Five Cuban Political Prisoners from July 11th are on a Hunger Strike

14ymedio, Havana, January 21, 2022–Five political prisoners, of those detained for the popular protests on July 11th (11J), are on a hunger strike. Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, William Manuel Leyva Pupo, Yosnavy Rosell García, Cruz García Domínguez, and Chadrían Vila Sequin are refusing to ingest food, demanding their immediate release, reported Justicia 11J on Friday. … Continue reading “Five Cuban Political Prisoners from July 11th are on a Hunger Strike”

Obispo Street Protesters are Fined and Pressured to Leave Cuba

14ymedio, Havana, 17 January 2022 — The demonstrators of Obispo Street, who spent several months in prison, were informed this Monday in Villa Marista, the State Security headquarters in Havana, that they will receive an “administrative fine” in order to conclude the judicial process against them. “Serving prison for the alleged fabricated charges of resistance and public … Continue reading “Obispo Street Protesters are Fined and Pressured to Leave Cuba”

Human Rights Watch: Cuba ‘Represses and Punishes Practically All Kinds of Dissidence’

EFE (via 14ymedio), Havana, 13 January 2022 — The Cuban government continues “repressing and punishing practically all kinds of dissidence and public criticism” on the island, the NGO Human Rights Watch (HRW) denounced this Thursday in its 2022 world report. The section on Cuba in the annual study on the global state of human rights … Continue reading “Human Rights Watch: Cuba ‘Represses and Punishes Practically All Kinds of Dissidence’”

El Salvador Reaffirms its Support for the Two Cuban Reporters Stranded in the Country

14ymedio, Havana, 7 January 2021 — “We are going to support them to do whatever they want to do,” says the Foreign Minister of El Salvador Alexandra Hill in relation to independent journalists Esteban Rodríguez and Héctor Luis Valdés Cocho, who were admitted to the Central American country last Wednesday after being forced to leave … Continue reading “El Salvador Reaffirms its Support for the Two Cuban Reporters Stranded in the Country”

Threatened by State Security, Cuban Journalist Orelvys Cabrera Traveled to Russia

14ymedio, Lorey Saman, Mexico, January 3rd, 2022–Independent reporter, Orelvys Cabrera Sotolongo had to abandon Cuba “due to pressure from State Security.” The journalist, a resident of Matanzas and one of those detained during the protests on July 11th, confirmed on Monday to 14ymedio that he traveled to Russia along with his partner on December 19th. … Continue reading “Threatened by State Security, Cuban Journalist Orelvys Cabrera Traveled to Russia”

The Last of Those Arrested on Obispo Street, Esteban Rodriguez, Exits Cuba ‘Fleeing Terror’

14ymedio, Havana, 5 January 2022 — Journalist Esteban Rodríguez, detained in Combinado del Este prison until Tuesday for participating in the protest on Obispo street is in El Salvador with his colleague Héctor Luis Valdés Cocho after Nicaragua refused them entry. Both are reporters for the Cuban independent daily, ADN, and members of the San … Continue reading “The Last of Those Arrested on Obispo Street, Esteban Rodriguez, Exits Cuba ‘Fleeing Terror’”

Two of Cuba’s Obispo Street Protesters Are Released After Eight Months in Prison

14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 4 January 2022 — The activists Inti Soto and Ángel Cuza, two of the six protesters arrested after the April 30 sit-in on Obispo Street in Havana, were released on Tuesday, after eight months in prison, confirmed Mary Karla Ares, an independent journalist also arrested during the protest, told 14ymedio. Cuza … Continue reading “Two of Cuba’s Obispo Street Protesters Are Released After Eight Months in Prison”

Sixty-Three Anniversaries of the Cuban Revolution

14ymedio, Carlos Alberto Montaner, Miami, 1 January 2022 — It is worth reviewing what happened in Cuba in the preceding months. Year after year, and we are already on our way to the 63rd anniversary, I have said we were near the end. I believed it, but it was not true. I thought that Fidel … Continue reading “Sixty-Three Anniversaries of the Cuban Revolution”

2021 in Cuba, the Year of the Collective Face

14ymedio, Havana, 24 December 2021 — Only a few times before has it been so difficult to compile this list with the 14 most relevant faces of the year in Cuba now ending. The twelve months that have elapsed so far have been marked by an infinity of events and thousands of protagonists who have … Continue reading “2021 in Cuba, the Year of the Collective Face”

‘Patria y Vida’, The Anthem for Cuban Freedom

14ymedio, Havana, 25 December 2021 — Barely a week had passed since the premiere of the song Patria y Vida (Homeland and Life), in February, when these two words began to be used as a slogan by different opponents of the regime, inside and outside of Cuba. Opposed to the Castroist “homeland or death”, the images extolling the blackness of five artists, … Continue reading “‘Patria y Vida’, The Anthem for Cuban Freedom”

Cubans Adrian Lopez Gonzalez, Geandy Pavon, Waldo Perez Cino and David Virelles Win the Cintas Scholarship

14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 15 December 221 — For the first time, the Cintas Foundation has recognized with its annual scholarship, endowed with $20,000, a Cuban resident on the Island, Adrián López González. Founder and leader of the Grupo Matiz de restauradores (Matiz Restoration Group0 in Matanzas, he was the recipient of the award in the architecture … Continue reading “Cubans Adrian Lopez Gonzalez, Geandy Pavon, Waldo Perez Cino and David Virelles Win the Cintas Scholarship”

Bus Hits the Manzana Kempinski Hotel in Havana

14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, 24 November 2021 — A public transport bus on route P8 hit the Gran Hotel Manzana Kempinski in Havana on Wednesday, just in front of Central Park, leaving seven minor injuries. The vehicle, a Chinese brand Yutong bus number 604, collided at 5:00 in the morning with one of the … Continue reading “Bus Hits the Manzana Kempinski Hotel in Havana”

Rapper Denis Solis Leaves Cuba

14ymedio, Havana, 29 Noviembre 2021 — The rebellious rapper Denis Solís, who was released from jail in July after an eight-month sentence for contempt which was decreed in a summary trial, has left Cuba. After speaking with an uncle of the artist, Vladimir Lázaro González, 14ymedio was able to confirm that the trip took place … Continue reading “Rapper Denis Solis Leaves Cuba”

Saily Gonzalez Walks through Santa Clara Dressed in White with a Flower for Antonio Maceo

14ymedio, Havana, November 19, 2021 — Saily Gonzalez had already made the announcement on Monday, November 15, when an angry, violent mob prevented her from leaving her home. Her protests were limited to applauding at three in the afternoon and hanging her white sheets from a window. She was unable to do what she wanted … Continue reading “Saily Gonzalez Walks through Santa Clara Dressed in White with a Flower for Antonio Maceo”

We Can Only Avoid a Blood Bath in Cuba if the World Stops Looking Away

14ymedio, Madrid, 18 November 2021 — “The Cuban problem is not called Yunior García, the Cuban problem is called dictatorship.” This is how forceful the playwright and opponent has been from Madrid, where he has held a press conference to relate the “terror” to which he has been subjected by the Cuban Government and which pushed him to leave … Continue reading “We Can Only Avoid a Blood Bath in Cuba if the World Stops Looking Away”