Enjoy Travel’s corporate image was shared on its social networks in June 2023, on the occasion of the opening of its route between Barcelona and Havana. (Facebook/Enjoy Travel Group)
14ymedio, Madrid, February 13, 2024 — The Spanish company Enjoy Travel Group will establish direct charter flights between Madrid and Havana this coming summer. On Tuesday, the vice president of marketing and sales, Luis Jiménez, explained to Prensa Latina that an Airbus from the Plus Ultra company with 288 seats will be used. The route will be operational between June 29 and September 7, 2024.
The executive also said that they have made agreements with high-speed train companies in Spain – the state-owned Renfe and the private Iryo – to connect the provinces with Madrid for the flight to Havana. On the Island, the tour operator collaborates with large hotel companies such as Meliá, Iberostar, Blue Diamond and Kempinski.
This new route, he says, is based on the “success” of a similar route from Barcelona, which was operational last summer with a weekly frequency. In July 2023, Enjoy Travel was involved in some controversy by sponsoring the trip to Cuba of more than 20 Spanish influencers with the aim of encouraging foreign tourism to the Island, which, despite what the regime advertises, is not improving: in 2023, there were 2,436,980 international visitors, 42.8% less than in 2019 and 31% lower than expected. continue reading
The president of the Ibero-American Network of Accessible Tourism told the agency that Cuba “facilitates” the travel of “people with disabilities or reduced mobility”
Prensa Latina states, through Luis Jiménez, that the “accessible tourism” firm has been “a receptive vertical wholesale operator for more than 20 years, which now offers assistance and advice to the customer in Cuba 24 hours a day with several programs of tourism.”
The president of the Ibero-American Network of Accessible Tourism, Diego González, who is also an advisor to Enjoy Travel, told the agency that Cuba “facilitates” the travel of “people with disabilities or reduced mobility”.
The same tour operator offers “multi-destination” trips from Mexico with 15 weekly trips to Cuba.
The Plus Ultra airline is the same one Miguel Díaz-Canel used for his last international trips due to the lack of Cuban Aviation aircraft. The company is relaunching itself after complaints of alleged irregularities in a loan granted by the Spanish Government were shelved, and it is increasing its presence on the Island. Just last month, for example, it inaugurated a route between Poland and Cuba.
Translated by Regina Anavy
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Qatar is among the nations that pay well for Cuban medical cooperation. (Cubadebate)
14ymedio, Madrid, 13 February 2024 — That the Cuban Government keeps between 70% and 95% of what a foreign country pays for each health worker is not new, nor is it new that the regime alleges that part goes to cover the expenses of, among other things, Public Health. The novelty is in comparing it with the taxes that are paid in many European countries through a simplification that could be described as ignorance, if it were not for the fact that it is published by a media that knows what it is talking about.
The international pro-Castro channel Cubainformación, located in Spain, has released a video on Tuesday to talk about the “war against Cuban medical cooperation,” whose epicenter, it says, is in Mexico. The report explains that Cuban international missions are divided into several types: those that are entirely covered by Cuba, in the poorest countries, those that have the contribution of the two parties and, finally, those that are sent to countries with more resources, for which the Island receives a payment.
This amount includes, details the report, stipends and allowances for cooperating personnel, expenses (flights, lodging and maintenance), salaries and, finally, an amount that goes to the Public Health System. Cubainformation tries to ridicule “the media and contracting organizations” whom it considers allies of the United States in its “war” by mocking the different percentages that the Government retains. “The ’Cuban regime’ practices ’modern slavery’ or ’forced labor’ of its medical personnel because it ’retains’ more than 70% – or 75%, 80% or 95%, because there are different figures according to the imagination of the source – of the payment,” it jokes. continue reading
“Even accepting the figure of 70%, discounting the expenses assumed by the Cuban State, we would not be at a tax pressure much higher than that of Belgium, for example”
Then, however, it recognizes that “the data is difficult to verify,” but admits that it may be the least amount withheld compared to other countries. “Even accepting the figure of 70%, discounting the expenses assumed by the Cuban State, we would not be at a tax pressure much higher than that of Belgium, for example,” it concludes.
The surprising analogy comes from the opening of the video, which states that “in a country like Belgium, of the gross salary of a worker, 53% is withheld by the State” as taxes to cover social security and the public budget, and it adds that calling this a “business” of the Belgian Government is a joke. The comparison would reveal an amazing ignorance if it were not for the fact that the author is from Spain, a country where the tax system works like the Belgian one.
The 53% mentioned comes from the OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) classification, which placed Belgium as the country with the highest taxes of the 38 countries that compose it. That indicator includes not only what employees contribute in terms of taxes, but also what companies contribute for them. But in addition, what workers pay of their gross salary is basically made up of contributions to Social Security and Personal Income Tax (IRPF).
The latter is paid progressively, according to a system of brackets established by law. A percentage is applied to each segment that increases according to the amount contributed, so it is not applied to the total salary. In addition, the personal income tax takes into account the circumstances of the worker, particularly if he or she lives alone and/or has children.
The tax is paid progressively, according to a system of brackets established by law
In summary, Cubainformation is comparing an average percentage – obviously there are Belgians paying more or less according to the personal case – which is the sum of the company and worker contributions in the country where the figure is the highest in the world, with the at least 70% applied to the total salary of any Cuban doctor abroad without distinction. In addition, it seems to the media that 70% “is not much higher” than 53%, despite being 23 points higher.
The highest tax bracket among the OECD countries is in Europe at 41.2%, while that of Chile is 13.5%. The highest in the United States is 37%; in return everyone enjoys an infinite number of public services ranging from health and education to garbage collection and transport. These services have such high overall quality that they are used by citizens regardless of their tax bracket. These countries, with the Nordics at the head, lead international rankings every year in terms of development index, well-being and minor inequalities, among others, despite the cyclical economic difficulties they can experience.
Aware of these aspects, with its headquarters in Spain (fifteenth highest tax bracket at 39.4%), Cubainformación compares them – simplifying – with what happens with the appropriation of the salaries of Cuban doctors abroad and forgets that, even accepting its version, the regime never details in a General State Budget (as these nations do) what it spends its income on.
The truth is, as the Government of Cuba itself reports, that more than 33% of the State budget goes to tourism investments
“Ending this income means preventing Cuba from buying or manufacturing medicines, repairing hospitals, importing medical technology or, simply, the economic improvement of cooperating personnel and their families,” continues the video.
The truth is, as the Government of Cuba itself reports, that more than 33% of the State budget goes to tourism investments. This is reflected in the public accounts of 2022, where it is seen that Health and Education together received a tenth of the investment dedicated to the construction of hotels and services linked to tourism. Specifically, in fact, only 2.1% was dedicated to Health and Public Assistance.
The video also addresses other issues, such as the vaccines sold to Mexico, which many of its citizens have openly rejected, the alleged lack of training of the health workers sent to other countries and the discomfort among the national professionals.
But the most disturbing thing is the rhetorical question that, curiously, it has answered minutes before. “How is it possible for a Government to be able to ’force’ 600,000 ’slaves’ to 165 countries, as Havana has achieved in these 60 years?” The author himself has already revealed the answer by talking about the payments made, as a stipend, by the governments that hire their services: “It means, de facto, multiplying their Cuban salary,” the one they receive when they are at home, which does not allow them to live with dignity.
Translated by Regina Anavy
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Meeting between the delegations of Bolivia and Cuba this Monday in Havana. (@BrunoRguezP)
EFE (via 14ymedio), Havana, February 13, 2024 — The Cuban Foreign Minister, Bruno Rodríguez, thanked his Bolivian counterpart, Celinda Sosa, on Monday, for the collaboration “in agri-food matters” and the donations of medicine and food to the Island, which is immersed in a serious economic crisis.
According to a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the recognition was made during the official conversations held by both foreign ministers in Havana in the framework of Sosa’s first official visit to Cuba since taking office last November.
At the meeting, Cuba and Bolivia agreed on “the need to maximize economic-commercial relations and create mechanisms that generate new initiatives for their development,” the official statement said.
The agreements were also reviewed with bilateral political consultations, and “strategies were drawn up to continue strengthening and consolidating bilateral relations.” continue reading
At the meeting, Cuba and Bolivia agreed on “the need to maximize economic-commercial relations and create mechanisms that generate new initiatives for their development
Rodríguez also took advantage of the meeting to thank Sosa for “the Bolivian Government’s signs of solidarity, including the donations of food and medical supplies to our people.”
The meeting was held shortly after the Bolivian chancellor had a meeting with the president of Cuba, Miguel Díaz-Canel.
“We had a good meeting today with the Chancellor of the Plurinational State of Bolivia, Celinda Sosa. With the brotherhood that unites our peoples, we talked about what has been done but also about how much more we can do. I thanked her for the unbreakable love and solidarity of Bolivia,” Díaz-Canel wrote on social networks.
The visit, which had not been announced by Havana nor open to the international media, will conclude with a conference at the University of Havana entitled “Industrialization and the productive community social economic model.”
Translated by Regina Anavy
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The UNE says that four generators of the ’patana’ (floating Turkish power plant) of Melones will come into operation for the peak hours. (14ymedio)
14ymedio, Havana 13 February 2024 — The generation deficit predicted by the Electric Union (UNE) broke a new record on Tuesday, with the announcement that 1,308 megawatts (MW) and up to 1,378 MW at peak hours will be missing. Cubans already know what that means: the climax of the energetic debacle after several weeks of blackouts, despite being in the coolest season of the year. Complaints have erupted on the company’s social networks.
According to the UNE, unit 2 of the Felton thermoelectric plant, in Holguín, and unit 5 of Renté, in Santiago de Cuba, are out of service due to a breakdown. Likewise, unit 8 of Mariel (Artemisa), unit 3 of Santa Cruz (Mayabeque) and unit 4 of Cienfuegos are under maintenance.
During peak hours, the company says, four generators of the Turkish patana [floating power plant] of Melones, located in Havana Bay, with 65 MW and 27 MW respectively, will come online. The system relies on these generators, but the sum does not even cover the deficit in thermal generation, which amounts to 338 MW. continue reading
On the UNE Facebook page, users do not let up on the company, which “every day (announces) less generation availability”
On the UNE Facebook page, users do not let up on the company, which “every day (announces) less generation availability,” with forecasts that fall short in the face of reality. This was the case on Monday, when the UNE reported a deficit of 1,033 MW that became 1,183 MW. “San Antonio de los Baños, as always, was at the forefront, from 8 pm to 12 am, and at 5 am we began the cycle again and are still waiting,” complained a netizen from Artemisa, alluding to the intense day of blackouts on Monday.
Residents in Granma, Holguín, Matanzas and Las Tunas provinces made similar claims and pointed out that “all of Cuba (is) turned off with the exception of the capital,” a complaint that has been spread among those who complain to the UNE that Havana is privileged while the rest of the country suffers up to 12 hours without electricity.
Other commentators, more sarcastic, announced the collapse of their plans for the celebration of Valentine’s Day on February 14 due to the blackouts. “They are going to give us a tremendous gift for the day of love and friendship,” said a reader.
The fuel crisis, with which the authorities justify everything from power cuts to the absence of food in the warehouses, was recently refuted by the British agency Reuters. With data provided from Venezuela and the monitoring of the transfer of oil ships to the Island, Reuters says that the amount of oil that passes through Cuba is more than enough to meet the demand.
According to the National Bureau of Statistics and Information, Cuba needs about 125,000 barrels per day (bpd) of fuel for electricity generation, gasoline and diesel. The country “has a constant national oil production of around 40,000 bpd that is used mostly for power generation, and it receives 56,000 bpd of crude oil and finished fuel from Venezuela, according to ship monitoring data provided by LSEG and documents from that country’s state company, PDVSA,” Reuters analyzes.
If to this is added the arrival of the 23,000 bpd from Mexico and another 10,000 bpd purchased from European countries, the Island would be receiving up to 129,000 bpd
If to this is added the arrival of the 23,000 bpd from Mexico and another 10,000 bpd purchased from European countries, the Island would be receiving up to 129,000 bpd, that is, 4,000 bpd more than its total consumption according to official data. The causes of the “alleged crisis” should be sought then, explains Reuters, in the failures of the infrastructure and internal logistics, as the expert from the University of Texas Jorge Piñón points out: of the three refineries in the country, only the one in Cienfuegos works, while those of Havana and Santiago de Cuba are shut down due to technical problems.
These problems are aggravated by the loss of hydrocarbon storage as a result of the destruction of the Matanzas supertanker base by the 2022 fire, which forces the distribution of the loads at several points on the island and on the ships themselves, until they can enter the refinery and be distributed.
Meanwhile, oil tankers continue to arrive in Cuba, including the Sea Hermes I, the Caribbean Alliance, the Sandino and the Pluto, which were reported this Tuesday in several ports, in addition to the Aquila and the Eco Fleet, announced for the coming days.
Translated by Regina Anavy
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The new dancers define their style as contemporary, with a clear influence from modern Cuban dance and the folkloric and popular dances. (EFE)
EFE (via 14ymedio), Madrid, 11 February 2024 — Acosta Danza Yunior, the new artistic project of the prestigious Cuban dancer and choreographer Carlos Acosta, debuts this weekend with a presentation at the emblematic Martí Theater in Havana. The new youth group is made up of 10 dancers from 18 to 20 years old, graduates from the academy belonging to the company founded by Acosta in 2016 with an artistic style that combines contemporary movement and classical ballet.
The new generation is ready to perform, having completed a special curriculum for three years. The promoters point out that they will have their own choreographic repertoire and particular program of presentations.
They also define their style as contemporary, with a clear influence from Cuban modern dance and the folk and popular dances of the Island, without disdaining the technical touch of classical ballet.
For their first season, ’Green Shoots’, they will perform ’Fuga’, ’Hybrid’ and ’Nosotros’, where the dancers show their energy, passion and freshness, and that desire to “eat the world,” as their mentor Acosta expressed in the program for their first public performance. continue reading
“The three creations are artistic approaches to the complex moments we are living,” said the general director of the ’older sister’ company of the group.
Acosta Danza Yunior “will be the space where many artists will begin their professional careers, and they will adorn the stage in the coming decades”
Acosta Danza Yunior “will be the space where many artists will begin their professional careers, and they will adorn the stage in the coming decades. It is a place to grow, excel, experiment and mature,” he said.
Behind the curtain, the dancers move nervously, wearing light clothing to stage ’Fuga’, a world premiere piece that was specially conceived for Acosta Danza Yunior by the Spanish choreographer and dancer – based in Cuba – Susana Pous.
She has placed the context of her work “in a moment of escape, of flight.” She explains that she has not intended to “complicate the work from the dramaturgical point of view, but that’s what it’s all about: all that can mean sharing a space, and that space begins to be insufficient for some, too small for them, so that they feel the need to get out of there, to escape.”
The piece is joined by ’Hybrid’ and ’Nosotros’, which are versions of Acosta Danza choreographies that the new group will now perform.
’Nosotros’, the second work of the program, danced by Betty García and Raúl Reinoso, is a duet to reflect on the intermittences of relationships, both disagreements and coincident points, frustrations and the couple’s best moments.
As a culmination, ’Hybrid’ brings closure, as the dancers move freely and transmit their body energy to represent the message of the most complex work for debutants.
’Fuga’ is a world premiere piece that was specially conceived for Acosta Danza Yunior by the Spanish choreographer and dancer – located in Cuba – Susana Pous
Paul Brando García-Cachimaille and Thalía Cardín Díaz take the lead in ’Hybrid’, and even before recovering from the impact and the strong dynamics of their representation, they stated their impressions.
“We are very happy with this project that opens many doors for us in the world of art, to start a new stage in our artistic career and to grow artistically,” said García-Cachimaille, after saying that the previous training process and the long hours of rehearsals have been “difficult.”
His colleague Thalía Cardín Díaz said that “it has been a pleasure, and we are proud to work with these internationally recognized choreographers. It opens up our way of experiencing dance.”
The 19-year-old dancer hopes this presentation has “touched the soul” of the public and that “seeing dance as something relevant in these hard times makes us feel grateful for the art, for Acosta Danza and the people who support us.”
Translated by Regina Anavy
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The lack of fuel also forced the suspension of the second day of Cuban soccer. (Jit)
14ymedio/EFE, Havana, 11 February 2024 — Cuba postponed this Saturday the national sports events in development and those planned for the coming days in disciplines such as baseball in the face of the “complex situation with fuel.” A press release from the state National Institute of Sports, Physical Education and Recreation indicates that the decision to stop the competitive calendar covers all categories in soccer, cycling, softball, basketball and baseball.
“In a more favorable context for transportation, participants in the postponed events will be informed about the rescheduling of the sports calendar,” added the note published by Jit on its website.
In October 2023, the Baseball Commission of Havana took the team from the municipality of Cotorro out of the 63rd Provincial Series. The team received the disciplinary measure, announced this Thursday, “for not showing up for its last two meetings,” according to journalist Boris Luis Cabrera Acosta. The sports authorities did not accept the justification that the absences were due to the lack of transport caused by the shortage of fuel that affects Cuba. continue reading
The fuel crisis semi-paralyzed Cuba at the end of last 2023 and has remained in 2024, with long lines at gas stations becoming common
The lack of fuel also affected baseball in 2022. The first match of the U-23 championship of the National Baseball Series, between the Villa Clara and Cienfuegos teams, was suspended this Tuesday “for lack of fuel.” According to the “Por la Goma” YouTube channel, the Villaclareños Leopards, who were already staying at the Pasacaballos hotel, received the notification that they could not be transferred to the “5 de septiembre” stadium, where the host team and the local fans were waiting for them.
The annoying blackouts and the suspension of face-to-face classes at several universities, including the cancellation of the traditional and massive May Day parade in the Plaza de la Revolución, are evidence of the crisis.
The Island imports practically all the oil it consumes and uses it mostly to generate electricity.
Cuba already experienced complicated circumstances with fuel in 2019 and accused the Trump Administration of hindering the entry of fuel into the island by putting pressure on Venezuelan oil tankers.
Translated by Regina Anavy
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Five of the injured were transferred to the Comandante Pinares and Nacional hospitals, in the provinces of Pinar del Río and Havana, respectively. (El Artemiseño)
EFE/14ymedio, Havana, February 12, 2024 — A traffic crash on Sunday in Bahía Honda, in Artemisa province, left a preliminary count of 28 people injured, one of them seriously, according to state media.
The open truck involved was carrying a group of militants of the Union of Young Communists, who were returning from agricultural work on a sugarcane plantation, according to the local press. Open trucks are commonly used for passenger transport, throughout Cuba.
Five of the injured were transferred to the Comandante Pinares and Nacional hospitals, in the provinces of Pinar del Río and Havana, respectively. So far, the cause of the crash has not been specified.
Since the beginning of 2024, several serious traffic crashes have been recorded on the Island. Deaths from traffic crashes increased by 4% in 2023 (729) compared to 2022 (700), although fewer road crashes were recorded, according to data from the National Road Commission (CNA). continue reading
The open truck involved was carrying a group of militants of the Union of Young Communists, who were returning from agricultural work on a sugarcane plantation
In 2023, a total of 8,556 traffic crashes occurred, which represented a decrease of 13% compared to those reported in 2022 (9,848).
The Transportation authorities have pointed out that the poor condition of the roads due to lack of maintenance and the incorporation into the circulation of more than 400,000 mopeds have complicated road safety in the country.
They have also emphasized that among the causes of crashes are drivers who don’t pay attention to controlling the vehicle or respecting the right of way, situations that generated 60% of the crashes, 48% of the deaths and 66% of the injured.
The authorities place less emphasis on the state of the roads and the obsolete vehicles. The official state newspaper Granma recently recognized, although overlooked, the precarious condition of the roads, caused by “the limitations on investments for their improvement.”
According to official data from last July, 75% of the Island’s roads were in regular or bad condition.
Translated by Regina Anavy
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Russian tourists protest at Jardines del Rey International Airport. (Mash/Capture/Telegram)
14ymedio, Havana, February 11, 2024 — A group of Russian visitors were victims of the poor service provided by the Cuban tourism industry and decided to protest at Cayo Coco airport after an 18-hour delay in the fuel supply to the aircraft that was leaving for Moscow.
According to the Russian portal Bel, the flight was delayed due to a breakdown of the tanker truck that was transporting the fuel to the airport, while the tourism site Tourdom reported that the company in charge of the connection, Nordwind Airlines, stated that the reason for the delay was because “there was not enough fuel” in the Island terminal “to refuel the aircraft.”
The lack of fuel was known while the plane was preparing for takeoff, and the passengers were temporarily accommodated in a hotel
The lack of fuel was known while the plane was preparing for takeoff, and the passengers were temporarily accommodated in a hotel. A video of the protest was posted on Russian media. The tourists, angry and complaining, were not informed of what happened. One man stated that “they didn’t give us water for a long time. At three in the morning we checked into the hotel, and at seven they told us to get back on the bus.” They finally arrived at the airport for their flight to the Moscow-Sheremetievo International Airport. continue reading
Nordwind had planned to fly from Cayo Coco (Jardines del Rey International Airport) to Moscow on February 8 at six in the evening, but it left a day later and arrived in the Russian capital this Saturday.
Currently, Nordwind is the only airline that operates direct flights between Moscow and Cayo Coco.
The terrible services offered by the Island in the tourism sector are not exclusive to airports. On January 3, 14ymedio published the story of Maidelys, a Cuban woman who suffered a tortuous trip on a Viazul bus between Ciego de Ávila and Havana.
Three hours stranded on the highway due to the breakdown of the vehicle made several passengers, including foreigners and Cubans living abroad, miss their return flights.
After the reopening of borders that were closed due to COVID-19, the official Cuban press began to sell the Jardines del Rey as a safe destination despite the epidemiological complexities. The airport of the same name began to receive up to 35 flights per week.
On December 24 of last year, the Russian state airline Rossiya, a subsidiary of Aeroflot, resumed its direct flights between Moscow and Havana
In 2021, during the coronavirus crisis, Russia positioned itself as the first country to send tourists to Cuba. However, in September 2023, it was in third position with 120,065 tourists, behind Canada (709,555) and the United States (126,600).
On December 24 of last year, the Russian state airline Rossiya, a subsidiary of Aeroflot, resumed its direct flights between Moscow and Havana. This link between the two capitals had been suspended since March 2022, as a result of the sanctions imposed by the European Union on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. As a consequence, flights from Moscow had to travel over the North Pole to reach Cuba.
According to Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitri Chernishenko, between January and October 2023, tourism to Havana increased by 3.5 times, and by last November 164,197 Russian tourists had arrived on the Island.
Translated by Regina Anavy
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“Between the bad smells and the feces floating at the entrance, maintaining hygiene is impossible.” (14ymedio)
14ymedio, Miguel García, Holguín, February 10, 2024 — “I don’t know what’s worse, the plague or the lack of attention,” says Clara, a few feet from Office 24 of the Pedro del Toro Saad health clinic in the city of Holguín. On the outskirts of the premises, located on the road to the Mirador de Mayabe, a fetid liquid springs up from the sewer pipes and accumulates at the entrance. The spillage began last December, less than six months after the property was subjected to a “capital repair.”
“Just when we were under the illusion of being able to have higher quality care, we began noticing how the entrance was filled with sewage,” explains Clara, a diabetic with high blood pressure who lives nearby. “The doctor and nurse immediately reported the problem, but there’s no way they can work there because it’s a health hazard. Between the bad smells and the feces floating at the entrance, maintaining hygiene is impossible.”
The spillage began last December, less than six months after the office was subjected to a “capital repair”. (14ymedio)
The Hilda Torres neighborhood clinic serves 1,032 patients in the area, including two pregnant women. After closing the premises, the health authorities referred the patients to Office 25, which is some 650 feet away, but the congestion in the consultation rooms and the excessive number of patients are detriments to the care that they can receive. “It’s not worth going there; it can’t cope with all the patients. You spend hours for nothing and have to go back home.” continue reading
A week ago, after many criticisms and complaints, a vehicle specialized in evacuating the contents of the septic tank arrived at Office 24. “It should have come several times because of the large volume of waste, but it only came once because there is no fuel,” complains another resident. “Everyone knows this; we have repeatedly called the Polyclinic, Hygiene and Epidemiology, and nothing happens.”
The Hilda Torres neighborhood clinic serves 1,032 patients in the area, including two pregnant women
With an aging population, the Hilda Torres neighborhood also has a rough topography. “People who are in a wheelchair, the elderly with walkers and all of us who suffer from a locomotion problem find it very difficult to get to the other office because there is a steep hill,” adds the neighbor. “But once you arrive, you have to arm yourself with patience because it is always full of people. I calculate that in total there are more than 2,000 people who are now served there.”
“Closed for hygiene.” What was one of the health pillars of the Island is going through difficult times due to lack of investments and the loss of qualified personnel. (14ymedio)
The Family Doctor program in Cuba, which was originally designed for each office to provide care to between 600 and 700 patients, has been deteriorating with the exodus of professionals, the departure of others on official missions abroad and infrastructure problems. What was one of the health pillars of the Island is going through difficult times due to lack of investments and the loss of qualified personnel.
On the road to the Mirador de Mayabe, the panorama could not be more emblematic of what is happening along the entire Island: a closed office, the sewer waters covering part of its entrance and the logo of a rod with a coiled snake still hanging on the facade of the installation. The reptile seems to be lying in wait for the moment when the waste extraction vehicle comes back and patients can return to the benches, stretchers and blood pressure monitors.
Translated by Regina Anavy
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Yadira San Martín and William Rodríguez have been stranded along with their daughters in Tapachula (Chiapas) since August 2023. (Facebook)
14ymedio, Ángel Salinas, Mexico, 9 February 2024 — The fear of being imprisoned for expressing their dissatisfaction with the regime led Yadira San Martín Grillo, her husband William Rodríguez Acosta and their daughters, Yisel Esthefany and Yinelis Chantal, to leave the Island last year. This family, originally from Matanzas, arrived in Tapachula (Chiapas) on August 15, 2023, with the intention of processing their residence, but the Migration offices collapsed due to the flow of irregular migrants and suspended administrative procedures.
In an attempt to stay in Mexico, they went to the headquarters of the Mexican Refugee Aid Commission (Comar). After several days outside the facilities, they were helped and filled out an application. “We went on the indicated date and told a woman the reasons that led us to leave Cuba and the repression we suffered,” San Martín tells 14ymedio. “We can’t return because the regime doesn’t give work to those who flee. We want to settle in this country; we are hardworking people.” continue reading
According to the organization Sin Fronteras [Without Borders], those who ask for refuge in Mexico face different obstacles to obtain humanitarian status
On January 9, Comar informed them that their request was rejected. Its reason was that they had not “managed to prove a well-founded fear (credible fear).”
According to the NGO Sin Fronteras [Without Borders], those who ask for refuge in Mexico face different obstacles to obtain humanitarian status. Migrants “do not have access to an adequate interview to determine if they can obtain the condition.” In addition, “accompaniment is also not provided to people with disabilities or needs for psychological care.” Sin Fronteras indicated that only one in 10 applicants received a favorable response.
Comar assisted 2,352 Cubans last January, behind the 3,213 Hondurans who are requesting asylum in Mexico.
Lawyer José Luis Pérez, in charge of processing an amparo (protection order) for this family, denounces the incongruity of Article 11 of the Mexican Constitution, which indicates that “every person has the right to seek and receive asylum” but doesn’t explain how to do it “when the National Institute of Migration denies these people any procedure to obtain a humanitarian visa or permanent residence.”
The lawyer filed an appeal in the second district court of Tapachula, so that the family can travel to Mexico City and try to “reverse” Comar’s response at the capital headquarters. In case of obtaining the humanitarian visa or permanent residence, they will opt for the Multiple Immigration Form, which gives them the right to legally stay in Mexico for a certain time.
“There are arguments from the family to support the repression they suffered in Cuba,” the lawyer tells 14ymedio. Article 13 of the Refugee Law is clear, he emphasizes, and refugee status is recognized for every foreigner whose “life, security and freedom have been threatened by widespread violence in his country of origin.”
Translated by Regina Anavy
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Ajuria Domínguez, third Cuban consul in Milan, in the video released by the activists. (Collage)
14ymedio, Havana, February 10, 2024 — On Friday, the Foundation for Human Rights in Cuba included on its list of Cuban Repressors the Cuban diplomat Fidel Ajuria Domínguez, third consul of the Island in Milan (Italy), for assaulting the activist Avana de la Torre. The event, recorded in a video, occurred on February 7, during a protest in front of Cuba’s display at the International Tourism Fair of that city.
Ajuria, says a press release from the Foundation, “physically and verbally” assaulted De la Torre, who was with activists Yuliet Suárez and Leidis Peñalver denouncing “the hardships experienced by the population of the Island and the privileges of the elite.”
The three demonstrators deployed a 26-foot banner with images of the poverty in Cuba and “were attacked by supporters of the regime,” the statement says, “in the style of the Rapid Response Brigades.” In the tumult, De la Torre suffered “a dislocation in her wrist” when Ajuria tried to snatch the banner away, so the activist filed a complaint. continue reading
The three demonstrators deployed a 26-foot banner with images of the poverty in Cuba and “were attacked by supporters of the regime”
The statement also emphasizes that “an apparent security guard at the Fair,” who had the obligation to prevent violence within the enclosure, stood idly by while the incident was taking place.
Speaking to Martí Noticias, De la Torre said that she and her colleagues had attended the Milan Fair “peacefully, to teach the reality of Cuba, which is not an egalitarian or equitable country.”
Although the main attacker, explains the Foundation’s text, was Ajuria – along with his wife, Anabel Díaz – the activist pointed out that the aggressors followed the orders of Marcos Hernández Sosa, consul general of Cuba in Milan. De la Torre shared the complaint on her Facebook page, where she also explained that a Cuban resident in Italy, whom she identified by the name of Ada Galano, uttered “serious slander.” Although the activist did not specify about what or whom, she said that she had also denounced her before Italian law.
It is not the first time that De la Torre has been the victim of aggression by the Cuban diplomatic corps. In June 2022, she was attacked by Yahima Martínez Millán, consul general of Cuba in Galicia (Spain), when she was preparing to place flowers in front of a bust of José Martí in Santiago de Compostela.
The Foundation also mentions in its statement the beatings given to the exiled doctors, Lucio Hernández Nodarse and Emilio Arteaga Pérez, in May 2023, for shouting anti-castrist slogans in the Galileo Galilei room in Madrid, during a concert of the duo Buena Fe.
The Cuban Repressors project, managed by the Foundation, aims to “stop, reduce and eradicate violence and arbitrariness for political, economic, social, cultural, creed, race or sexual orientation reasons and thus contribute to facilitating coexistence in a future Cuba.”
Translated by Regina Anavy
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Directors of Gesinta and La Casa del Tabaco, the two companies sued by Habanos S.A. (Gesinta)
14ymedio, Havana, 10 February 2024 — The Supreme Court of Spain condemned two companies in the city of Valencia – Gesinta Invest Company and La Casa del Tabaco – for marketing the F series of the Nicaraguan brand of cigars from Condega, which imitates the design of the Cuban Partagás. The cigar monopoly on the Island, the Habanos S.A. corporation, celebrated the “unfair competition” verdict.
The corporation had filed a lawsuit against both Valencian distributors in 2018 for the “almost identical presentation” to that of Partagás with which they sold the Condega cigars, which “blatantly infringed” upon Spain’s agreements with Havana. The ruling, which ratified a previous ruling of the Provincial Court of Valencia and was handed down at the end of January, illustrates the tension between Cuba and Nicaragua in the world of cigars.
Politically allied, both countries are fierce rivals when it comes to cigar production. However, the Island, which has the prestige of producing the best quality leaf, has lost ground among international consumers – especially those from the United States, who cannot legally buy Cuban cigars – and Nicaraguan tobacco seems of similar quality for a lower price. continue reading
Nicaragua has been able to take advantage not only of Cuba’s technical knowledge but also its fame and imagery
Nicaragua, where many producers from the Island emigrated after 1959, has been able to take advantage not only of Cuba’s technical knowledge but also its fame and imagery. At the core of the lawsuit in Valencia, which now prohibits Gesinta and La Casa del Tabaco from selling Condega cigars, is the similarity of colors in the rings of the Nicaraguan brand and those of the D series of Partagás.
Both rings are identical in almost everything except the name of the cigar: two golden bands below and above the name, also in gold. This ring has been “very characteristic” of Partagás since the 1930s, Habanos S.A. claims, and has contributed to the brand “always being in the top positions” on the lists of premium cigars.
This Thursday, the members of the Cigar Club of Madrid – one of the landmarks of Cuban cigars in Spain – received a communication about the Supreme Court’s ruling, and the Condegas were unambiguously qualified as mere Nicaraguan “copies” of Partagás.
“The Condega Serie F are cigars whose Central American origin has nothing to do with those that are rolled in the Cuban factories, which have the worldwide D.O.P. certification. (Protected Designation of Origin),” he clarified.
In addition, the Club defended the primacy of Cuban cigars: “We do not let ourselves be fooled by something that pretends to be what it is not, either for its rings, formats and even boxes, because in Cuba there are twenty-seven brands of cigars, which are the most smoked and appreciated premium cigars by fans around the world,” he said.
With a relatively recent cigar tradition, Estelí has become Cuba’s strongest competitor in the international market
The Condega brand, founded in 1997 by the Hispanic-Cuban businessman Eduardo Fernández Pujals – one of the former owners of the Spanish company Telepizza – has its operating base in the municipality of Estelí, in the western part of Nicaragua.
With a relatively recent cigar tradition, Estelí has become Cuba’s strongest competitor in the international market. “Estelí’s great irony is that it is full of American and Cuban-American anti-Castros who became billionaires with cigars in the 1960s,” a source in the Nicaraguan municipality tells 14ymedio.
“The Plascencia and the Padrón, two Cuban-American families, are among the strongest. They have plantations in Estelí, Condega and Jalapa. Cuban-Americans have caused a notable increase in the price of properties – even more expensive than much of Managua – because they pay without hesitation what people ask for their lands and houses,” he adds.
The Cuban regime has also settled in Estelí, as attested to by the Nicaragua Investiga media last November. At least nine farms in the town, local producers said, were being managed by alleged Cuban businessmen. The most widespread suspicion among Estelí’s cigar makers, he added, is that these businessmen are Cubans who have just arrived in Nicaragua as “front men.”
The small farmers are sure that Cuban investors, some associated with Cubatabaco – the company that controls cigars on the Island – arrived “from the hand” of the Government of Daniel Ortega and have been located on farms bought from other businessmen or that were abandoned after the State’s intervention.
Rocky Patel is building a megafacory in Estelí. (Halfwheel)
Estelí is about to inaugurate a cigar megafactory by American businessman Rakesh Rocky Patel. Considered an up-and-comer in the world of cigars, Patel – who amassed a fortune working as a lawyer for Hollywood actors – founded the company Tabaco Villa Cuba S.A (Tavicusa) in Nicaragua in 2008.
Although Patel is proud of not having Cuban “roots” or “family,” in order to dethrone Cuban cigars, he recruited in 2015 one of the best cigar merchants in Havana, Hamlet Paredes. With the advice of Paredes, Patel – who took the pulse of the competition during the 2016 Cigar Festival – managed to position his cigars at the top of the lists of the best in the world.
Although Paredes broke with Patel in 2022 to accept a job in a cigar shop in Ireland, the American’s plans are going at full speed in Estelí. At the end of January, the Nicaraguan newspaper La Prensadetailed Patel’s megafactory project. In addition to producing 60,000 cigars a day, the company will have facilities to prepare the leaf and carry out other processes.
Last year Patel achieved an income of 400 million dollars from the marketing of his cigars – 85% of them to the United States – a figure that is quite close to the annual income of Habanos S.A., which in 2022 obtained 545 million dollars. The turnover figure in 2023 for the Cuban monopoly should be known on February 26, with the beginning of the XXIV Cigar Festival, an event that the regime takes advantage of to oxygenate its coffers with the sale of its star product and remind millionaires from all countries that it still holds the crown as the best tobacco producer in the world.
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.
Western Union attributes the confusion to the fact that “someone from the customer service department” gave “incorrect information.” (14ymedio)
14ymedio, Madrid, 9 February 2024 — Western Union, which has not been able to make transfers to Cuba for more than ten days, has clarified that “although the services are temporarily suspended, we are working to resume operations as soon as possible.” In a message sent by email to 14ymedio this Friday, the company states that the date of April 1 for the restoration of remittances, provided to this newspaper by employees of two offices in the United States, is “not correct”.
The director of Communications, Brad Jones, says that his company “is trying to contact the customers affected by the service interruption to propose the return of their transfers.”
After apologizing for the confusion, which they attribute to the fact that “someone from the customer service department” gave “incorrect information,” the firm asks for its official statement to be disseminated: “Western Union is experiencing technical difficulties in the processing of operations that has caused a temporary suspension of services between the United States and Cuba. The company is supporting its counterpart [the Cuban financier Orbit] to resume services between the two countries as soon as possible.” continue reading
The company says that the date of April 1 for the restoration of remittances, provided to this newspaper by employees of two offices in the United States, is not correct
On February 1, after the complaints of several customers in Florida who weren’t able to send remittances to their relatives on the Island, Western Union employees told 14ymedio, in several telephone calls, that “at the moment shipments to Cuba are not available until further notice,” without further details.
The problems of making transfers from abroad, exclusively to the Island, were not only occurring from the United States but also from other countries, and not only with Western Union, but with other platforms, such as Cuballama and Cubatel.
On Wednesday 31, a day before the main economic measures agreed by the Government last December came into force, the authorities decided to cancel them, citing “a cybersecurity incident.”
The next day, without mentioning this “incident” or the remittances, the Metropolitan Bank issued a statement in which it warned that it was having “technical difficulties” that affected “branch services and those associated with payment technology channels.”
“If you have questions specifically related to transaction processing in Cuba, contact Orbit directly”
The widespread suspicion about the hacking, which, according to official sources, had affected the marketing system of Cimex, a corporation belonging to the Gaesa military conglomerate, increased among Cubans when the Minister of Economy, Alejandro Gil Fernández, was dismissed last Friday.
By telephone, Fincimex has not given a date for the solution of the problems. “We are still working on the breakdown, but there is nothing yet,” an employee told this newspaper last Wednesday.
Western Union suspended remittances to Cuba in November 2020, due to the sanctions of the Trump Administration on Fincimex and AIS (American International Services), because they are managed by the Cuban military. In January 2023, services resumed, this time with a different intermediary: the “non-banking” financial institution Orbit S.A., approved by the Central Bank of Cuba a year earlier.
Western Union mentions Orbit in one of its responses to 14ymedio this Friday: “If you have questions specifically related to the processing of transactions in Cuba, contact Orbit directly, since they are more qualified to discuss the matter. We are relying on Orbit to help us resume operations as soon as possible.”
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 police stopped traffic so that tourists could comfortably leave the Customs building. (14ymedio)
14ymedio, Natalia López Moya, Havana, 9 February 2024 — The British cruise ship Marella Explorer 2 returned to Havana this Friday, and, as often happens, its passengers, who bring foreign currency, have preference. A patrol guarded the area closest to the pier, and the police even stopped traffic so that the tourists could comfortably leave the Customs building, some of them carrying suitcases.
Although there were some travelers who stayed on the ship, many went for a walk and others went by bus to the nearby historic center of the Cuban capital or to other tourist places.
From land, you could glimpse the ship’s splendor, the giant screen at the edge of the pool and the huge satellite antenna. Several spas, a club-casino, bars and restaurants are some of the services offered by the cruise, which is only for adults and belongs to TUI Group of the UK and Germany. continue reading
Marella Explorer 2 will dock at four ports to link passengers to the Island’s recreational offers.
The British cruise ship is part of the fleet of TUI Group, a leading company in tourist travel. (14ymedio)
The cruise is part of the fleet of TUI Group, a leading company in tourist travel (United Kingdom-Germany). It only allows adults and includes spa services, a club-casino, bars and restaurants.
In Old Havana, the merchants rubbed their hands together. On Obispo Street they offered an exchange rate “at a good price” – 280 pesos per dollar (the informal rate reported by El Toque for this Friday is 298). The children in the area rehearsed some phrases in English asking for “money,” and the streets near the bay again experienced the frenzy that once characterized them.
When the sun goes down, everything will be over. The tourists will return to their ship, the children of the neighborhood will return to their quarters, and the illusion of a dynamic city will have vanished. There will still be, of course, the silhouette of the Marella Explorer 2 with its swimming pools, its luxury areas and its broadband internet.
In Old Havana, the merchants rubbed their hands together after the arrival of the cruise ship. (14ymedio)
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 company says that it has at least two “producers” in its service on the Island. (Invasor)
14ymedio, Havana, February 8, 2024 — Thirteen years ago, Cuban biologist Ariel Portal, expelled from the state-owned Labiofam and a fervent defender of the healing properties of blue scorpion venom, emigrated to Ecuador and founded his own company, Lifescozul. With a private investment of three million dollars in the last seven years and a team of “renegade” Cuban scientists, the company insists – against scientific consensus – that the toxins of Rhopalurus junceus can cure cancer, and it dedicates its resources to procuring it.
Concerned that he will be linked to the Cuban regime after reading this newspaper’s recent articles about Lifescozul, Portal answers several questions. The most disturbing: how does a group of researchers, who supposedly broke all ties with their country of origin, get the venom of a scorpion that is endemic to Cuba?
Through “at least” two independent producers who live on the Island, Portal replies. They are the ones who “capture and milk the scorpions,” and then “someone” from the company travels to Cuba to pick up the bottles with the substance. Once abroad, the bottles are sent to the Lifescozul laboratories in Mexico and Chile to check that the substance is not adulterated. “Each venom has its own unique footprint,” Portal clarifies.
According to the biologist, the collection process is carried out without help – or permits – from the Cuban State. In fact, independent scorpion hunters are one of the headaches of Labiofam, the State company, which also manufactures a homeopathic substance based on scorpion venom, Vidatox, whose effectiveness against cancer is denied by Portal. continue reading
Lifescozul began as a “service company,” says the scientist, but now considers itself a “pharmaceutical development” company, with allies such as Pharmometrica, a Mexican laboratory that, according to Portal, “analyzes each sample (of venom) and certifies it for our studies.”
Portal, second from right, with a group of directors of the Tecnológico de Monterrey. (Instagram/Lifescozul)
The company is now asking its private investors for another 11 million dollars to enter a phase of clinical trials of its product, Escozul. For the company, Portal assures, having private capital “especially in the last five years” has been decisive.
The current structure of Lifescozul – which also works on another kind of products, such as nutritional supplements and vitamins – includes a scientific department, led by microbiologist Alexis Díaz, the “maximum authority” in the venom of the Cuban scorpion; a clinical trials department, headed by Dr. Mariela Guevara; and other marketing, medical care and follow-up teams.
They have a factory in Colombia, a research center in Mexico, and the financing of the project is managed in the United States. The headquarters is located in Ecuador, where Portal founded the “parent company” of Lifescozul in 2009.
Behind each of the people in charge of the company – all former Labiofam scientists – there is a story. Portal himself was dismissed from his position in the state pharmaceutical company in 2006, when he confronted its former director, José Antonio Fraga Castro, Fidel Castro’s nephew. Vidatox, the product manufactured by Labiofam – and one of Escozul’s competitors in the international market – was “a whim of Fraga Castro,” says Portal.
In 2000, scorpion venom as a cure for cancer was one of the obsessions of both the uncle and the nephew, says Portal. “Many patients went to Cuba to look for it because the BBC and CNN reported on its potential.” The pioneer of the studies was Dr. Misael Bordier, a biologist from Guantánamo, who “was never able to publish anything that supported the venom’s properties.”
José Antonio Fraga Castro. (Photogram from Vimeo)
“Fraga Castro saw the potential, and since he was Fidel’s nephew, he literally took the project away from Bordier, who died in 2005.” Bordier had formed an analysis group including Portal and Alexis Díaz.
The year after Bordier’s death, his colleagues gave Fraga Castro two pieces of news. The good one: that the team had found “evidence” that “inside the poison there are components capable of inhibiting malignant cell growth.” The bad one: that it would take ten years to have a concrete result. At a minimum.
The director of Labiofam was angry, Portal recalls. “The country needs foreign currency now,” was his argument when accepting the proposal of Dr. Fabio Linares, a doctor specializing in homeopathy, who assured that a compound could be sold “as if it were the established final product of the blue scorpion poison.” This is how Vidatox was born.
However, Portal, Díaz and Bordier’s other disciples studied the formula. The conclusion of the analysis, says the biologist, was worrying. “We tested Vidatox on malignant cell lines, resulting in the fact that not only did it have no effect on cancer, but it also accelerates it, and to top it off there was no trace of venom inside the formulation, since it was extremely diluted.” The conclusion, however, has a contradictory aspect: if Vidatox does not contain a trace of the toxin, which of its components “accelerates” the disease?
When they presented the report to Fraga Castro, he was offended. “He accused us of many things. I accused him of being corrupt, and the argument got out of hand. I ended up expelled.” Portal says that, from there, everything was an odyssey for him. He worked cleaning offices at the Cuban Institute of Art and Film Industry until he was given authorization to leave the country. Then he emigrated to Ecuador.
In the case of Alexis Díaz, whom Labiofam refused to free until several years later, he also left Cuba in 2018, to carry out a postdoctorate in Chile. “Díaz was not expelled but was subject to control for a few years,” Portal explains. As for Guevara, who now resides in the Dominican Republic, he is the one who advises Lifescozul in relation to clinical trials.
In 2014, Lifescozul also had a contact in Havana, José Luis Monzón, who raised scorpions, as Portal revealed to Martí Noticias at the time. Monzón died a year after that interview, and now “his daughters continue his work in Jagüey Grande (Matanzas),” says the biologist, who does not offer more details about his work on the Island. However, a 14ymedio reporter discovered that the address provided by Portal to Martí Noticias did not exist. There is also the Bellavista building on 35th Street between 52 and 54, in the municipality of Playa, and no neighbor has heard of Monzón.
A reporter from ’14ymedio’ discovered that the address provided by Portal to Martí Noticias did not exist. (14ymedio)
“Since 2018, we haven’t had any of our patients traveling to Cuba,” he insists. If anyone requests to go, Lifescozul puts him in contact with Monzón’s daughters in Matanzas. “Misael Bordier’s relatives extract the venom” in Guantánamo, but Portal does not clarify if they have links with the company there.
Portal admits that, as this newspaper pointed out, Lifescozul has indicated to patients that the Cuban Government offers treatments – very expensive – with scorpion venom. However, he says that he has not done so with the intention that they will be treated at the Cira García hospital in the La Pradera hospital for foreigners, founded by Fidel Castro in 1996. “In 13 years of existence we have never sent any patient to those centers. Explaining the costs (more than 1,200 dollars) is enough for them to give up going to Cuba.”
The prestigious cancer research center Memorial Sloan Kettering, founded in 1884 in the United States, has explained that there are no scientific arguments to prove that scorpion venom cures cancer, and the benefits attributed to Escozul or Vidatox “are mostly based on anecdotes, testimonies and experiments that may not have been executed correctly.”
Lifescozul promises to have the papers in order so that, before the end of 2024, they will be allowed to do a clinical trial
Portal does not agree. “We are about to file several patents with an impact on three types of cancer,” he alleges. “We also work on the identification of active ingredients that act on the mechanisms of pain in people with cancer and on inflammation. ” Lifescozul promises to have the papers in order so that, before the end of 2024, they will be allowed to do a clinical trial.
After two decades spent studying Rhopalurus junceus, Portal insists on its “enormous potential” and argues that he knows of more than a thousand cases where the improved product seems to have helped people. However, it is a reality that Escozul, Vidatox and their counterfeits circulate widely on the black market of several countries, and that several “healers” sell them – very expensively – with the promise of healing.
It was the case of Carlos Miguel Castro Ochoa, a “naturopathic doctor” from Mexico, who charged $1,000 for several bottles of Escozul to a patient who ended up dying. Portal emphasizes that his company had nothing to do with it and that, in fact, it collaborates with the authorities to identify illegal merchants who “sell water.”
They are also not involved, he says, with the Cuban health system, which he, Díaz and other scientists from Lifescozul left – not always on good terms. “I don’t work in Cuba and I don’t plan to. Personally, I don’t think they want me there either.”
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.
14ymedio, Madrid, February 13, 2024 — The Spanish company Enjoy Travel Group will establish direct charter flights between Madrid and Havana this coming summer. On Tuesday, the vice president of marketing and sales, Luis Jiménez, explained to Prensa Latina that an Airbus from the Plus Ultra company with 288 seats will be used. The route will be operational between June 29 and September 7, 2024.
