been stored in a dark, filthy cave.

Havana now has another “olfactory signature.” A doorway I used to pass through when walking along Reina Street in Central Havana has become a public urinal that makes me hold my breath whenever I walk by. from the Ultra store wafts a stench, the foul odor of abandonment. The city is dotted with these places that once closed their doors and began to decay rapidly. Large markets, banks, cinemas, and motels that used to smell of freshly brewed coffee, fried food, and air conditioning now only exude a foul odor.

Even the money smells of misery. It has a musty stench, as if it had been stored in a dark, filthy cave. People line up for hours in front of ATMs to withdraw a little cash. Often the machine breaks down or shuts down continue reading

due to a power outage before customers can get their hands on those devalued, colorful bonds that make up the national currency.

Those with more resources pay for the money. Buying pesos has become, for many, the only way to have cash in hand. But what you get is a mess of dirty paper. A friend told me that in the country where he lives, they put some euros in a lab and found traces of drugs, feces, and saliva. I fantasize about someone taking a sample of Cuban pesos to be analyzed. The results wouldn’t surprise me.

Miasmas have taken over the entire spectrum of smells wherever we go

The 1,000-peso note, bearing the face of Julio Antonio Mella, might have traces of gasoline, of perfume and of the liquid that oozes from a box of chicken quarters as it begins to thaw. The 200-peso note, with the image of Frank País, will surely show traces of vegetable oil, tears, and horse manure from the many coachmen who ferry passengers here and there in Cuba’s nearly paralyzed cities. The piece of paper, with its red tones and the face of Ernesto Che Guevara, would bear the marks of a past when it served to pay for something that cost up to three pesos. A remote time when, on the streets of Old Havana, this paper with the guerrilla fighter’s stern expression would be offered to tourists, who came en masse to see this dilapidated social experiment in which we live.

But nowthe money smells like poverty. It also smells of the bureaucratic offices, the once air-conditioned premises of the powerful telecommunications monopoly Etecsa, and even the lobbies of the ministries all feel the same. A miasma has taken over the entire spectrum of smells wherever we go. The elevator in my building smells like urine. At the nearby clinic, someone has sprayed disinfectant to mask the pervasive smell of disease and filth. The dental office no longer exudes that mixture of antiseptics and dental materials.

I press my nose to my armpit. After a whole morning of walking, I too smell like Havana, a combination of hardship and despair.

————————-

Chronicles:

The Death Throes of ‘Granma’, the Mouthpiece of a Regime Cornered by Crisis

The Anxiety of the Disconnected Cuban

One Mella, Three Mellas, Life in Cuba Is Measured in Thousands of Pesos

It Is Forbidden To Leave Home in Cuba Today Because It Is a “Counter-Revolutionary Day”

Vedado, the Heart of Havana’s Nightlife, Is Now Converted Into a Desert

Havana, in Critical Condition

______________________

‘Abusers,’ ‘Turn On the Power,’ ‘Down With Communism’: the Cuban Night Once Again Fills With Pot-Banging Protests

This Friday the Island reached a record deficit of almost 67% of electricity demand.

Protests in Arroyo Naranjo / Image taken from social media

14ymedio, Havana, March 7, 2026 – “Abusers! How long is this going to last?” “Turn the power on!” “Díaz-Canel singao*!” and “Down with communism!” were some of the shouts heard on Friday night in several places in western Cuba, especially in Havana. After the most recent collapse of the national electrical system (SEN) three days ago, and given the difficulty of restoring it due to the lack of fuel, the noise of the cacerolazos — banging on pots and pans — once again fills the darkness as a sign of protest.

According to eye-witness reports shared on social media, there were demonstrations in Jagüey Grande (Matanzas) and in neighborhoods of the capital such as Centro Habana, Arroyo Naranjo, Old Havana, San Miguel del Padrón, and Marianao, among others.

Cuban-American congressman Carlos A. Giménez, a representative from Florida, posted on his X profile: “The people of Cuba are in the streets demanding freedom. This moment is incredible.” He also shared videos circulated by conservative influencer Eric Daugherty and images published by independent journalist Thomas van Linge showing that Cuban citizens were protesting in the streets.

Fellow Cuban-American lawmaker María Elvira Salazar reacted on social media by posting a video in which pot-banging protests can be heard from her phone. “Cuba is in the streets asking for freedom. To the dictatorship: not one more abuse against the Cuban people!” the congresswoman says in the video, while also warning Cuban authorities not to repress the protests: “We tell the regime: do not go against them. They have the right to go out into the streets and say whatever they want.”

“Cuba is in the streets asking for freedom. To the dictatorship: not one more abuse against the Cuban people!”

Journalist Mario J. Pentón, from Radio and Television Martí, shared several recordings of the pot-banging protests on social media and said he had verified some continue reading

of the reports through direct contact with residents.

Some videos, such as the one reported from Arroyo Naranjo, also show that people in the street, in the middle of the blackout, had lit a bonfire around which demonstrators gathered. Other images show the arrival of police patrol cars at the protests, although no cases of violent repression have been reported.

So far, Cuban authorities have not issued public statements about these incidents.

The state telecommunications company Etecsa has had to ration connectivity service in some provinces, limiting it to only a few hours per day.

Although service began to be gradually restored, the system continues operating at minimal levels, to the point of producing unprecedented deficit forecasts. For this Friday, an absolute record of 2,158 megawatts (MW) was expected, 70% of demand (3,055 MW). According to today’s report from the Cuban Electric Union, it did not reach that level (2,046 MW), but it still set a record, almost 67% of demand.

In numerous provinces, power outages exceed 20 hours per day, affecting not only household lighting but also water pumping, food refrigeration, transportation, and connectivity. In some provincial areas, the state telecommunications company Etecsa has also had to ration connectivity service, limiting it to only a few hours per day.

*Translator’s note: “Diaz-Canel singao” rhymes. The epithet is variously translated as ‘bastard’, ‘motherfucker’ and other insults.

Translated by Regina Anavy

______________________

At Coppelia They No Longer Sell Ice Cream, Only Cooking Wine

One of the workers, without even looking up, answers that they’re closed and that “no one knows” when they’ll open again.

Under the sign that proclaims “Havana, real and wonderful,” five Coppelia employees kill time sitting around a table. / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, 3 March 2026 — At the corner of 23 and L, where for decades Havana used to line up to enjoy a five-scoop ensalada (‘salad’), this Tuesday the only flavor on offer was the bitter aftertaste of frustration. The Coppelia ice cream parlor in Vedado, once nicknamed the “cathedral of ice cream,” is closed. Not for repairs, not for inventory, not for one of those usual pauses to paint the walls or rearrange the sections. The famous spot is out of ice cream and has no reopening date.

At the main entrance, under the sign that reads “Havana, real and wonderful,” five employees are just sitting around a table killing time. On the surface — instead of sundae glasses, syrups and little spoons — there are several jugs of seco cooking wine. The product, amber-colored with a faded label, seems like the unlikely replacement for the strawberry, chocolate or almond that made Cuba’s biggest ice cream shop famous.

The woman tries to convince the disappointed customer to take a gallon of seco wine

A customer approaches, still hopeful. “Got any ice cream?” he asks. One of the workers, without lifting her eyes, replies that they’re closed and that “no one knows” when they’ll reopen. The woman tries to hype up the disappointed guy, pushing him to take a gallon of that seco wine — the stuff that usually ends up in yellow rice or in a picadillo that has more imagination than meat. But the man isn’t buying it.

Over the next few minutes the same scene keeps repeating. Even though the city is practically paralyzed by the lack of fuel, Habaneros keep showing up with the dream of eating continue reading

a tres gracias or enjoying a Turquino. They come because even in the worst years of the Special Period, when the scoops got tiny and the flavors kept repeating, there was always something to put in your mouth at that central location. The ice cream might have been watery or scarce, but it existed. Now, not even that.

Translated by GH

______________________

Cuba: A Country Carrying a Curse It Never Chose

Hatred was planted, managed, and turned into official state policy

The top brass decided the nation was their laboratory and the citizens were just replaceable parts. / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Rafael Bordao, Miami, 5 March 2026 — Some nations move forward, stumble, and reinvent themselves. Others—like Cuba—have been sentenced to walk in circles, dragging along a sacrifice that stopped being noble a long time ago and turned into straight-up punishment. For decades, everyday life became one long string of giving things up: giving up freedom, giving up your voice, giving up any future, even giving up the basic right to imagine a different life.

The sacrifice stopped being heroic and became a control tool. The people were sacrificed to save the power structure—not the other way around. Generation after generation, the same shoulders carried the shortages, the surveillance, the forced obedience, the endless waiting. The ruling elite, shielded by their privileges, never once felt the sting of the ration lines, the blackouts, the fear, the forced exile. So the question becomes almost philosophical: What kind of system needs its own people to suffer just so it can keep existing?

The hatred didn’t come from the hearts of Cubans. It was sown, administered, turned into state policy. To justify the repression, they needed an enemy. To justify the poverty, they needed someone to blame. To justify the constant watching, they needed traitors.

Hatred has an ontological cost it destroys living together, it eats away at memory, and it fractures the shared identity of a people.

That hatred was fed with endless speeches, school textbooks that confused history with propaganda, newscasts repeating the same fear-based liturgy, compulsory marches where unanimity was just another way to stay alive. Hatred became a renewable resource—there was always someone to blame, continue reading

always an “other” threatening the purity of the project. But hatred carries a deep cost: it destroys coexistence, corrodes memory, and breaks the collective identity. And when a country lives too long under the logic of “the enemy,” it ends up suspicious even of itself.

Nobody voted for this sentence. Nobody chose to hand over their life to a dogma that can’t even sustain the air we breathe anymore. Nobody signed a contract to give up freedom of movement, freedom of thought, freedom to create. That decision was made by a small circle at the top that confused staying in power with saving the homeland, that turned ideology into a compulsory religion and history into a monologue with no cracks.

All that’s left is the question that tears everything apart: How much longer?

That elite decided the country had to keep paying forever for a dream that stopped being a dream and became an alibi; they decided the people had to immolate themselves so they could keep ruling; they decided the nation was a laboratory and the citizens were disposable pieces. Political philosophy teaches us that any power that demands sacrifice without offering freedom is an illegitimate power. But in Cuba that illegitimacy was normalized, ritualized, turned into the everyday scenery.

Today the official discourse floats around like an empty shell. The regulations no longer move anyone, the heroes no longer inspire, the promises no longer fool anybody. The country is exhausted. People don’t believe anymore, don’t hope anymore, don’t fear the way they used to. The dogma has become an ideological fossil that can’t explain the ruin, the massive emigration, the despair you can feel on every corner. When a dogma stops holding up, all that remains is the question that dismantles everything: How much longer?

Writing about Cuba is writing against silence. It’s an act of rebellion, but also of mourning. It’s recognizing that the country was wounded by the very people who swore to save it. It’s saying that memory can no longer be kidnapped by a single story. It’s claiming the right to ask questions, to doubt, to disagree, to imagine. Because a country isn’t saved with orders—it’s saved with truth. It isn’t rebuilt with fear—it’s rebuilt with dignity. It isn’t freed with hatred—it’s freed with justice.

Translated by GH

______________________

Ecuador Declares the Entire Cuban Embassy Staff ‘Persona Non Grata’ and Gives Them 48 Hours To Leave the Country

“Will this mean a complete break in diplomatic relations between the two countries?” Prensa Latina wonders.

The Foreign Ministry cites Article 9 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations as the basis for its decision. / Cuba Minrex

14ymedio, Madrid, 4 March 2026 — Ecuador’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Human Mobility declared the Cuban ambassador in Quito, Basilio Gutiérrez, persona non grata this Wednesday—along with the whole diplomatic staff of the mission—and gave them 48 hours to get out of the country. The news was delivered to the embassy by the Directorate of Ceremonial and Protocol, according to the official agency Prensa Latina.

In a letter sent to the Embassy of the Republic of Cuba, the ministry lists the names of the 21 Cuban employees at the mission, including the consul, Vladimir González Fernández; the minister-counselor, Samuel Bibilonia Ballate; the first secretary, Ivette Franco Senen; and the vice-consul, Armando Bencomo Zamora. They’re given two days to leave “in accordance with diplomatic practice.”

The Foreign Ministry bases this on Article 9 of the Vienna Convention, which governs diplomatic relations. That article says: “The receiving State may at any time and without having to explain its decision, notify the sending State that the head of the mission or any member of the diplomatic staff of the mission is persona non grata or that any other member of the staff of the mission is not acceptable.” Ecuador really didn’t give any explanation, and it’s not clear whether this “will imply a rupture of continue reading

diplomatic relations between the two countries,” as Prensa Latina asks.

This move comes one day after Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa ended the functions of José María Borja López as Ecuador’s ambassador in Havana.

Shortly after the Ecuadorian government’s announcement, Cuba’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement calling the decision “arbitrary and unjustified” and describing it as an “unprecedented and unfriendly act.”

Cuba’s Foreign Ministry said no reasons were provided for the declaration and that the move harms bilateral relations. They also warned that it “significantly damages the historic relations of friendship and cooperation between both countries and peoples.”

Cuban journalist José Raúl Gallego (who lives in Mexico) commented on the news: “Since 1959, Cuban diplomatic missions have been centers of interference and regional destabilization. The Cuban embassy in Ecuador has been one of the most active in those activities.”

This all happens right after President Daniel Noboa terminated José María Borja López’s role as Ecuador’s ambassador to Havana (he was also accredited to Dominica, Jamaica, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines). Borja had been appointed in October 2021 under then-president Guillermo Lasso.

In April 2025, Noboa won a comfortable re-election as president of Ecuador. He first came to power in November 2023 with a liberal economic platform and a tough-on-crime “mano dura” stance—very different from the correísta governments that ruled for over a decade and were openly aligned with Havana.

Last September, Ecuador tightened its migration policy and started requiring a temporary visitor/transit visa for nationals of 25 countries, including Cuba.

Translated by GH

______________________

The Other Revolution Does Not Need a Foreign Intervention

The regime knows that if it brutally represses a social explosion, it will be handing the powerful neighbor the excuse to intervene on a silver platter.

If they cannot stop the new revolution that threatens them from below, join it from above. / X / Presidency

14ymedio, Miami, Ariel Hidalgo, February 28, 2026 – According to what we have seen in Venezuela since the capture of Maduro until now, almost two months later, and what followed afterward: the rise of Delcy Rodríguez to the Presidency with Washington’s approval, a slow-motion release of political prisoners without guarantees they will not be jailed again, as well as the persistence of dictatorial structures, like a form of madurismo without Maduro, and the control of that country’s oil by President Trump (not for nothing did he publish his photograph as president of Venezuela), it seems to us like an image of what could happen in Cuba, also taking into account what has been reaching us so far about a supposed cabinet made up of figures from the regime.

I do not want to be a spoilsport and I am sure that Cuba’s freedom is closer than ever, but people should not blindly trust the promises of representatives of a foreign power. Is that the only alternative? The uprising of 11 July 2021 [’11J’] was not organized by anyone, neither by dissidents, nor by the CIA, nor by Cubans in Miami, and yet it shook the foundations of power. Did it fail?

We can lament the repression and the imprisonments with draconian sentences, but the massive demonstrations in dozens of cities constituted a political victory, because they were the beginning of a process that leads to another revolution, a word many people do not like but whose meaning is very simple: radical change. Ask yourselves when the last radical changes happened in Cuba. It has been a long time. Nothing changes; they only make reforms that lead nowhere in order to maintain a system that everyone already knows—even they themselves—is a failure. However, they do nothing to change it and improve the living conditions of the people. continue reading

The 11 July uprising was not organized by anyone, neither by dissidents, nor by the CIA, nor by Cubans in Miami, and yet it shook the foundations of power.

Why? Because they fear the people, because those demonstrations not only shook the foundations of the regime but also the conscience of many people who until then could not conceive that something like that could happen, and above all because they know what a pre-revolutionary process is. In the 1950s that process lasted five and a half years from the attack on Moncada until the dictator fled. Although such processes do not last the same amount of time, they generally differ by a few months more or a few months less. And this one has already been going on for a little less than five years.

What will its outcome be? That will depend on the decisions the governmental cabinet makes before that probable social explosion. They know that if that explosion occurs and they repress it brutally, they will be handing the powerful neighbor the excuse for intervention on a silver platter. Then it would be smarter to avoid it.

How? By detaining dissidents or preventing them from leaving their homes? We have already said that it is not dissidents who provoke it, but that they are spontaneous, provoked rather by the leadership itself with its mistaken policies. They cannot station guards outside the homes of millions of people. By cutting the internet? They cannot keep it suspended indefinitely. And since no one can foresee when that explosion will occur, the first spark will be inevitable, wherever it may be, and there will be no time to cut the internet and prevent the news from spreading throughout the country in just seconds.

Therefore, the only solution to avoid it is to change policy in such an evident way that everyone becomes convinced that this time it is not about formal changes meant to change nothing, but about going to the essence of the problems: freeing all political prisoners and engaging in dialogue, not with the external enemy but with the dissidents, who have already become spokespersons for the people. If they cannot stop the new revolution that threatens them from below, join it from above.

Translated by Regina Anavy

______________________