Category: Translator: Regina Anavy

Hope and Suspicion in Southern Mexico Over the New Migration Center Accord With the United States

Migrants remain hopeful of regularizing their documentation in the municipality of Tapachula, in the state of Chiapas (Mexico). (EFE)

14ymedio biggerEFE (via 14ymedio), Juan Manuel Blanco, Tapachula, 6 August 2023 — Restlessness and hope grow on Mexico’s border with Central America a week after Washington’s announcement about a new space in southern Mexico to process applications for asylum and employment of migrants seeking to go to the United States.

While some migrants hope to achieve the goal of reaching the United States, activists reject the next “multipurpose international space” of the Mexican Government in Tapachula, on the southern border, because it “denigrates” migrants with new bureaucratic burdens.

The Cuban Dadier Hernández Morfin told EFE that he hopes this center will help migrants reach the United States through legal channels and put an end to the risks and drama that they go through in their exodus.

“Through that we could fulfill our goals and dreams and know that all the sacrifice is not in vain, because it will help us a lot to easily reach the United States,” he said.

“Likewise, it would reduce the risks of migrants losing their lives,  being kidnapped, being killed, having their money taken on the way and being tortured,” he added. continue reading

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador confirmed on Tuesday an agreement with the United States for that government to accept asylum applications from migrants who are already in Mexico, which in turn will install a “multipurpose international space” in the south of the country to serve migrants.

The United States announced last week that it will accept asylum requests from citizens of Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela who are already in Mexico waiting to cross into the United States, according to an agreement after a meeting in Mexico City between an American delegation and López Obrador.

Despite the novelty, activist Luis Rey García Villagrán, director of the Center for Human Dignity (CDH), argued that the shelters are “denigrating,” and he questioned the usefulness of the new center, which he considered an imposition by the United States.

“The federal (Mexican) government has not yet defined whether this is true or not. We believe that the immigration policy of the United States is domineering. They always want to impose, and the only thing the federal government can do is give work to those who want to work,” he said.

Meanwhile, Rafael Alegría López, defender of the rights of migrants, remarked that a center of this magnitude must be a priority because Tapachula has become “an immigration prison” of  corruption and violation of human rights suffered by migrants.

“The migratory flow that the city is experiencing is growing day by day. Three hundred, 400, 800, 2000, 3,000 or 4,000 of various nationalities arrive, so there should be a control when they enter the country,” he added.

The activist asked López Obrador’s government to fulfill its promise to employ migrants, as the president reiterated this week.

“This shelter could show good intention by the Government, but on the other hand it is worrying that, as the greater migratory flow is concentrated, services may become more expensive,” he considered.

The Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Alicia Bárcena, visited Tapachula on Thursday and warned that there are still no definitive details about the site, and she also awaits the collaboration of the UN and other international organizations to treat migrants in a dignified manner.

But García Villagrán commented that, with the new center, they put “let the foxes in the chicken coop,” in reference to the fact that human traffickers [polleros] and organized crime will use it to take advantage of migrants.

The Guatemalan Douglas Brayan Velázquez, whom the United States has deported four times, said that he will try to cross again, despite the risks.

“I would ask the United States Government to behave better with us because they treat us like criminals when we turn ourselves in to Migration. For them we are not emigrants, but criminals, and it’s really hard for us to take,” he complained.

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 UN Donates Materials To Rebuild 20 Poultry Houses Damaged After Hurricane Ian’s Passage Through Cuba

The FAO assured that at least 2,000 Cubans are recovering their livelihoods in Pinar del Río. (FAO)

14ymedio bigger 14ymedio, Havana, 1 August 2023 — The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) donated the necessary materials for the rehabilitation of 20 poultry houses in Pinar del Río, whose completion is scheduled for the end of August. The initiative seeks to alleviate the situation of more than 2,000 victims, who were left without “livelihoods” after the scourge of Hurricane Ian in the province, almost a year ago.

In a statement published on Monday, the organization said that the project had the financial support of the Government of Belgium for the purchase of 24 coils of steel wire and their respective hooks. With these inputs, 24,455 metal tiles were manufactured, which were delivered to the Pinar del Río Poultry Company to rebuild eight base business units (UEB) in the municipalities of Pinar del Río, Viñales, Consolación del Sur and Guanes.

The FAO confirmed, together with delegates from the Ministry of Agriculture, that the donation has already benefited 33 workers of the Desa I Unit — of which 17 are women — with the delivery of 7,000 square meters of tiles and 11,041 metal hooks.

The company has nine warehouses for the potential breeding of 140,000 birds, although the FAO pointed out that only four are in the process of rehabilitation and did not clarify whether, in addition, it will provide the animals.

The project is part of the United Nations program in Cuba for the rehabilitation of production for the farmers affected by Hurricane Ian. At the national level, the program added in its statement that it helps about one million people in vulnerable conditions, including children under five years of age and pregnant and lactating women. continue reading

Hurricane Ian, which reached western Cuba in September 2022, devastated much of the Pinar del Río territory, with winds that exceeded 120 miles per hour. In its wake, it left considerable economic losses in infrastructure and agricultural production that, to date, as recognized by the Government, have not been recovered. The damage was particularly significant with regard to tobacco, whose harvest suffered “the biggest blow in its history,” according to the official press.

Recently, Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz acknowledged that the Cuban Government has not been able to recover a third of the housing infrastructure damaged by the hurricane, despite the fact that it’s been almost a year since its passage through the Island. In a meeting with provincial authorities, the official questioned the feeble results “if the resources are in place.”

The official press also reported that in Pinar del Río, only 32% of the 90,394 buildings affected by the climate emergency have been rehabilitated. In Granma province, meanwhile, 103 of the 415 that were damaged have been rebuilt.

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.

When Havana Was Taken by the ‘Red Coats’

English sailors enter the bay of Havana after its capitulation. (Engraving by Dominique Serres based on the drawings of Lieutenant Philip Orsbridge, in 1762)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Yunior García Aguilera, Madrid, 1 August 2023 — On June 6, 1762, Captain General Juan del Prado Portocarrero saw an impressive English fleet approaching Havana from El Morro. At first he did not believe that it was an attempt at conquest; he assumed it was a mercantile convoy and even sent the soldiers back to their barracks. The mail that came with the news had been intercepted and gripped the partying habaneros. The clumsy Juan del Prado would show that the defense of the Great Antille was, in fact, too great for him.

It was foreseeable that the English would try to take Havana after declaring war on Spain. They had already occupied Martinique, and the Cuban capital constituted a geographical point of great strategic importance. Twenty years earlier, they had unsuccessfully sought to establish a colony in Guantánamo. To top it off, in 1756 the governor of Jamaica had been invited to go for a walk in Havana, as a gesture of goodwill, and returned to London offering detailed plans of the city and its fortifications.

Much has been discussed about whether Havana at that time was uncivilized, impoverished and miserable. Some have maintained that the capture by the English brought, at last, a little progress. Historian Ramiro Guerra dedicated several articles to Francisco José Ponte trying to deny those statements. Guerra strives to show us a French Havana, much more gallant than other capitals of rich viceroyalties, such as Lima and Mexico. The aforementioned sources showed that both wealthy and poor, white, black or mulatto, they were able to ruin their haciendas and their economies in order to show off the latest fashion. As for its population, Guerra tells us that Havana was more populous than any of the thirteen colonies of North America, even doubling New York.

In any case, Havana was a valuable possession for the Spanish crown. And the battle to try to defend it would highlight the mediocrity of some and the heroism of others. Among Juan del Prado’s blunders was that of disabling three ships of his squadron, seeking to block the entrance to the bay. The operation was disastrous. Not only did some men drown during its execution, but they lost their best warships and prevented other ships from going out to fight from the sea. continue reading

However, there is still talk in Cuba of a Creole like Pepe Antonio. The fifty-year-old Cuban, mayor of Guanabacoa, became legendary by carrying out reckless actions, which could be considered machete charges, long before Gómez and Maceo. In a month and a half he inflicted several casualties on the enemy and captured a good number of prisoners. His natural leadership and his unorthodox maneuvers aroused the envy of the inept Spanish colonel Francisco Caro, who dismissed him in a humiliating way. And the legend has it that Pepe died of disgust, a few days later.

Unfortunately, the chauvinism of our historical memory has made us ignore or relegate other brave defenders of Havana to the background. The most notorious case is that of Luis Vicente Velasco de Isla, who died defending El Morro. When the Spanish monarch learned of his feat, he had a statue of him made in Cantabria and minted several medals with his bust. He also ordered that in his royal Navy there should always be a ship with the name of Velasco and created a new noble title: the marquisate of Velasco del Morro, granted to his brother.

But the greatness of a soldier is more noticeable when it is his own enemies who show their admiration. The English were so impressed by his determination and expertise that, after his death, a 24-hour ceasefire was decreed, to bury him with the dignity he deserved. In addition, a monument was erected in his honor in Westminster Abbey itself. And they say that every time the British Navy passed in front of his hometown, salvos were fired in his honor.

Today there is a very small street in Havana that bears his name, parallel to San Isidro. I remember that, in my school texts, Pepe Antonio and his men were highlighted as “the true heroes of the defense,” while they limited themselves to recognizing Velasco as “one of the few Spanish officers who showed courage.” I think that, without minimizing in any way the heroism of the Creole, it is fair to recognize the indisputable prominence of Velasco in that episode of our history.

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.

‘Bankification’ of the Economy and the Circulation of Counterfeit Banknotes: Another Blow to Credibility

ATMs in Cuba are often unreliable because there is no electricity, or the cash runs out and is not refilled.

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, 1 August 2023 — Cuba’s state press reports that last Monday a meeting of the executive committee of the council of ministers of the regime was held, an organ that between meetings of the council of ministers is responsible for the decisions that are attributed to it.

With the presence of President Díaz Canel and Prime Minister Marrero, this executive committee addressed several issues of the economic and social life of the country; among others, food production, the distribution of the regulated family basket, the transport of cargo and passengers, the supply of water, and the generation of electricity.

However, even if it was outside the agenda that was initially disclosed to the press, the executive committee addressed an undoubtedly relevant issue, which has already been referred to in previous entries on this blog. I am referring to the program for the ’bankification’ of the country, an issue that they have been working on in recent months and that includes a set of measures to gradually encourage the use of electronic channels for collection and payment in the national territory.

Whether Cubans use banking to carry out their usual economic transactions, as happens in other countries, depends on their seeing that it is useful and provides some kind of benefit. And even that there is availability of money in the accounts for different electronic transactions. The communist authorities should be aware that bankification of the economy depends on the people, the economic actors, seeing it as convenient and useful, and in Cuba, at least for the time being, this is not the case.

To begin with, following Minister Gil who reported on these issues in the Assembly a few months ago, it makes no sense to pay in installments in the national money [Cuban pesos] and the freely convertible currency created by the regime, in a proportion of 70% to 30%. A dual monetary system, which was one of the objectives set by the Ordering Task,* continues to be a brake on the integration of the national market, and, therefore, Cubans do not use banks. continue reading

Second, Cubans have a growing distrust in the banks. It hasn’t been a peaceful relationship. The banks, as instruments of the state, put the regime’s demands ahead of those of the citizens. And that’s why, when a Cuban is going to withdraw cash at an ATM, a simple operation within the banking system, he encounters the unavailable cash cartel. Cubans are wary of any confiscation of their savings and the impact of inflation on their deposits.

Perhaps for this reason, in Cuba, cash in the hands of the public continues to reach one of the highest percentages in the world, not only for the purchase of goods and services in national currency, but for transactions in informal markets — in particular, the exchange of the peso with the dollar. Even the small and medium-sized enterprises are dedicated to operating in cash and do not use banks as happens in other countries; in this case, so as not to have to be giving explanations to banking employees about the origin of the funds.

Well, in the executive committee it was reported that in the coming days managers of the banking sector will offer all the details to the population about the bankification process, which they describe as “of vital importance for the Cuban economy.”

And since there are no two without three, in the same edition of the state press in which the regime’s interest in bankification of the economy is reported, the Central Bank authorities, through their website, were forced to deny that banknotes in the denominations of 100 and 1,000 CUP [Cuban pesos] circulate in the country with errors in their printing or are false. The note added that so far in the bank branches, no customers have met with this situation. In the case of banknotes dispensed by ATMs and the present difficulty in their printing, customers can go to the nearest bank branch. The report ended by pointing out that the population should follow the official sites and channels to stay informed.

Where’s there smoke, there’s fire. It is still significant that counterfeit banknotes are appearing in the Cuban economy and that it can happen, just when the regime wants Cubans to use banks for their economic transactions and reduce the use of cash. Of course, they couldn’t have chosen a worse time to announce the measure. So much so that there are those who see the two reports as the result of small internal battles, skirmishes, between different factions of the Cuban communist nomenclature, who are putting up roadblocks to cause stumbling.

If this is the case, it is recommended that they choose other areas for that dangerous little game, and that they leave the functioning of the economic institutions alone. With this type of news about counterfeit banknotes in circulation, which undoubtedly causes alarm in the population, the Cuban financial system, the Central Bank and the authorities lose the little credibility they have as managers of an economy that isn’t getting back on its feet. There is no point in announcing the intention of bankification if Cubans wake up in the morning with the news of counterfeit banknotes in circulation. The Cuban economy is in such a serious state that it doesn’t need this type of experiment.

*Translator’s note: The Ordering Task is a collection of measures that include eliminating the Cuban Convertible Peso (CUC), leaving the Cuban peso as the only national currency, raising prices, raising salaries (but not as much as prices), opening stores that take payment only in hard currency, which must be in the form of specially issued pre-paid debit cards, and a broad range of other measures targeted to different elements of the Cuban economy.   

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 Inflated Figures in Ciego De Avila Illustrate the Lack of Economic Control in Cuba

At the end of the meeting, the leaders discussed the registration throughout the province of more than 6,000 illegalities related to construction. (Invasor)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Havana, 4 August 2023 — The authorities of Ciego de Ávila found it inexplicable, during an economic meeting this week, that there is a deficit in the production of bananas, sweet potatoes, rice, vegetables, milk and beef in the province, while the data guarantee that sales were outstanding. The numbers “deserve a thorough review to elucidate where the figures are inflated, whether in the reserves or in the prices,” they said, to which the official press replied: “One might wonder how they achieved it.”

These are, according to Cuban economist Pedro Monreal, “mirages” that do not indicate recovery but, rather, show the lack of control caused by inflation in the country and its reflection on paper. “The crisis continues,” he explained.

The leaders, who evaluated the economic results of the province during the first half of 2023, agree that the outlook is alarming: a productive decrease of 20%, considerable losses in almost all sectors and serious levels of administrative corruption, with 37 officials sanctioned in the area of Commerce and Gastronomy alone.

In apparent contrast, other recorded data reveal 10.2% of overcompliance in the net sales plan of the province and 29.1% in the retail trade circulation plan. The paradox is that production does not support these figures.

Eight state companies reported losses worth 134 million pesos during the month of July, while another 33 did not comply with their plans. Three sugar plants in Chambas also failed, with five million pesos lost. Most of these entities with production deficits – the same ones that claimed to over-fulfill in terms of sales – are linked to food processing. continue reading

“That way there can be no growth,” lamented the secretary of the provincial Communist Party, Liván Izquierdo, who also commented that the entire production of the semester is below that of the same period in 2022.

The answer may be in the state corruption rates of the province, where 89 crimes were identified after audits of several entities. The economic damage exceeds three million pesos. For its part, Commerce and Gastronomy is the sector that continues to stand out for its “weaknesses”: 3.3 million pesos stolen and 37 officials punished for “administrative lack of control, with clear indications of intentionality, which caused a lack of products and cash by not making correct deposits.”

The situation of livestock does not give rise to optimism either. To fulfill the plan, it would be necessary to have 150 head of cattle “which, right now, are not grazing in the pastures.” In an endless chain of failures, the ranchers of the province defended themselves: the pastures need fences, but the Agricultural Supply Company – which has also “operated at a loss for years” – informed them that “it has no wire.”

Only in the export plan do the figures tell the truth; however, only 65% of what was planned was accomplished, and the semester ends with owing the state almost two million dollars. To alleviate the losses, the authorities recommended “exploiting” the Jardines del Rey airport and the ports of Palo Alto – out of service for four years – and Casasa. In other years, they claimed, local fruits were sent to Canada, and now the “experience” can be repeated.

The star category of the province continues to be the export of pink shrimp, which this year was 94 tons. However, the authorities warned, the shrimp won’t arrive on the dinner tables of the people who live there.

At the end of the meeting, the leaders discussed the registration throughout the province of more than 6,000 illegalities related to construction. They “eradicated” about 1,360 in the city of Ciego de Ávila alone, they said, linked to the lack of construction permits, the transformation of facades, the potholes in the streets, the occupation of public spaces and the establishment of llega y pon [shack] neighborhoods in the provincial capital and in Morón.

In the province, the difference between state and private companies is accentuated, which provoked a tirade from the deputy governor of the province, Hiorvanys Espinosa, during a meeting with the Provincial Recreation Commission. “We cannot allow the state sector to be robbed of more prominence in the scenarios that we must ensure. In the case of the head municipality, the nights in Ciego de Ávila are dead, and we have left them to the self-employed and the private bars,” he said.

The leaders anticipate that state recreation spaces will soon benefit from a flood of national customers. The explanation? A package of activities “that really move the community,” with a launch date for this coming August 13, the “birthday of Commander Fidel Castro.”

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 Economic Competition of the Territories, the Tip of the Dying Cuban Economy

In his declining years Fidel Castro dedicated himself to the cultivation of moringa, “the magic tree.” (EFE)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Elias Amor Bravo, Economist, 6 August 2023 — A kind reader of the blog asks me why the Cuban economy is having so much difficulty getting ahead and improving the living conditions of the population.

And my first warning is the mention of the embargo/blockade of the United States as a limiting factor to the country’s economic possibilities. My answer is clear: if in Cuba there is no process of economic recovery as in other countries of the world and in Latin America, it is because there are internal factors that prevent it.

One doesn’t have to look for those responsible outside, because there isn’t anyone. The seed of economic failure was planted by Fidel Castro 64 years ago when he decided to transform the structural base of the nation’s economy, betting on an adventure that at that time was fashionable in the countries dominated by the Soviet empire or China, but that over the years was seen to be unsustainable.

And while other countries were leaving behind that useless and inefficient economic model, Castroite leaders clung to it, as if it were a DNA trait impossible to replace. And so we come to the present day, when the communist regime continues to believe that the key to the nation’s economic prosperity is based on the “control and efficiency” of the economy by the regime. As if it were a military barracks. That’s how it goes. continue reading

The economic history of the nation is sad and offers a balance for future generations that only serves one thing: to understand that you can’t live in Cuba and that the solution is to go abroad. The same thing that has happened on the Island since the flights of Camarioca (1965) were inaugurated, after the massive departure of the Mariel Boatlift (1980) and Rafter Crisis from Guantánamo (1994)

Every fifteen years, Cuban communism is forced to open the doors of the prison so that people who hate the system flee and the regime thereby strengthens itself and gains time. The operation has gone well for the Castro leaders, but not for the Cubans. The Island decreases in all its indicators. It ages, is depopulated, lacks international solvency, is technologically lacking and continues to lose the talent and energy of its young people.

And in a scenario like this, it now turns out that the regime wants the provincial councils, protected by the communist territorial power, to assume the planning and management of the economy as part of the competition that has been ceded to them from the central regime.

And that is where the local communist bureaucrats have found some meaning in their lives, elaborating statistics of dubious quality confirming that on the one hand there is economic recovery, but on the other, the opposite happens. And with these data they launch themselves into a competition with the other territories to impress the hierarchical leaders of the party and the regime, installed in their comfortable offices in Havana, who have done their homework well and deserve a little applause, in the form of a visit or some institutional act.

Then, the controlled and submissive state press is in charge of covering this activity as if it were something transcendental, but the reality is that people are still standing in lines, suffering from a shortage of all kinds of goods and services. Private enterprises are blocked, and with optimism at rock bottom, Cubans can’t wake up from the terrible nightmare in which they live.

This analysis of the territorial economies that has just begun will give surprising results, which will soon be put on the table.

The communist regime has led to a very unequal distribution of state income and wealth in the different parts of the territory, which is reflected in numerous aggregated indicators. No one is surprised that the highest wage levels in Cuba are paid in the western provinces, while the lowest are obtained in the eastern ones.

This depends, and a great deal, on the territorial specialization, the density of companies and the number of jobs that are assigned in each area of the country. And for this reason, territorial governments will begin to acknowledge the effects of these inequalities very soon, especially when they have access to the business activity and the results of the management.

That will be the moment when it will be possible to verify that the permanent shortage of food and products, such as bananas and sweet potatoes, rice, vegetables, fluid milk and beef, has little to do with acceptable business results, duly made up by the managers.

Even when the analysis of compliance or non-compliance with the plan arrives, an approach to management can be contemplated, which does not imply a clear improvement in people’s living conditions.

The instruments that support the economic model of central planning will not serve to determine the conditions in which people live. The data will give satisfactory information on one hand, but the reality of the people on the street, of the average Cuban, will be very different. The communist Tovarich — the comrades — of the Iron Curtain already faced this problem in the 80s of the last century, and perestroika and glasnost emerged as recipes to solve it.

The governments of these communist countries realized that while they spent their time measuring, for example, the indecipherable indicators of overcompliance with retail commercial circulation, the people turned their backs on them and took to the streets in a demand for freedom and a different and more prosperous model for the economy. And what no one thought would happen happened. The Berlin Wall came down, and the communist empire of the USSR disappeared from the history of humanity. Then China and Vietnam did their own homework and ended up being part of the global economy.

The world changed but Cuba didn’t. Fidel Castro was a decisive block on the arrival of those winds of change and took advantage of the last years of his life to reinforce the old Cuban communist economic model that became the disaster that currently presides over the situation of the Island.

It is a scenario in which there is a shortage of food, state companies with losses, international insolvency, absence of foreign investments, collapse of tourism, territorial decentralization, galloping inflation, destruction of the value of the national currency and an obsession of the regime to control the money in circulation.

And the leaders of 2023 are reluctant to implement changes in the economic model to get Cuba out of this disaster and want the measures that are applied to be based on central planning and not on the market. For example, when they threw themselves into the Ordering Task* because it was going to be the solution to all the problems, they were already warned of the consequences. Now they’re here, and let’s see how they turn out.

And with this balance of widespread poverty, local leaders, who lack a global vision of the economy and only attend to their territorial objectives, say they want to export to other countries, without previously covering the internal needs of the population, as is the case with fresh fruit. The objective of achieving foreign exchange is only achieved with the entry of remittances that bets on the informal market and moves away from the economic controls of the regime.

However, the export categories do not work and the non-compliances are significant. And what is worse, the party’s local leaders refuse to allow exports from each area to leave the country through airports located in other provinces, since this goes against the presentation of results to the higher authorities. Unfortunately, the market unity in Cuba has been broken. This is the situation now.

*Translators Note: The Ordering Task is a collection of measures that include eliminating the Cuban Convertible Peso (CUC), leaving the Cuban peso as the only national currency, raising prices, raising salaries (but not as much as prices), opening stores that take payment only in hard currency, which must be in the form of specially issued pre-paid debit cards, and a broad range of other measures targeted to different elements of the Cuban economy.  

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.

Migrants in Mexico Before the New Agreement With the U.S.: ‘If There Is Work It Is for Making Money To Cross’

At least 1,500 migrants, including several Cubans, are stranded in Chiapas. (EFE)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Mexico, 1 August 2023 — The “multipurpose international space” agreed between Mexico and the U.S. will be in the state of Chiapas and will offer “refuge, employment and training,” but it will take time to get underway.

Mexican president Andrés Manuel López Obrador does not know where that space will be located specifically, but he promised to give more details “in two or three months.” His country will offer, the president confirmed, a space for new asylum options and work visas to migrants from Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela and Haiti, in addition to support through “mobile consulates (from the U.S.) for those who have not done their paperwork.”

The Secretary of Foreign Affairs will travel this week to Chiapas to initiate the plan that so far has assured that 40 million dollars will be provided by the U.S. Government with the participation of the UN agency for refugees (UNHCR).

The Government of Mexico foresees the arrival of 31,000 people in the U.S., who will join the 177,000 Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans who have entered with humanitarian permits so far this year.  In Chiapas, more than 1,500 migrants, several Cubans among them, remain stranded, waiting for the buses offered by the National Institute of Migration to continue their journey and achieve the American dream. continue reading

Although some feel optimistic about the possibility of getting a job, they do not want to stay in Mexico. Adamaris López, a Venezuelan who arrived a month and a half ago with her partner in Tapachula, tells 14ymedio that her future is in the U.S. “There is a lot of insecurity here, poorly paid jobs, discrimination. If there is work, it is for making money to cross, when the process is complete.”

Lawyer and migrant advocate José Luis Pérez Jiménez sees the program as a palliative for U.S. politics. “Chiapas is going to become an obstacle for migrants. In addition, where will the investment to create this center come from? A minimum of 800 million dollars is needed, and they have 40.”

Pérez Jiménez admits that despite the decrease in the transit of migrants through Chiapas, on average between 2,000 and 2,500 undocumented people per day cross into Mexico. “With this announcement, more arrivals are already planned, because people listen and read that there is already an agreement, but we do not know if it will be built, if they will simply adapt a space or if there are figures of how many people are expected to benefit.”

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 Central Bank of Cuba as a Repressive Instrument of the Regime

A line at the doors of a bank in Havana (14ymedio)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, August 3, 2023 — The Central Bank of Cuba announces Resolution 111/2023 of August 2, which establishes a maximum limit of 5,000 Cuban pesos (23 dollars at the current informal exchange rate) per operation for collections and cash payments arising from a contractual relationship between the subjects included in the resolution, as well as for the increase of small cash intended for minor payments. If the amount exceeds that figure, the operation will have to be carried out by electronic means. This represents an increase compared to the 2,500 Cuban pesos that were regulated by Resolution 369, of December 29, 2021, of the Minister President of the Central Bank of Cuba.

This rule annuls the previous one of only two years and gives an idea of the monetary expansion produced on the Island by the uncontrolled increase in inflation. That 2021 rule regulated cash payments derived from a contractual relationship between Cuban state legal entities, and the payments of these and foreign legal entities to natural persons authorized to work independently and in non-state forms of management.

The new resolution recognizes that the increase in the use of cash in economic and financial transactions has caused a decline in the levels of banking and financial inclusion in the country, to which are added the high costs associated with its issuance, transport, processing and storage, as well as the growing demand for more ATMs for the extraction of cash. The regime feels overwhelmed and tries to regain control. And it offers precarious arguments to justify this new turn of economic policy.

Under such conditions, the new resolution requires that collection and payment operations that exceed the figure of 5,000 Cuban pesos be carried out through payment instruments and credit securities other than cash, and execution through electronic payment channels is prioritized. This means practically any transaction, given the low amount established. continue reading

Those subject to the resolution are state companies; higher business management organizations, budgeted units; non-agricultural cooperatives; agricultural cooperatives; agricultural producers; individual farmers; commercial fishermen; micro, small and medium-sized enterprises; local development projects; self-employed workers; artists and creators; the modalities of foreign investment and the associative forms created under the Law of Associations.

In other words, practically all economic actors are included in the regulation. And it is expressly stated that the provisions of the resolution are applicable to natural or legal persons not included in the previous relationship, if they carry out legally authorized commercial and service activities.

The mandatory use of payment instruments and credit titles other than cash — in particular, the means of electronic payments recognized in current banking legislation — is an organizational effort for many economic actors, especially the private and smaller ones. They will have to adapt to the requirements of the regime, despite the fact that their preferences for cash collections and payments of operations with the bank are usually organized with cash inflows and outflows, either directly and in person, or by means of a check or other payment instrument issued to be cashed by its beneficiary. This option becomes problematic with the new resolution, at least in the field of formal economics. But if they don’t comply, they can have their accounts confiscated.

In addition, the rule requires economic actors to guarantee their customers the access and use of electronic payment channels for the acquisition of goods and the provision of services, and payments arising from obligations to the state budget must be made through payment instruments and electronic payment channels from current accounts and for tax purposes.

To be clear, it’s an open and shut case. With this resolution, the regime  intends to convert the Central Bank of Cuba into a conveyor belt for the transmission of orders from the executive to the banking system, for the withdrawal of funds in the accounts. And let no one be deceived, repression does not admit questioning. For example, the deadlines for the application of the rule are accelerated in a surprising way, because it is announced that the provision enters into force three days after its publication in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Cuba.

Some economic actors have felt trapped in a financial “corral” in poor taste, at the wrong time. The regime’s financial situation  must be bad, very bad, so that overnight, in the dark and with treachery, the authorities gave an unexpected turn to their banking system, with consequences that can be dire for the economy.

And to make it clear that they are serious, the communist resolution warns that if the bank presidents, or the persons they delegate in writing, decide to suspend banking services or close the accounts to customers, “they repeatedly fail to comply with the provisions of the Third and Fourth sections of this Resolution.” Once again, arbitrariness is at the center of decisions: “repeatedly,” what it is, how many times, in what way.

That is, it’s not a joke but a full-blown threat to navigators, that you have to get ready to comply with what’s established, no matter how irrational and inefficient it may be. Or if not, be willing to lose everything. To emphasize here that this is a case of confiscation unrelated to the provisions of the communist constitution of 2019, where is the public utility or the social interest in these maneuvers of suspension or closure of banking services by the banking authorities? Castroism is showing its worst face once again.

And what do these two sections of the same old thing say that become a sword of Damocles?

The Third section provides that the cash income in Cuban pesos received by the subjects of the resolution as a rule must be deposited in their current accounts no later than the next banking business day from the date of its receipt. Why that precautionary delay, and what implications does it have on the operation of the actors? It is clear that the cash they deposit will not be available immediately.

On the other hand, in the case of non-state forms of management, there are more demands, because the deposit or payment is made in the account recognized for tax purposes to the National Office of Tax Administration, which has obvious effects of tax control and supervision. In addition, to make the deposits you can hire the services of the securities transfer companies authorized to carry out that activity.

Without prejudice to the provisions, the subjects of the resolution can agree with the bank, in the current account contract, on other deadlines for the cash deposit, but then certain conditions must be respected:

A) The extension of the term may not exceed 5 calendar days between one and the other deposit.

B) Every time the sum of the cash income received reaches the figure of 100,000 pesos (454 dollars, at the current exchange rate), the deposit must made on the next banking day.

Excepted from the provisions of the previous case are those in which the services of the securities transfer companies are contracted, whose terms are in accordance with what is agreed by the parties to the contract.

The subjects of this resolution who at its entry into force are not banking, after agreement with the bank and for a period of up to 6 months, can make cash withdrawals in Cuban pesos exceeding the limit of 5,000 pesos (22 dollars at the informal exchange rate), but in this case, the use is restricted to payments of: a) Wages, premiums, gratuities and other remuneration for workers, as long as there is no direct debit for payroll; b) Student loans; c) Alimony and child support; and d) medical diets. This covers only a small part of the social cash needs, and for only 6 months.

The Fourth section indicates that cash withdrawals for the payment of salaries, subsidies and other social security benefits and student benefits must be made, at most, 3 working days before the date established for payment. That is, one must notify with more time because otherwise, the money will not be available. Three days seems like an excessive term that overflows any rational financial planning, but in Cuba it is already known that everything that works is put at the service of state inefficiency.

In short, there are more limits and conditions. As if the above were not enough, the cash extracted from the branch for the payment of salaries, subsidies and other social security benefits and student loans, that are not paid to their beneficiaries within 7 bank working days following the date of payment, will be returned to the same branch on the next bank business day. Banks must include in current account contracts the terms and conditions set forth in this resolution for the deposit, extraction and holding of cash in national currency.

The executing arm of these measures is the Central Bank of Cuba, which should be independent of the regime, focused on the execution of an efficient monetary and financial policy. Surprisingly, it establishes a period of 30 working days, counted from the entry into force of this Resolution, in conciliation with the banks, the agencies of the Central Administration of the State and the provincial governments of People’s Power, to draw up a schedule for the incorporation of economic actors into the banking program.

The curious thing about this is that the communist state has cooked up this resolution with the banks, and once the schedule is completed, compliance will be demanded from the economic actors. Hierarchical decisions that turn their backs on reality usually go wrong. These will be a good example. And the haste of the regime resurfaces: the schedule cannot exceed 6 months, counted from the entry into force of this resolution, and is only renewable for those who subscribe for the term of up to 3 months.

What can one expect from this whiplash to the private sector? Well, many actors, especially the smallest and those with less capacity to assume the regime’s demands, will be able to opt for informal activity, concentrating their resources and priorities in that sector, in which it is easier to find what they need, and where it can even be generated at the same level as the foreign exchange market, a financial market that fills the shortcomings and demands of the state system. This Cuban private banking sector can be closer than ever and contribute to consolidating structures that at the moment can’t achieve due to communist obstacles.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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The Mexican State of Coahuila Will Destroy 70,000 Expired Cuban Abdala Covid Vaccines

In Mexico City, the Cuban vaccine Abdala prevails in the campaign against COVID-19. (Twitter/@SSaludCdMx)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Mexico, 2 August 2, 2023 — A total of 70,000 doses of the Cuban Abdala vaccine for Covid that expired this month will be destroyed in the Mexican state of Coahuila. According to the local health manager, Roberto Bernal Gómez, people “distrust” this vaccine because it does not have the endorsement of the World Health Organization (WHO). However, for President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, his detractors are “hardcore conservatives” whom he mocked this Wednesday in his morning press conference, saying that “they think Abdala is going to turn  them into communists.”

Bernal Gómez informed local media that in January the federal government sent them 99,200 doses, which were under lock and key by the Secretariat of National Defense. However, the population disdained this option. “It’s time for the booster, and the one accepted by the world authority is the bivalent one,” like that of Pfizer and Moderna, which includes components of the original virus strain and the omicron variant.

The official noted that the state tried to return the doses before they expired, but they were not accepted by the federal Ministry of Health. The general director of the National Center for Preventive Programs and Disease Control, Ruy López Ridaura, urged them to continue with the campaign. According to the protocol, they needed 10 candidates before they could open a bottle, but in the face of disinterest, the agency suggested opening the vials even if there was only one interested party, and the rest were discarded.

It only remains to define whether it is the Army that is responsible for the destruction of these vaccines or whether it will be the Coahulia Ministry of Health. Government sources told this newspaper that there were about 227,449 doses of Abdala distributed in the states of Chihuahua, Jalisco and Puebla that expired between July and August of this year. continue reading

Saying that it is a matter of national security, the Government of Mexico guards the data on the number of Cuban vaccines given, as well as the cost of the 9,000,000 it bought from the Island. Faced with the criticism of the effectiveness of Abdala, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador reiterated that it will be the “certified” option that Mexicans will have.

“Why would you get another vaccine if it has the same effect?” he said on Tuesday. He offered to rely on “all vaccines,” including the Mexican Patria, “which is ours.” In addition, the Federal Commission for Protection against Health Risks endorsed this week the use of the Cuban Soberana as an option for children.

The information came up on Tuesday when the National Autonomous University of Mexico recommended the use of the face mask in its facilities due to the increase in COVID-19 infections.

The Patria vaccine, developed by a group of scientists at the ICAHN School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (USA), whose patent was negotiated by the Mexican laboratory Avimex, is in the review and approval stage of the last phase of clinical trials. María Elena Álvarez-Buylla Roces, director of the National Council of Science and Technology, said last May that from September to December there would be the capacity in the country to produce up to four million vaccines.

The infectious disease specialist of the Medical Center, Francisco Moreno Sánchez, said that at the moment there are no updated vaccines in Mexico and that the use of a bivalent against coronavirus is not planned. “The doses that are circulating, even the Abdala, which does not have approval, were made based on the original variant, which was the variant that China suffered from in 2019,” he told MVS Noticias.

Moreno Sánchez stressed that the WHO suggests that “the first choice should be the bivalent vaccine, if you can get it. The second choice would be to use a vaccine that is approved by the WHO.”

Translated by Regina Anavy

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Brazil, the New Destination of the Cuban-Russian Couple Who Escaped From Havana

Carlos Jiménez Vasco and his wife Daria this Thursday in line to process their situation in Brazil. (14ymedio)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Havana,3 August 2023 — Cuban Carlos Jiménez Vasco and his wife Daria, of Russian nationality, managed to travel to Brazil after months of unsuccessful waiting to obtain political asylum in Trinidad and Tobago. Harassed by State Security in Havana, the couple escaped from Cuba in April and requested help from the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) in Port of Spain. The delay of the officials and the procedures forced them, once again, to leave.

From Brazil — where they arrived by bus after traveling to Guyana — Jiménez tells 14ymedio this Thursday that he and his wife are already being looked after by the authorities of that country, which are much more “competent” than those of Trinidad. “They have better conditions and a quicker system, which offers us basic human rights,” he says with relief.

“We are going to be protected by the law of this country and they will not be able to do anything to us,” he adds, alluding to the surveillance by Cuban counterintelligence, that, he says, they suffered during their stay in Port of Spain. Jiménez estimates that by Thursday they will already have “the necessary papers” to regularize their situation in the Latin American country as refugees.

The couple wants to maintain discretion about the steps they will take next and tells this newspaper that they consider it important that it is known which country they are in, “so that the Cuban dictatorship does not secretly try anything against us.” continue reading

“Brazil does have refuge agreements included in its law,” says Jiménez, who believes that leaving Trinidad was, like escaping from the Island, a triumph. “No matter how much the dictatorship tries, human beings can do more. We beat them, they couldn’t destroy us. That’s how we feel now,” he concludes.

Despite the fact that the independent media closely followed the case and numerous activists denounced the precarious conditions suffered by the couple, the UNHCR office in Port of Spain did not give a positive response to the young couple. The officials ignored the case and avoided meeting with Carlos and Daria, despite the fact that they “planted” themselves on more than one occasion in front of the agency’s headquarters.

Both young people had fled St. Petersburg, where Carlos was about to be recruited by the Russian Army to fight in Ukraine, and then from Havana, where he had official residence. The ideological discrepancies with his family, who support the regime, and the harassment of counterintelligence caused the couple to move, in an odyssey that they describe as “a daily battle for survival.”

The biggest fear was that they would be deported. “That would be fatal for us because they would separate us and send us to our own countries where we would not be safe and could be arrested,” Jiménez explained to 14ymedio at the time.

In Port of Spain they were scammed by the owners of the place where they stayed, with scarce resources and “sleeping with rats.” When denouncing the situation in the Living Water Community – “UNHCR’s right-hand arm in Trinidad” – the officials seemed to suggest that the owners of the house were right to throw them out.

They survived all this time thanks to the Cuban community in Trinidad and Tobago and some organizations that provided them with food and help. However, the situation became unsustainable and forced them to look for a better destination. Now they once again ask for help from Cubans outside the Island to start life in Brazil. “The process is going well,” summarizes Jiménez, from the immigration offices. “What in Trinidad takes months, here they do in a day.”

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 Cuban Regime Prohibits Boxer Robeisy Ramirez From Using the Cuban Anthem and Flag in Japan

Cuban boxer Robeisy “El Tren” [“The Train”] Ramírez escaped in 2018. (Twitter/@RobeisyRamirez)
14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Havana, 24 July 2023 — Cuban boxer Robeisy “The Train” Ramírez will not be able to appear in his fight in Japan this Tuesday with the anthem of the country that gave birth to him and from which he fled in 2018. According to the athlete himself on his social networks, the Cuban embassy in Japan contacted the television station that will broadcast the event, which will take place at Ariake Arena in Tokyo and in which The Train will defend his World Boxing Organization title of featherweight against the Japanese Satoshi Shimizu; the embassy prohibited his use of the national anthem. It is, says the boxer, “a vile attempt at intimidation.”

“I’m a free man,” cried Ramírez, double Olympic champion (London 2012 and Rio de Janeiro 2016), who says that they offered him the U.S. anthem or none at all. “I’m not going to enter with the U.S. anthem,” replied the boxer, annoyed, who couldn’t believe that the Asian promoter accepted the imposition. “If I don’t enter with the one from Cuba, I enter without an anthem. It’s my homeland; what a lack of respect!”

The fighter is grateful that the U.S. opened its doors for him to continue his career but explains that he will not use the American anthem, because “its not what I represent.” In professional fights, the organizers use the hymns of the country from which the fighters originate, although it is not mandatory. On the Cuban Boxing Facebook page, he stressed that “what bothers me the most is that in Japan there are 12 or 15 lackeys and fat people living life who don’t care what the average Cuban is going through, literally living from what his family outside sends him.”

Total indignation. Share this video everywhere, let the world see everything that the Castro dictatorship and the communist system are doing. The Cuban boxer @RobeisyRamirez this coming July 25 will have a fight to defend his world title in Japan, the Castro regime… pic.twitter.com/tVFRoI2uRC — Marcel (@Marcel_305) July 24, 2023. The athlete, a native of Cienfuegos, attacked the regime, which, he says, has been pursuing him since he decided, five years ago, to make a career outside the Island. “They demanded that I not use the Cuban flag on my uniform or anywhere else.”

The 26-year-old boxer warned that far from “shutting me up” with this type of intimidation, “they have motivated me more to achieve success and continue to raise my voice and cry out for the freedom of my homeland. Now more than ever, Homeland and Life!“ continue reading

The young man’s coach, Ismael Salas, also joined the protests after the official boycott: “That is a lack of respect from the Cuban Embassy. I say this so everyone can understand what communism is and why I’m against all those communists.”

For his part, the collaborator of Pelota Cuba USA, Yordano Carmona, described as “incredible” that the “tentacles of the Cuban dictatorship” reach all the way to Asia.

Ramírez says that in 2018 he made his best decision. At that time he wanted to leave “so I wouldn’t remain an amateur, but the main reason for my decision was all the problems that happened with the managers of boxing and INDER [National Institute of Sports, Physical Education and Recreation], who created them, but every day they got worse,” he told Play-Off Magazine. “All I had left was to leave or go back to Cienfuegos to survive as I could.”

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 Pool Where Cuban Olympic Swimmers Trained Is Now a Garbage Dump

The president of the Municipal Assembly of People’s Power argued that local authorities can do little because the property is in the hands of Emprestur. (Ahora!)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Havana, 27 July 2023 — The Olympic pool in Gibara, Holguín, has long since left its golden years behind as a training center for Cuban athletes who competed in international events. The lack of maintenance and the passage of two hurricanes have left the facilities in such a state that even the official press echoes it. Today the place is a “macro garbage dump,” in the words of the provincial newspaper Ahora! in a report published this Tuesday.

The text describes the “stumbling blocks” that, for more than 50 years, have affected the Waldimiro Arcos Riera pool, inaugurated in the late 1970s. Located in the vicinity of the Holguin coast, initially it only had stakes embedded in the sea that formed a quadrilateral. These precarious conditions did not prevent Cuban athletes from training and obtaining good results in international events.

According to the newspaper, it was not until 1979 that the facility gained its “Olympic” status, after the local residents themselves carried out “volunteer work” to build the pool. Gibara was already in the middle of a drinking water supply crisis, so the pool remained empty.

Andrés Ricardo Rivas, president of the Municipal Assembly of People’s Power, argued that the local authorities can do little because the property is in the hands of Emprestur, which is dedicated to the construction of tourism facilities, and they will be in charge of rehabilitating the facilities. He did not say why there is no communication with the state company nor what plans it has to reactivate the swimming center. continue reading

Among the professional swimmers who have trained in the pool are Rafael Leyva, national and Central American champion with the butterfly and free-style technique; Oscar Periche Cardet, goalkeeper of the Cuban national water polo team for more than 20 years and participant in four Olympics; and Juan José Soler González, national swimming runner-up.

In 2008, Hurricane Ike considerably damaged the facilities, but the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) financed its repair using materials with greater resistance to salt water and a pumping system directly from the sea.

In addition to recovering its initial function of sports training, the investment provided for the creation of conditions for the pool to be used by people with disabilities and by children. A significant part of the investment was allocated to lighting the pool, so that it could also be used at night.

The complex was again destroyed in 2017, when Hurricane Irma, category 5, devastated much of the Holguin coast. Since then, the authorities have done nothing more for the pool, and it ended up becoming a garbage dump that, the newspaper acknowledges, “affects the environment and the neighbors.”

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.

If Cuba and the Cubans Aren’t Doing Well, ‘It’s Not the Fault of Tourists,’ a Spanish ‘Influencer’ Defends Herself

Some Cuban “influencers” have strongly criticized the visit of young Spaniards to Cuba, accusing them of “romanticizing a dictatorship.” (Facebook/Enjoy Travel Group)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Havana, 20 July 2023 — The Spaniard Marina Rivera, who was one of the more than twenty influencers who arrived in Cuba this July to promote tourism, invited by the travel agency Enjoy Travel Group, published a video on her Tik Tok profile on Wednesday to respond to the accusations of “white-washing the dictatorship” by many of her followers and Cuban content creators.

“I didn’t think this would be necessary, but let’s talk about Cuba,” the influencer begins her three-minute video in which she exposes, above all, that both she, the rest of the group and her agency had not been paid for the trip that was made to promote the recently inaugurated Barcelona-Havana flight. “We weren’t paid a euro for anything. They just invited us on the trip,” she says.

Rivera also explains that she is not to blame for the socioeconomic and political situations of the countries she visits and that many have a lack of “freedoms and rights and have horrible political situations, but that is not the fault of tourists.”

Marina Rivera also compared the Cuban regime to the Franco dictatorship: “In Spain we had 40 years of dictatorship, and some of us lived from tourism. It’s exactly the same in Cuba. People live from tourism. And thanks to all those tourists who came to Spain during the dictatorship, a lot of people were able to eat. We wanted to do the same thing through tourism to Cuba.”

“We enjoyed the Island and left money in local businesses,” concludes Rivera, who said that the group of influencers had distributed medicines, water, sweets and money among the people of Havana, and added: “We were not going to say this because we did it in a disinterested way. For example, the Twin Melody gave away 400 euros in cash to the street children.” continue reading

Some Cuban influencers, such as Claudia Tropiezos and Royniel2, have strongly criticized the visit of young Spaniards to Cuba, accusing them of “romanticizing a dictatorship.” They were joined by the Cuban Dina Star, who has lived in Madrid for two years, who, after publishing a video on the subject on YouTube, was invited to the Spanish program Todo es Mentira [It’s All a Lie]. This same program witnessed, during the July 2021 protests, how Cuban State Security arrived at the YouTuber’s residence in Havana to take her to the Zapata and C station while she broadcast live.

Diego Moreno, executive director of the talent agency Nickname, which represents the influencers who traveled to Cuba, was also invited to the program, broadcast on July 18.

Moreno explained that the influencers were invited by the travel agency Enjoy Travel Group, based in Barcelona, which had also previously hired them to promote air routes to countries such as Mexico, the Dominican Republic and the Maldives. He also said that none of the influencers “has received one single cent.” He admitted, however, that all costs of lodging, transportation, food and events were covered by the tour operator agency that, as part of the contract, demanded a non-defamation clause. Outside of that paragraph — which is very common in promotional contracts, according to the director — “there was no limitation of any kind.”

The representative also recalled that many of the Cubans with whom they had contact on the Island were grateful for their visit and for the fact that they were promoting the country as a paradise destination. “The people who are in Miami are the ones who are criticizing and trying not to promote tourism.”

Faced with Moreno’s version, the Cuban influencer argued that she did not doubt that people would receive them gratefully. “If you spend the money in a private restaurant or if you record videos of the people who dance from sunup to sundown on stilts, they will thank you with a smile from ear to ear,” she replied while explaining that the real problem was in promoting tourism that does not benefit the common Cuban. “Promote a natural tourism; don’t go to five-star hotels built by the Government. Go to private homes, soak up the real Cuban culture and not the one they show you,” the young Cuban concluded.

In an attempt to placate the debate, Nickname’s representative commented that the influencers were inexperienced young people who had come to confuse Ernesto Guevara’s monument in the Plaza de la Revolución with an image of Diego Armando Maradona. “I think the influencers aren’t really that ignorant, because one of them offered to look for ways to help people in Cuba,” was Dina Star’s response.

Both representatives of the agency and the influencers themselves have explained that it is not the job of these young people to show the political situations or the shortcomings of any country because they are not journalists, who are required to be truthful and responsible with the content they disseminate.

Translated by Regina Avany

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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 Order To Keep Functioning, Cuban Factories Are Using Oil Residue

The Cienfuegos Petroleum Refinery sends the oil sludge to the cement factory for use as fuel. (@CanalCaribeCuba)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Havana, 25 July 2023 — The energy crisis that turns Cubans upside down has also forced state industries to look for alternatives to keep their boilers operating. This is the case of the Cienfuegos Cement factory, which uses oil sludge residue obtained from the oil refinery in this province, the largest in Cuba.

The general manager of the company, Irenaldo Pérez, explained to Prensa Latina this weekend that the provincial refinery transfers the waste resulting from the production of liquefied petroleum gas, gasoline, diesel, turbo fuel and fuel to the cement plant.

The official said that this waste can also be used in smelters and sugar mills — large consumers of fuel — which, precisely because of the widespread shortage on the Island, have had to stop their production lines repeatedly. Without detailing the volume of the sludge obtained from the oil plant, the official news agency assures that its use reduces the “considerable dependence on imported fuel” while compensating its environmental footprint by eliminating potential sources of pollution.

Cuba shows slow progress in the diversification of its power generation matrix, which is highly dependent on crude oil. The Government promised in 2014 that renewable generation — which at that time accounted for 4.3% — would represent 24% of the installed capacity by 2030, but by the beginning of 2022 it had barely reached 5%. continue reading

In addition to the energy crisis, Cuban families are facing greater interruptions in drinking water service. The provincial newspaper Periódico 26 acknowledged on Monday that Las Tunas shows one of the biggest delays on the Island in terms of the installation of the most effective equipment for water supply. In the province, 146 stations were expected to enter operations in October of this year, but the meager results to date — only 22 have done so — warn that this goal will not be met.

Of the few facilities, not all are in operation, warned Óscar Carralero, director of the Provincial Aqueduct and Sewerage Company of the province. The official explained that three of the new stations already have electrical problems due to control failures, and two cannot be activated because the networks have not received maintenance for years or are not available due to theft.

Therefore, the manager recognizes, they do not yet represent “improvements in the community,” which maintained the “dream of receiving water in the short or medium term in a stable way.”

In its report, Periódico 26 points out that several stations with a capacity of 10 kilowatts are being installed in remote areas with a small population, where families had reported that the pumping devices had been broken “years ago” and they could only receive water from tanker trucks.

However, the work is not progressing given the shortage of materials to make the assemblies for solar panels, said Marco Antonio Sánchez, a specialist of the Provincial Directorate of Aqueduct and Sewerage. They also don’t have enough fuel or means of transport to take the supplies to remote areas.

“We feel a little alone,” complained Sánchez, who explained that the authorities are committed to projects, but at the time of finalizing the assembly, they lack resources that depend on other industries. “Advancing like this is more complex,” he said.

The newspaper, however, is optimistic that, once the 146 stations are installed, there will be a savings of 73,000 kilowatts of electricity, and an improvement in water service for 11% of the households in the province.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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.

Three Detainees Are Prosecuted for the Murder of a Photographer in Eastern Cuba

In the image, one of the motorbikes and some belongings stolen from the photographer Orlando Tamayo. (Facebook/Edwin Levis)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Havana, 25 July 2023 — The Ministry of the Interior of Guantánamo province announced, in a brief statement, the arrest last Saturday of the murderers of photographer Orlando Tamayo Guevara. The three detainees, whose identities have not been revealed by the authorities, were found in possession of money and two electric motor bikes belonging to the victim.

The information, disseminated on Facebook by the government official Edwin Levis, emphasizes that the three were captured “in less than 24 hours” and that they “admitted their direct participation” in the murder of Tamayo, who owned Burlesque Studio. The aggressors will be prosecuted for homicide.

Levis published images of the stolen objects including backpacks, a pair of sneakers and some plastic bags stolen from the photographer’s residence, 703 Máximo Gómez Street, between Narciso López and Jesús del Sol in the city of Guantánamo.

On social networks, users who reacted to the publication about the crime are asking for justice. “Enough regarding with pity all those who murder, assault and want to implant disorder, fear and anxiety,” said Javier Barrientos, a resident of Guantánamo. Other more radical comments, such as from the habanera Ofelia Rosa Díaz Velázquez, asked for the “death penalty” for the confessed murderers. continue reading

The Commission on Constitutional and Parliamentary Legal Affairs, meeting on July 18, offered figures for crime on the Island and the ones that they consider a priority. The homicides were not on the list. Last June, however, the Government revealed that violent crimes accounted for 8.5% of the total illicit activities that took place in the first half of 2023.

Days before Tamayo’s murder, Cuban authorities reported the capture of three people involved in the murder of radio announcer David Alexis González Joseph, also originally from Guántánamo. The collaborator of the official radio station CMKS was killed inside his home on April 26.

In an editorial published last June, the official newspaper Granma said that these cases are “shamelessly magnified or manipulated by digital enemy websites.” For the regime, the information “stimulates” an alleged scenario of instability that seeks to “discredit Cuba’s international prestige as a safe tourist destination, in order to hit one of the country’s main economic sources.”

Recently, before the National Assembly, Miguel Díaz-Canel said that there is an “imperial commitment” to fabricate a climate of tension and citizen distrust that erodes “popular unity” in Cuba.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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