Translator: Tomás A. – Translating Cuba

Proposal by José Daniel Ferrer in Favor of ‘Reconciliation’ in Cuba Sparks Debate

While some congratulate him for his courage and clarity, others go so far as to call him a “traitor.”

José Daniel Ferrer during his interview with “El Toque” on January 24th /El Toque

14ymedio, Madrid, 3 February 2025 — Controversy has reached José Daniel Ferrer more than a week after an interview with the independent media El Toque, when he spoke out in favor of a process of reconciliation with the Cuban regime, if it decided to initiate it. “The question is to resolve, in a non-violent way, as soon as possible, the serious suffering of an entire nation,” argues the leader of the Patriotic Union of Cuba (Unpacu), released from prison on January 16.

The opposition leader, one of the most significant members of the Cuban dissidence, imprisoned many times in recent years, talks for an hour and a half with Eloy Viera about his last imprisonment, the harsh living conditions in Mar Verde, the Santiago de Cuba prison where he was isolated for much of the last few years and where visits are prohibited. But he also devotes many minutes to addressing the political situation on the island and possible solutions.

Ferrer, who cites his beliefs numerous times when referring to forgiveness, admits at one point that he would be willing to personally renounce the prosecution of some people who have harmed him if that means agreeing to a peaceful transition, as long as it is the regime that takes the initiative. continue reading

“If they decide, even though they’re coming to it late, to begin a rapid transition process here in Cuba, then I would agree that this process should begin”

“If they decide, even though they’re coming to it late, to begin a rapid transition process here in Cuba, then I would agree that this process should begin, and we should reconcile and move Cuba forward. And I am going to forget about the guy who kicked me, and that those who criticize me and attack me possibly did not spend 12 years in prison under these conditions,” the dissident advises, aware that his words will not be liked by a large sector of the population who, in his opinion, speak from the comfort of not having experienced deprivation of liberty, physical abuse, and attacks on their relatives.

Ferrer continues comparing this eventual process with that of other countries in which dialogue was necessary with the hierarchy of a dictatorship, and cites Poland and Chile among them.

“Didn’t Lech Walesa negotiate with Jaruzelski, the man who declared martial law, brought tanks onto the streets, and was responsible for the deaths of peaceful protesters and workers in Poland? Didn’t they end up agreeing on an entire process? Didn’t Solidarity come to power with the
support of the people? Why aren’t we going to choose that path in Cuba?” he asks. Ferrer recalls that many of those who oppose dialogue lack the strength of a mass of followers supporting them, and insists that the dissidents must remain strong and united.

“The only way to get to that point is for us to unite, to understand each other, to implement truly useful strategies and tactics to achieve the political strength necessary to have a movement like the one Gandhi had in India, which led the English to grant them independence, or like the one Solidarity had in Poland, which led the Poles to abandon communism, or like the one that occurred in Chile, which led Pinochet to the plebiscite that he lost, even though by a narrow margin, he lost. There was a risk that he would win and follow on with his regime but he lost,” he continues, in the most controversial minute and a half of the interview.

“Whatever is ethical and moral in order to solve the problem of Cuba. The unworthy, the most unworthy thing in all of this is to cling to the idea that I want to tear them down, that I hate them and that I want them dead, which is not Christian, it is not healthy, it is not characteristic of someone who has good mental and moral health to be hating, even those who are the most criminal, the most abusive, those who have done me the most harm,” he concludes.

“Whatever is ethical and moral in order to solve the problem of Cuba. The unworthy, the most unworthy thing in all of this is to cling to the idea that I want to tear them down, that I hate them”

The interview was broadcast on the 24th live from the Facebook page of El Toque, at which time it received the approval of a great majority of those who followed it. Many even pointed out his moral strength because, in the midst of the suffering that he has endured over the years, he is capable of forgiving and putting the interests of the nation before personal interests.

But on Saturday, a doctor exiled in Spain, Lucio Enriquez Nodarse, published on his social media an excerpt of the interview in which Ferrer indicated his willingness to accept a dialogue if the regime asks for it. “And what is this? Reconciliation with murderers? We don’t want them to be killed! We want them to be tried!”

His post has received a flood of comments, from those who believe that he has been “brainwashed, given substances that create confusion, and is just reiterating whatever he has been hearing,” to those who insinuate that he has already made some kind of deal with the authorities. “Do you believe he really went somewhere where what they have said actually happened? The truth is, he would have to have very good genes to come out so physically vigorous. I have seen them come out exhausted, you can see quite a difference between one and the other,” says another user.

Requests for military intervention flood the comments on that post, where friends of Dr. Enriquez have exchanged accusations with those who have asked for respect for such a long-standing opponent of the regime. “I think Ferrer has more clarity than all of us put together . . . What a shame Lucio, that far from understanding a person who has suffered much more than most under that dictatorship, you are now labeling it betrayal. My take is the opposite — admiration for a man who has recently spent more years in prison than out of it, who has been beaten on many occasions yet has room for forgiveness, and who has complete clarity, whose objective is to end once and for all the suffering of the people and not cling to hatred,” says an exile in Canada, who also received numerous criticisms.

José Daniel Ferrer is one of the prisoners of the Black Spring of 2003, when he received a death sentence commuted to 25 years in prison. Eight years later he was released thanks to the efforts of the Vatican and the mediation of Spain. Since then, he has remained at the head of Unpacu, which has caused him countless problems with State Security. On 11 July 2021, he was arrested before being able to join the massive demonstrations of that day and he remained there until January 16, subjected to all kinds of mistreatment and harassment. He is considered a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International, which has claimed him as a symbol of many others punished for their opposition to the regime.

Translated by Tomás A.

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Cubans Are Prohibited From Visiting the Apartments of Foreign Students

“Don’t even think about having a Cuban girlfriend, because she’ll leave you speechless and cackling.”

Renting a room or apartment to foreigners with temporary residence ranges from 250 to 500 dollars a month. / EFE

14ymedio, Natalia López Moya, Havana, 1 February 2025 — From a balcony in El Vedado, Joao Henrique, a 28-year-old Brazilian native from San Salvador de Bahía, points to the building where he should be staying every night. “My scholarship is there, but the conditions are not good, so my parents helped me rent this place.” The house where he lives while pursuing a postgraduate degree in a medical specialty is more comfortable and safe than the state shelter, but it has strict rules.

For 300 dollars a month, the Brazilian student has a room to sleep in, a well-equipped kitchen, a bathroom, a balcony, and a living room. The small apartment is the result of the division of a larger house, so the owners live on the other side of the wall. “I can’t receive visitors, much less have parties,” he explains. “It’s a safe place, but the owners have warned me not to bring Cuban friends over, because then they can’t guarantee that things won’t get lost,” he explains to 14ymedio.

Tourism, which has fallen by almost 50% since the start of the pandemic, has pushed some homeowners to rent their spaces long-term to foreign students. Unlike nightly rates, which can exceed $30, renting a room or apartment to foreigners with temporary residence ranges from $250 to $500 per month, depending on the conditions and location of the home.

The most attractive spaces combine comfort, security, and proximity to the hospitals

The most attractive spaces combine comfort, security, and proximity to the hospitals where students do their internships, or to the facilities where they take classes. Foreign scholarship students are more highly valued than Cuban tenants, because they can pay more and do not accumulate any “right” over the property. But foreign students are often unaware of the characteristics of certain neighborhoods, and have a harder time reading the warning signs of a possible scam or danger. continue reading

From rooms inside a house where they share their daily life with the family, to comfortable independent apartments that include hot water and air conditioning, the variety of options fits everyone’s budget. “This place is close to the hospital where I do my internship, and is also quite central, so though I pay a little more, it’s very practical for me,” explains Joao Henrique.

As part of an agreement with Havana, Brasilia has financed the transfer to the Island of students who are paid for their plane tickets, classes in each specialty, and accommodations. The Brazilian was placed in the Comandante Ramón Paz Borroto Student Residence on the corner of 25th Street and G Street, in Havana’s Vedado. But Joao Henrique only spent the first month there after arriving on the island. “There are many problems with the water supply, and I was robbed twice in my room,” he explains.

“This apartment has better conditions, but it saddens me that my friends can’t visit me. I would like the owners to be less present in my life, and to have a little more privacy,” he admits. “Cubans have a very bad opinion of each other. The lady of the house warns me every week not to even think about having a Cuban girlfriend because she will leave me ’featherless and cackling,’” he says, imitating a Havana accent.

The owners of Joao Henrique’s apartment have a license to rent rooms to foreigners, something that many owners who do the same thing don’t have. “I was in a house where they told me I couldn’t greet the neighbors so they wouldn’t notice I wasn’t Cuban,” he recalls. “That place was cheaper, but one day the owner told me I had to leave because they had fined her thousands of pesos for renting without a license.”

The owners of Joao Henrique’s apartment have a license to rent rooms to foreigners

Others, far from home, prefer to live more closely with a local family. This is the case with Claudia, a German geography student who came from Bremen desiring to “get to know Cuban life.” The young woman took a break from her university and enrolled for a semester at La Colina. There she met a Havana student who offered to rent her a room in her house.

For 250 dollars a month, Claudia got a room in Centro Habana, about a ten-minute walk from her classroom. “I learn a lot by living with a family, but sometimes everything is very complicated. The house only has one bathroom, the kitchen is small, and when I go to the market and buy food there is only one refrigerator to store it in, so it runs out very quickly,” she says.

“I can’t bring visitors, but the girl who rents me a room and I go out a lot together. She has shown me many parts of Havana and introduced me to her friends.” What she misses most about her life in Bremen is “being able to eat vegetables more often, and having more privacy in my room, which has a door that I can’t even close from the inside.” She sums up her experience as “a crash course in Cuban life.” She says she hasn’t been able to learn much geography: “The teachers are absent a lot and sometimes classes are cancelled without explanation.”

The European Claudia and the Brazilian Joao Henrique don’t confront the roadblocks facing African students, who have to deal with prejudices and racism on the Island. For them, the rules can be much stricter.

Manuel, from Angola, and Nicolas Suminwa, from South Africa, have had to learn (by stumbling) to avoid these obstacles. Both have been living in Havana for a couple of years while studying medicine. “They give me a stipend to finance my transportation, my accommodation, and the food I need,” explains the South African, originally from Pretoria. “What I can afford is the cheap spaces, because here in Cuba life is very expensive.”

For 200 dollars a month, Suminwa rented a room with a bathroom in a large house in the El Cerro neighborhood

For 200 dollars a month, Suminwa rented a room with a bathroom in a large house in the El Cerro neighborhood that other compatriots recommended to him. “It’s quite safe, but in one room, which is not very big, I have to have everything: an electric pot for cooking, a table to study on, the bed, and my belongings.” When he returns from his next vacation he will have to rent something bigger. “It’s not going to be easy because when I read an ad, I call, and they tell me that the apartment is vacant, but when I go to see it they tell me that it’s already occupied.”

Suminwa believes that there are many prejudices against African students. “They put more restrictions on us than on others. I’ve spoken with Mexican, Colombian, and colleagues from other countries who are also studying medicine here, and this does not happen to them as much as it does to me.” The South African has experienced things that would be comical if they were not so lacerating to human dignity. “One day the owner of the house unlocked the door to my room because he heard laughter and thought I had sneaked in a secret guest, but it was something I was watching on television.”

Manuel, a 27-year-old Angolan who claims to have earned “a diploma in understanding Cubans,” has experienced similar stories. Now, after many bad moments, he has been able to rent a two-bedroom apartment in Nuevo Vedado for 300 dollars, together with his girlfriend, who is from Luanda like him. The house, owned by a family that recently emigrated to the United States through the Humanitarian Parole Program, is well-equipped and affords privacy.

“The owner’s mother comes by all the time to check if everything is okay,” says Manuel. “We have a washing machine, there is sometimes a lack of water but there is a tank to store it in, and the building is quiet enough.” But the list of prohibitions contains some things that the Angolan knows very well: “no loud music, no parties, and no Cuban visitors.”

Translated by Tomás A.

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The Official Press Denounces the Situation of a Neighborhood That Has Been Without Water for Three Years

Municipal authorities acknowledge that the problem has no solution at the moment and express their concern about the coming months of drought

Two neighbors from the Jesús María neighborhood, in Sancti Spíritus, attach a hose to capture water from a leak. / Capture/Escambray

14ymedio, Olea Gallardo, Havana, 31 January 2025 – Several streets in the Jesús María neighborhood of Sancti Spíritus have been without water for three years. This time the complaint is not being made, as is usual in Cuba, by anonymous users on social networks or independent media, but by the official newspaper Escambray. Last Friday on its video newscast, VisionEs, it showed one of its reporters, Elsa Ramos, visiting the place she had gone six months earlier, and found that the situation was the same: still no water service.

One of the neighbors interviewed explained to the journalist the strategies they use to get water. “We’re going to put the pump in now, we put in the cables and the hose and a man there lends us a little tube, and we connect the pump there and get the water,” he said. “Because here on this block, from this corner to La Gloria, nobody has gotten even a drop of water for three or four years.”

Another resident confirmed: “It’s been more than three years since the water came in here, without any explanation offered. It’s impossible that this pipe here has water, that one over there has water, all the pipes in the block have water, and that this little section here does not have water. I don’t know how that is, it doesn’t make sense.”

A third resident hedged: “Since the construction of Reparto 26, the area around this neighborhood has been greatly affected.” There is water at her doorstep – “It’s a small stream, with little force, but with luck, there is no shortage,” the reporter noted. But this caused other neighbors to point out that it took from “early morning until all hours” to fill containers.

In her report, Elsa Ramos confronted “the government’s representation,” Ariel Muñoz Hidalgo, deputy mayor of Transportation and Energy for Sancti Spíritus, and Yusmeiky Mendoza Muro, director of the state Aquaduct and Sewage Company for the same city.

Asked about the reason why some parts of the neighborhood have water and others do not, Muñoz Hidalgo pointed to the “continuous increase in illegal connections to the hydraulic networks.” The reporter pointed out: “There are illegal connections because they don’t have water.” The official agreed and added, “because they don’t have water or because they have made new constructions.” continue reading

Thus, she attributed a good part of the problem to the increase in the population “without a projection, without an increase in the hydraulic systems as well.” The deputy mayor assured that they have a pumping system “with new pumps, with good water distribution capacities,” but that it could not be used “one hundred percent” because, he explained again, about the leaks, which prevent good pressure in all places.

Tank leaking water on the roof next to a house in Jesús María that does not have the service. / Capture/Escambray

The reporter persisted in asking why one segment in the heart of Jesús María does not have water while the surrounding streets do. The official replied that the street she referred to, Guillermón Moncada, is “very old.” But he didn’t go into detail about the reasons, and in fact, blamed the residents who get water by their own means: “We say it is illegal because it is not approved to do so, but people do it in search of the benefit of the resource.”

When the journalist asked Yusmeiky Mendoza Muro if Aquaduct has a solution and within what time frame, the company manager admitted: “No.” He and the deputy mayor enumerated numerous problems: a shortage of hoses, materials, fuel, and personnel. “We have almost no plumbers,” Mendoza Muro added.

Sealing the leaks and repairing the tanks on the houses are the next solutions that Muñoz Hidalgo promised, but at the same time, he warned that the situation will worsen in the coming months. “At this stage we do have to say that it is much more complex for us because we are already entering the dry season,” the official said, explaining that there are areas that are supplied by the Yayabo River, “which is losing all its capacity.”

“From early February,” he continued, “they will activate the groups to confront the drought and will draw up a calendar for the distribution of water in tanker trucks.” Then Elsa Ramos scolded him that, according to the residents, the tanker trucks don’t comply with the delivery schedules.

“That will always depend on the amount of fuel we have, the availability of tanker trucks we have, the neighborhoods that are growing,” answered Muñoz Hidalgo.

“In order not to create false expectations, will this segment of Jesús Mar continue to be thirsty?” the journalist pressed. Despite all the disasters previously enumerated, the director of the Aqueduct responded emphatically: “No, no, no.” Ramos asked again: “When will we be able to quench this thirst? Are we talking about months, years, centuries?” “No, no, months,” the official answered. The reporter replied that she would return in a while to check on the progress.

Just then, from the roof of a house, a woman didn’t miss the opportunity to point out “the contradiction” that the water tank on a neighboring roof was leaking drinking water. The official responded in a lowered voice: “That’s because of indiscipline.”

Translated by Tomás A.

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Cuban Pitcher Raidel Martínez Gets Star Treatment in Japan

Raidel Martínez, with the Cuban national team / Facebook

14ymedio/Swing Completo, Havana, 16 January 2025 — Almost a month after Cuban pitcher Raidel Martínez signed a historic contract with the Japanese Professional Baseball League (NPB), his new team, the Yomiuri Giants, will include him in the so-called Group S, a selection of the most important players on the squad, who get to decide their own training regimen.

The decision, reported this Wednesday by the official newspaper Jit, means that the players who make up the group will be responsible for their own practices and will decide what kinds of exercises they will do to get in shape, without planning by the club’s management.

“Normally, in the demanding world of Japanese baseball, both the team’s director and coaches determine the players’ work schedule during practice, including the exercises they do,” the media outlet explained.

This initiative, according to the newspaper report, “reveals enormous confidence and respect for the club’s most veteran players, a space that Raidel has earned on his own merit.” For the outlet Swing Completo (Full Swing), it is also “a recognition of the awards that the closer achieved and his quality in the box.” continue reading

This initiative, according to the newspaper report, “reveals enormous confidence and respect for the club’s most veteran players

Martínez is one of the best closers in the Japanese league. In his last season with the Chunichi Dragons he had a dream campaign. He set a personal record of 43 saved games, which was also the best mark in the entire league. He competed in a total of 60 games, in which he completed 58.0 innings while allowing only seven earned runs, for an ERA of 1.09. The Pinar del Río native also had 59 strikeouts, gave up 12 walks, and had a WHIP of 0.81. Finally, he allowed only 35 hits, including one home run.

All total, in seven seasons with his former team, he recorded 166 saves, with an ERA of 1.71, in addition to 353 strikeouts in 310.2 innings pitched.

In seven seasons with his former team, he recorded 166 saves, with an ERA of 1.71

The new contract that the closer signed with the Yomiuri Giants for 32.5 million dollars for four seasons is also one of the most lucrative for the Cuban Baseball Federation (FCB), which will pocket 20% of the amount, some 6.5 million dollars, more than 1.6 million dollars per season.

Although Raidel Martínez’s contract is “a historic agreement,” according to journalist Francys Romero, as it surpassed the $26 million received by Mexican Roberto Osuna or Cuban Liván Moinelo, the expert opines that the closer from Pinar del Río “would have obtained offers of between $50 and $70 million if he had entered the Major League market” in the United States.

In addition to Martínez and Moinelo, other Cubans with deals in the Japanese league are Carlos Monier, Frank Abel Álvarez, Cristian Rodríguez, Darío Sarduy and Ariel Martínez. There are also two other players with such contracts in Mexico, six in Italy, and four more in Canada.

Translated by Tomás A.

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Swiss Airline Edelweiss, Which Cancelled Its Flights in Cuba, Is Leaving for the Dominican Republic

The last flight on the Zurich to Havana route will depart February 27th. / Edelweiss/Facebook

14ymedio, Havana, January 26, 2025 — Gravely wounded in recent years, Cuba’s tourism industry is facing a new problem: airlines rerouting flights that they previously flew to the Island, but now prefer to land at its largest Caribbean competitor, the Dominican Republic.

That happened this week. David Collado, Minister of Tourism of the Dominican Republic, told the press during the International Tourism Fair (Fitur) under way in Spain, that Swiss airline Edelweiss is redirecting several of its Cuban routes.

“We signed agreements with several different operators and airlines today, and tomorrow we will continue signing with Iberia, Air Europa, and Edelweiss, bringing five additional flights to the Dominican Republic, flights that had gone to Cuba and are being transferred to the Dominican Republic,” said the minister, who affirmed that his country has made a successful effort to secure new air routes and commercial partners.

“Today, Air Transat and Air Canada informed us that they will also increase the number of flights from Canada as well, Collado added.”

The rerouting of flights came a few days after Edelweiss announced the suspension of its route from Zurich to Havana, which will make its last flight on February 27, the company explained to 14ymedio. continue reading

The Swiss media outlet Twenty Minutes, which initially reported the suspension of the routes, stated that “the decision is based, on the one hand, on decrease in demand and, on the other, on the current conditions of the José Martí International Airport in Havana. An on-site review conducted by Edelweiss has revealed difficulties in guaranteeing stable and reliable long-haul operations in the long term.”

The company pledged to refund the price of tickets to those who had purchased tickets after the deadline.

A month earlier, the German company Condor also announced the suspension of its flights to the Island for the summer season for the first time since 1990 (other than during the pandemic). The company served three destinations: Havana, Holguín, and Varadero.

Since Cuba was added to the list of states that sponsor terrorism, European citizens visiting the Island can no longer benefit from the ESTA visa waiver program for entering the United States, which, in the opinion of the Cuban Government, had damaged its destination in the European market.

The company pledged to refund the price of tickets to those who had purchased tickets after the deadline.

Travelers from Spain, previously an important market for Cuba, showed the most worrying drop: Up to November in 2024, Spain contributed 26.8% fewer travelers than in the first eleven months of 2023. It is not surprising, therefore, that the Cuban Minister of Tourism, Juan Carlos García Granda, arrived at Fitur stressing that his Government is working in the face of “difficult, complicated scenarios” in the tourism sector.

The promise of the Ministry of Transport to repair airports has also not been carried out. Last July, Minister of Transport Eduardo Rodríguez Dávila said that planned improvements at José Martí Airport in Havana (a new air conditioning system and facilities expansion) for terminal 3, dedicated to commercial flights, had never happened. “In reality, that airport has been at its limit for a long time. We have tried to make investments, and the Havana airport is the one that receives more than 50% of passenger arrivals,” he lamented then.

Translated by Tomas A.

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Las Tunas Court Accepts Habeas Corpus Petition Prepared by Cubalex for Detained Activists / Cubalex

Cubalex, 29 April 2021 — The Provincial Court of Las Tunas has accepted the special Habeas Corpus petition, presented through legal assistance from Cubalex, in favor of the activists Taimir García, Adrián Góngora and Damián Hechavarría, detained on April 21 after peacefully demonstrating in that eastern city. The court required the police to present the detainees at a public hearing.

The public hearing, which seeks to clarify the facts, will take place on April 29, at 2:00 p.m., at the courthouse.

Cubalex applauds Jorge Luis García Fajardo, Annia Naomi Cortés, Jesús Canales Romero and Luis Fernández Reyna, judges of the judicial body, for working with the independence that their positions require, to comply with the provisions of the law and guarantee due process in this case.

Criminal Court Division One continue reading

Writ Granting Hearing in Habeas Corpus Proceeding

President – Gerardo Peña Canales

Judges – Jorge Luis García Fajardo, Annia Naomi Cortés, Jesús Canales Romero, Luis Fernández Reyna

In Las Tunas on April 28, 2021

Granting a petition for habeas corpus presented by citizen Holmis Rivas Carmenate in favor of the detainees Taimir García Meriño, Adrián Miguel Góngora Santiesteban and Damián Hechavarría Labrada against the detention carried out by officers of the National Revolutionary Police

Judge Gerardo Peña Canales presiding –

As a result of the proceedings, the Court finds that a habeas corpus procedure has been filed on behalf of the detainees Taimir García Meriño, Adrián Miguel Góngora Santiesteban and Damián Hechavarría Labrada which requests that a hearing be held, seeking their immediate release on the grounds that their arrest and subsequent transfer to the Provincial Investigation Unit of Las Tunas is arbitrary.

Considering that the petition is exercised in the manner prescribed in article 467 et seq. of the Criminal Procedure Law, conforming as required, and according to what is pertinent.

The Court Agrees:

To schedule the date, time and place to hold a hearing for a habeas corpus proceeding.

Requiring the Provincial Instructor who handles the process to present the detainees Taimir García Meriño, Adrián Góngora Santiesteban, and Damián Hechavarría Labrada, to hold the hearing that will be held on April 29, 2021 at 2:00 p.m. in the Provincial Court of Las Tunas, having to submit a written form stating when and the reason for the arrest of these people, the crime charged, the dictated resolutions in effect and the other arguments considered in respect to the denounced violations by the person who presents the process, who must be served with a copy

In the more than 10 years that our organization has been assisting its clients in filing this legal remedy, this is the first time that a court has complied with the country’s rules and respected international standards. We believe that this first step could create a precedent for justice and respect for human rights.

The habeas corpus petition was filed in Court the day after the activists were arrested, when they protested a fine imposed on Hechavarría for selling medicinal plants. The event was broadcast live on Góngora’s Facebook profile and disseminated on social media with expressions of support for the activists. Hours later the altercation was covered on the Cuban TV Newscast. Humberto López described them as “criminals with terrible social behavior” and said that they would be turned over to the authorities.

Cubalex denounces such behavior as violating the principle of presumption of innocence. “When they report it [like this], all the judicial officials begin to prejudge it,” explains lawyer Giselle Morfi.

“In addition, most of the time, due to the inefficiency of the Central Criminal Registry, they don’t prepare a timely update of the record of prior offenses and they also bring that up without it being correct.”

The specialist adds that it also lends itself to confusion and parallel trials regarding prior criminal records because they impose fines that do not leave a record and people assume it is true, and their criminal history expands many times, without having it. “This goes against another important principle, which is the social reintegration of the arrested person. How can someone, who has been portrayed under a high-magnification lens as a criminal, return to their pre-broadcast state, even if they are tried and acquitted? It is unethical for press professionals to participate in this,” concludes the lawyer.

With some 30 habeas corpus proceedings presented by Cubalex to the country’s courts from January through March 2021, this is not the first time that a Court has granted the petition, recognized in Article 96 of the Cuban Constitution and enacted in the Criminal Procedure Law. On February 3, activist Hanoi Morán Dime was released after the Provincial Court of Havana considered the habeas corpus petition drawn up by Cubalex. But on that occasion the judges did not clarify the circumstances of the request or hold a public hearing, as required.

Translated by Tomás A.

The Current Status of Luis Manuel Otero Alcantara’s Health / Cubalex

Garotte Vil Performance by Luis Manuel Otera Alcántera (Democratic Spaces)

Cubalex, 10 May 2021 [please note date*] — We present a summary of our report, which you can read in its entirety at this link.

The situation that Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara is going through is the result of the unequal relationship between the power of the State and that of the citizen who expresses disagreement with government decisions and demands respect for and the guarantee of fundamental rights.

The State abuses its power, and one example of this is that on May 2, after being on a hunger and thirst strike for a week, Otero Alcántara’s home was raided and he was forcibly transferred to the “General Calixto García” University Hospital, where he has been forced to abandon his strike, based on the medical treatment that was imposed on him, contrary to the Declaration of Malta, which the government claims to respect.

Previously, the State itself had denied on more than one occasion that the strike was real. The denial remains when they allege that Otero has a state of “self-reported voluntary starvation” and, paradoxically, has been confined and incommunicado for 9 days, under the supervision of a “multidisciplinary team that guarantees the recovery of his state of health.” The last note from the Provincial Health Directorate, the only source of partial information available, insists that he has recovered calories and that continue reading

a dermatologist gave him “a treatment,” without explaining which treatment and the reason for it.

The institution violated his right to medical self-determination, by not allowing him to voluntarily choose his admission, treatment, and the doctors who would attend him, functionaries of the State: Dr. Carlos Alberto Martínez Blanco, director of the hospital, deputy to the National Assembly and member of the Council of State, and Dr. Ifrán Martínez Gálvez, deputy director of the hospital, who represents himself as head of the specialized team that attends him personally, and even walks with the patient through the hospital complex, on camera. They also violated his right to informational self-determination when they disseminated the medical results from his clinical record through official media, presumably without his consent.

Currently, Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara remains incommunicado and only the official version is known without being able to verify with him or his relatives who have had closer contact, because the government refuses to provide detailed information to the press, to his friends, and to the San Isidro Movement that represents Luis Manuel. Meanwhile, lack of transparency continues to reign in Cuba and the principle of maximum disclosure is violated, by preventing access to information, contrary to international standards for the protection of human rights.

Translated by Tomás A.

*Ed. note: We currently are ’catching up’ on translations of Cubalex and reaching back to earlier months. Please note the dates on these posts. Thank you.

A Doctor of Law Lies in the Official Media / Cubalex

Cubalex, Laritza Diversent, 2 September 2021 — It is irresponsible (as a professional and as a teacher) for the “Doctor of Legal Sciences” Mayda Goite Pierre to give her opinion on things she doesn’t know about or hasn’t even studied. If silence is bad, a cover-up is worse; her opinions misinform the public and confuse her students.

Ms. Goite, at least take the trouble to read the International Convention against Forced Disappearance that the Cuban State signed and ratified, and is therefore obligated (erga omnes) to follow.

Elements of forced disappearance

1. Deprivation of liberty

2. Direct intervention by state agents or others, with their consent and protection

3. Refusal to acknowledge the arrest and/or to reveal the fate or the whereabouts of the person concerned

MININT (Ministry of the Interior) agents have been committing crimes of forced disappearance before and after 11J (11 July).

Continuous or permanent nature of the enforced disappearance: continue reading

The act of disappearance and its execution

1. It begins with the deprivation of liberty of the person and the subsequent lack of information about the fate of the person;

2. It lasts as long as the person’s whereabouts are not known and the person’s identity is determined with certainty.

Once committed, the crime can be prolonged continuously or permanently until the moment when the fate or the whereabouts of the victim is established.

Forced disappearance is an illegal act that generates multiple and continuous violations of fundamental rights:

not to be arbitrarily detained,

not to be subjected to torture,

to life and to the recognition of legal personality.

Victims who suffer forced disappearance are treated contrary to inherent human dignity while in state custody.

Forced disappearance places the victim in a state of complete defenselessness and involves related crimes: the detained person is in a serious situation of vulnerability and risk of suffering irreparable damage to life and personal integrity due to the mere fact of prolonged separation and coercive isolation, which represents cruel and inhuman treatment.

Although the presentation of a Habeas Corpus petition obliges the courts to carry out judicial supervision of the actions of agents of the PNR (National Revolutionary Police) and State Security, under the guarantee of due process, there are legal obstacles and judicial practices that render this remedy ineffective.

Mrs. Goite, take the trouble to study the records that have been filed in the Provincial Court (I’m sure that you do have access) related to the requests to initiate this procedure and you will find a series of legal obstacles that make the Habeas Corpus petition ineffective, especially because they do not meet the standards that guarantee the protection of people against torture, ill-treatment, and forced disappearances, for the following reasons:

1. The law requires the petitioner for Habeas Corpus to designate “the place where the person is being deprived of it [liberty]; and the [government] authority or its agent, or the official who is maintaining” the deprivation of liberty against the person in whose favor the order of liberty is being requested. This requirement leaves people unprotected against possible forced disappearances, rendering the remedy ineffective.

2. The Criminal Procedure Law does not provide for the possibility of initiating a Habeas Corpus proceeding if a “provisional sentence or arrest warrant” was issued in the process, which makes this remedy ineffective against arbitrary detentions.

If you follow my recommendation, you will also find judicial practices in the processing of this remedy that violate the fundamental principles that govern the judicial function, those which show the dependence on and complicity of judges with the agents of the Ministry of Interior, whom they are biased in favor of, to the detriment of the fundamental rights of detained persons.

When responding to the petitions presented, the acting judges:

1. Limit themselves to verifying that the documentation required by criminal procedural legislation was presented in the proceedings, without verifying the information provided in the request, and they only accept as valid the version of the authorities responsible for the arrest.

2. They never pronounce on the reasons for detention, violence, or use of force in arrests, incommunicado detention, forced disappearance and the right of access to defense, and they rarely report on transfers and places of detention where the person is held.

3. They almost never agree to hold an oral hearing, which is mandatory, and so they do not check for themselves the whereabouts and condition of the detained person.

4. Most of the time, they declare the petition inadequate and “improper”, arguing that the arrest took place “with all the procedural guarantees and within the established legal bounds.”

Lack of judicial control in the domestic context:

Judges evade their responsibility regarding judicial control of the actions of law enforcement officials and thereby:

1. They do not comply with the application of the law and fundamental principles of rights that govern the judicial function.

2. They favor arbitrariness, abuses of power, and violations of fundamental constitutional rights, especially the right to liberty and personal security.

3. They limit access to justice and fail to comply with the State’s international obligations regarding the prosecution of international crimes such as torture and forced disappearance, which are currently not included in [Cuban] criminal law, despite the fact that Cuba is a party to the respective international treaties.

There can be no doubt that the judges who have heard and denied the habeas corpus petitions presented as a result of 11J, are necessary cooperators in the serious human rights violations committed by agents of the Ministry of the Interior under orders from the political group that controls the State and Government, in order to guarantee their permanence in power, without political alternatives.

Translated by Tomás A.

Detentions and Besieged Activists: No One Can See Luis Manuel Otero / Cubalex

Cubalex, 12 May 2021 [please note date*] — Cubalex monitored acts of harassment against civil society from May 3rd to 9th, as well as government measures taken in the context of the pandemic and events of shortages of products and basic goods. This report also breaks down the selective internet outages that activists and dissidents have suffered, and highlights the threats, attacks, and violations of rights from the official press.

In one week, our organization documented some 15 people who were victims of home confinement. Most of them were surrounded throughout the week to prevent them from reaching the Calixto García hospital where the authorities are keeping Luis Manuel Otero incommunicado. In addition there were also 20 arrests mainly related to the status of Luis Manuel and the impossibility of accessing him.

We also recorded two incidents of violence against women activists at the hands of the police or public officials. In the case of Carolina Barrero, she was stripped and beaten by women agents in the presence of a male officer. Also in Havana, the activist Yeilis Cruz reported having been beaten by the member of the Party’s Central Committee, Humberto López, when she was filming him on the public street. The activist is currently being detained in the 100th and Aldabó prison in Havana, accused of an assault.

Download our weekly monitoring report on the human rights situation on the Island for more details.

Translated by Tomás A.

*Ed. note: We currently are ’catching up’ on translations of Cubalex and reaching back to earlier months. Please note the dates on these posts. Thank you.

What’s Happened to Luis Manuel Otero Since he was Imprisoned? / Cubalex

Cubalex, 12 May 2021 [please note date*] — On April 25, after suffering constant acts of repression, Luis Manuel Otero made the decision to go on a hunger strike as a protest. On April 30, members of his family reported that he was very weak. On the seventh day of the strike, Luis Manuel Otero declared: “If my body dies, I hope it will continue to be a spark for the freedom of Cuba.”

On May 1st, he was in a precarious state of health when the authorities tried to access his house against his will, as reported on social media. So taking advantage of the early hours of Sunday, May 2, State Security agents entered his home and took him away. He was forcibly hospitalized in the Emergency Center of the General Calixto García University Hospital. Since then he has been isolated and held incommunicado. The only information filtering out about him is what is allowed by State Security.

In this report we analyze the events begore his hunger strike and what has happened to Otero Alcántara since he was imprisoned.

Translated by Tomás A.

*Ed. note: We currently are ’catching up’ on translations of Cubalex and reaching back to earlier months. Please note the dates on these posts. Thank you.

Activist Fined for Trying to See Luis Manuel Otero Alcantara / Cubalex

The activist Mario Alberto Hernández Leyva (Courtesy)

Cubalex, 13 May 2021 — The activist Mario Alberto Hernández Leyva of the Opposition Movement for a New Republic was fined yesterday, May 11, for trying to enter the Calixto García hospital to inquire about the health status of Luis Manuel Otero. The activist took with him the response that the Court issued to the Habeas Corpus drafted by Cubalex, following our recommendation, where it was clarified that Otero was not incarcerated against his will, but rather was hospitalized as an ordinary patient.

Not only was he unable to visit the patient, but he was fined for circumventing the security that surrounds Luis Manuel. Mario Alberto was sanctioned under Article 2, subsection h of Decree 141, which specifies that: “Contravening the rules of collective security is subject to a fine and other measures indicated and will be imposed in each case in which: h) security devices to prevent the commission of crimes are destroyed, damaged or disabled, of 100 pesos and the obligation to restore, repair or pay the amount for doing so.” The activist had been arrested along with other members of the Movement on May 3 after trying to corroborate Otero’s state of health in the hospital where he was being kept isolated and incommunicado.

After showing up at the hospital information desk, they were intercepted by State Security agents, who were notified by the hospital’s own employees. They were interrogated, threatened, and told that they were forbidden to go near the hospital. If Luis Manuel Otero is hospitalized voluntarily as an ordinary patient, as the Court has certified, why does this leader of the San Isidro Movement not have access to his phone? Why has each person who has tried to see him ended up fined or detained? Why are such measures applied only to him and his visitors, and not to other patients? What is happening to Luis Manuel Otero? Is he a patient, as the health authorities subordinate to State Security claim, or is he a political prisoner?

Translated by Tomás A.

A Member of the Central Committee Assaults a Woman in Cuba, and She is the One Who is Arrested / Cubalex

Cubalex, 13 May 2021 — On May 8, Yeilis Torres Cruz, a former prosecutor and human rights activist, approached Humberto López, the journalist and member of the Party’s Central Committee, who was on the public street after leaving a rental house in the La Lisa neighborhood of the Coronela, while not in the performance of his official duties, and asked him in a friendly, peaceful manner in a conversational tone of voice, how he was doing, as a form of a greeting, along with another question about his personal life. Humberto López responded by attacking Yeilis and trying to grab her cell phone. This can be seen in the video.

A short time later, Yeilis was shown in another video where she appears with injuries to her face and arms, very nervous and crying, after having had to defend herself from a man who threw her to the ground and took advantage of her plight to try to rip off her cell phone while hitting her in the belly and kicking her arm.

Humberto López touched her genitals while searching for her cell phone, and exposed her buttocks in the middle of the street, a situation that he used to take photos of her half naked, with the intention of disparaging her. Torres Cruz had to go to her house barefoot, because continue reading

her sandals broke trying to flee from the beating that the journalist gave her.

Although State Security agents swarmed her home, she was able to get to the hospital to seek medical help. The doctors acknowledged her injuries, but refused to issue a complete medical report, claiming that they would only do so if requested by the police, after she filed the complaint.

She went to the Police Unit to file a complaint but they refused to accept it.

Yeilis Torres Cruz is currently detained at 100 and Aldabó*, far from her two children, one of them only 6-years-old, for having been officially accused of the crime of assault, after being brutally violated by the State spokesman, Humberto López.

In the last video from her, planned in advance and published today, Yeilis asks the community for support for her family in case the government detained her for political reasons. Which is what happened.

[*a notorious Secret Police torture facility and jail]

Translated by Tomás A.

‘Our People’ Do Not Want to Return to Capitalism, Asserts Cuban Minister of Economy

A Cuban may not own more than one business (though it may have widespread activity), since it is contrary to the socialist principle against accumulating wealth. (yelo34)

14ymedio, Madrid, September 1, 2021 — The ministers of the Government’s economic area, led by Vice Prime Minister Alejandro Gil, appeared on the Mesa Redonda (Roundtable) television program on Tuesday, presumably to give the “Necessary answers regarding the actors of the Cuban economy.” Although little news came out of this tedious exercise, there was time to finish the program by denying that the approval of the MSMEs [micro, small, and medium-size enterprises] could mean a return to capitalism which, as they argued, is not what the people want.

Gil contended that the approval of the norms that regulate non-agricultural cooperatives and micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, which comes into force on September 20, is nothing more than an improvement and modernization of socialist principles. “We do not want a capitalist and neoliberal style project,” he argued, despite the fact that the Cuban economy is increasingly on the path to a ruthless state capitalism.

“We are going to achieve a country with greater coherence, where people can develop their life project. This is more socialism and more Revolution,” Gil claimed in a kind of final argument.

Along the same line, the ministers had already referred to the impossibility of having more than one company per person, a rule that is based on the constitutional (socialist) principle of avoiding the concentration of property and wealth. Nor, for the same reason, can one company be continue reading

a partner of another. “It would be laughable if successive MSMEs were set up where the owner was always the same person. If this happened, it would be in a way breaking the rule,” they warned. Of course, they pointed out that the company’s corporate purpose can be so broad that it includes multiple services.

The ministers went over the most frequent doubts that have circulated since the legislative content became known, but the answers did not clarify much, when all they did was limit themselves to repeating what was already known.

For example, they insisted on pointing out what they have considered priority sectors for the first phase — which will be food production, technology-based companies related to additive manufacturing, robotics or the creation of new materials or establishing technology parks, local development projects — without explaining how they plan to manage, right off the bat, such a radical change in the country’s productive fabric.

The Minister of Economy also referred to the possibility of foreigners investing and, in that sense, recalled that the rule is the same as for the state-owned company: only a company that is set up as a mixed-ownership company may be formed with capital from a resident in Cuba and another abroad. But according to the Foreign Investment Law (2014), a “mixed company” is a “commercial company that takes the form of a corporation,” something that is prohibited to individuals and reserved to the State.

Nor does it change anything with respect to exports and imports, which can be done as long as they are channeled through a state company, and they are “prohibited” for professions, such as architects, lawyers, engineers, teachers, journalists or veterinarians.

Gil argued that professionals can work in the private sector, but cannot create a company dedicated exclusively to an activity that is not allowed, so that, based on their statements, a lawyer, for example, could offer legal services to a company, but could not represent it in court.

“There are a range of malicious opinions that say that if you are a professional you cannot work in a MSME or that if you work in one you have to develop an activity for which you are not qualified. This is not the case. . . . What is not allowed are activities that are dedicated only to professional services. Computer scientists, the pet veterinarian, the bookkeeper for accounting activities are allowed.” A short and very restrictive list.

The Minister of Labor and Social Security took on one of the questions that will remain to be answered later. Maria Elena Feito Cabrera gave assurance that the salary of workers in private companies may be decided by employers with the participation of workers through a collective agreement and with the participation of unions. But she did not specify whether there could be unions other than the official ones and whether employees could form their own collectives to look out for their interests.

The worst of last night’s news came from the Central Bank of Cuba, which affirmed that companies will be able to request loans in Cuban pesos, but not in foreign exchange, though in all probability they will have to buy a multitude of raw materials and supplies in the international market.

“To grant financing in that currency [freely convertible] we would have to have individuals involved who have income in that currency and the capacity to repay the financing, hence the possibility of withholding money for exports, or liquidity for sales to Mariel [Port of Mariel Special Development Zone], or for sale in MLC [Freely Convertible Foreign Currency] stores,” he explained.

Translated by Tomás A.

____________

The Convenience of the Inactivity of the National Assembly / Cubalex

Central Havana Municipal Assembly of People’s Power. Solutions from the Communities. (Screen capture)

Cubalex, Julio Ferrer Esq., 2 September 2021 — “The assembly is not in session, during which time governance is by decree, and the approval of laws in the legislative schedule is still pending. To this we add that the president affirms that the country’s institutional framework is being strengthened and reinforced.”

It is necessary to ask Homero Acosta, Secretary of the Council of State, how is it possible that the Municipal Assembly of Central Habana can meet, yet the National Assembly, the highest legislative body in the country, cannot?

Could it be that Covid-19 only represents a danger for national deputies? Is it not convenient for the Cuban government that the highest legislative body should meet? If it did, it would have no option but to comply with the Legislative Schedule and approve the much-announced and long-awaited laws such as that of the claim, before the courts, for violation of constitutional rights, and of Criminal Procedure, and of the one that should implement the right to peaceful demonstration and protest.

The legislative inactivity of the National Assembly allows the authorities to continue enjoying the state of impunity that they have always enjoyed, especially after July 11, 2021. They continue to apply obsolete legal provisions untempered by continue reading

the new Constitution, as is the case with the archaic Criminal Procedure Law, dating back more than 44 years. This law permits holding summary trials without an appearance by a defense attorney, in outright disregard of what is established in article 95, subsection b, of the Constitution.

In my opinion, believe me I wish I were wrong, the Constitution will continue to be disrespected in Cuba by the very authorities who are responsible for asserting the superiority of that Magna Carta. Cuba continues to be governed by decrees, resolutions, agreements, etc., in a manner less democratic, less inclusive, and less participatory for ordinary citizens. Their opinions are not taken into account in the drafting and editing of these decrees and other normative provisions, issued without being prepared in the Legislative Schedule.

And so the President asserts that in this way the country’s institutionality and the “Socialist State of Law” are strengthened and reinforced. This term, which according to him was embodied in the new Constitution, still waits to be defined or conceptualized: at this point we do not know what the “Socialist State of Law” is.

Translated by Tomás A.

More Than 400 People Continue to be Detained After the Cuban Protests of July 11

No one detained during the 11th July protests is still listed as missing by Cubalex. (Screen capture)

14ymedio, Havana, September 1, 2021 — At least 405 people arrested during the protests in Cuba that began on July 11 remain in prison, according to a report by the Cubalex legal advice center. These data, collected independently with the help of a group of volunteers, show that of the total number of arrests (898), the crimes most commonly charged are “public disorder,” “contempt,” “instigation to commit a crime,” and “assault.”

One of those who remains imprisoned is Liliana Ferrer, 20, arrested in the La Güinera neighborhood of Havana in the heat of the July 12 protests. The young woman is currently in the Guatao prison accused of assault. Her mother, Lizandra Ferrer, tells 14ymedio that she spoke with her by phone this Wednesday but that “she doesn’t know anything about her legal proceedings.”

“She’s accused of assault but there are many charged with the same crime who were bailed out for 2,000 pesos. Then they paid a fine and are now free,” she says in anguish. “So I don’t understand what’s happened with her. They haven’t held a trial. I already hired a lawyer but he hasn’t gotten a change of status for her so she can be at home.”

She explains that on the block where they live the authorities have done “like three investigations” regarding her daughter’s social behavior and continue reading

that she knew that they have always “spoken highly of her, that she doesn’t meet with antisocial people and that she is a good little girl. I don’t understand why she’s going through this.”

The mother claims she doesn’t know precisely what evidence they have against Ferrer. “Some people, including the lawyer, have told me that they accuse her of having a bottle in her hand and that in a photo of her you can see when she gives it to a man who asks for it,” she explained.

The sisters Lisdani and Lisdiani Rodríguez Isaac, both 22 years old, are in a similar situation. They are being held under a “precautionary measure of provisional imprisonment” in Guamajal Prison, in Placetas, Villa Clara, for the crimes of “public disorder, contempt, instigation to commit a crime, assault, and the propagation of epidemics.”

Also in prison awaiting trial on assault charges are Livan Hernández Lago, from Artemisa; Luis Felipe Castillo Ochoa, from Havana, and Maykel Armentero Oramas, in Villa Clara. María Cristina Garrido, from Mayabeque, charged with the crime of attack, is also accused of “public disorder, resistance, and the propagation of epidemics.”

In Holguín province, Marco Antonio Pintueles, a business student, is also accused of assault after his arrest in the Plaza de la Revolución in that province. The young man is currently in the Provincial Prison, according to a report by his mother, Dairy Marrero, speaking to Radio Martí.

The woman says that she went to the Prosecutor’s Office seeking information on her son’s case but didn’t get answers “anywhere” and considers what happened “an injustice.” “He’s a boy who just turned 18. I didn’t know he’d been arrested until about five days ago when he called me from prison,” Rivero explained this Tuesday.

The crime of assault, according to the Cuban Penal Code, carries a prison sentence of one to three years.

On Cubalex’s list, no detainee is reported as missing. One of those who had been included in this category is the dissident José Daniel Ferrer, but his family reported this Friday that they had received a letter signed by him, which they are “fairly certain” is from him. In the letter, Ferrer, leader of the Patriotic Union of Cuba (Unpacu), said he is being held in Mar Verde prison, in Santiago de Cuba.

“We give some credence to it, but we can’t guarantee that it’s really his own handwriting,” said his sister, Ana Belkis Ferrer García. The dissident has been incarcerated since July 11.

The activist also said that the letter complains that since August 12, Ferrer “remains confined semi-naked in an isolation cell, in cruel, inhuman and degrading conditions” and that “on two occasions they have forceably put him in the uniform of a common prisoner. They refuse to give him his own clothes, so he’s in his underwear.” Regarding his health, she said that he had “serious problems with heartburn and constant stomach pain.”

Translated by Tomás A.

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