English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
14ymedio, Havana, 29 September 2022 — The Cuban regime cut off access to the Internet on Thursday night after the protests continued in some parts of Havana. The demonstrations of Cerro and Arroyo Naranjo joined forces in the evening at San Francisco de Paula, in the municipality of San Miguel del Padrón. Mainly women and … Continue reading “The Cuban Regime Cuts Internet Access to Prevent New Protests”
14ymedio, Yoani Sánchez, Generation Y, Havana, 30 September 2022 — Yesterday, Thursday, in the afternoon and at night, several popular protests shook Havana with the cries of “Turn on the power!” and “Freedom!” There are still large areas without electricity, as is the case in our neighborhood, which will soon mark 72 hours without electricity. Web browsing … Continue reading “Voices in Cuba: ‘Turn on the Power!’”
14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, 28 September 2022 — One of the main urgencies of Cubans this Wednesday, after the passage of Hurricane Ian, which has devastated the western end of the island and has caused the collapse of the already precarious national electrical system, is to get electricity by any means. In Havana, the crowds … Continue reading “In Search of Lost Power, Cubans Recharge Their Phones in Hospitals and Hotels”
14ymedio, Yoani Sánchez, Havana, 29 September 2022 — Soon we will complete 48 hours without electricity in our neighborhood. The problem is not only the lack of power, but also that this area has many tall buildings and the water tanks — normally filled with pumped water — in people’s apartments have already been emptied. Carrying the … Continue reading “Two Days in Havana Without Washing Up or Eating Anything Hot”
14ymedio, Mercedes García/Natalia López Moya, Sancti Spíritus/Havana, July 7, 2024 — No, lime is not the basis of everything but it is an essential ingredient in many recipes of Cuban cuisine and cocktails. The Creole mojo that is put on the cassava, the marinade that is plastered on the pork before cooking and the mojito … Continue reading “The Creole Lime, Another Item Missing From Cuban Tables”
14ymedio, Juan Izquierdo, Havana, April 27, 2024 — After 65 years operating as a kind of second ministry of culture, Casa de las Américas longs for the time when the institution was more powerful and influenced the cultural debates of the continent. On the eve of the anniversary, its president, cultural commissioner Abel Prieto, regrets … Continue reading “Casa de las Americas Licks Its Wounds on Its 65th Anniversary and Longs for Its Influence in the Region”
René Pérez Gallego, who will have “other responsibilities,” will be replaced by Walter Simón Noris EFE (via 14ymedio), Havana, April 20, 2024 — The Communist Party of Cuba (PCC) reported this Friday the dismissal of its first secretary in the province of Las Tunas, Manuel René Pérez Gallego. The official was “liberated” from his tasks … Continue reading “The Communist Party Dismisses Its First Secretary in Las Tunas After Almost 20 Years as a Cadre”
14ymedio, Havana, 2 April 2024 — The Communist Party of Cuba (PCC) moved the pieces on its board again on Monday, when it dismissed, just two days after the dismissal of Susely Morfa in Matanzas, its first secretary in Mantua, Pinar del Río. Liusmara Rodríguez Soriano “was released from her responsibility,” said the official press, … Continue reading “A Senior Official of the PCC in Pinar Del Rio Has Been Dismissed, Criticized for ‘Dubious Management’”
14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, 30 March 2024 — “What comes from the sea, returns to the sea,” is a maxim that the residents of San Leopoldo, a Havana neighborhood bordering the Malecón, know very well. It’s a low zone in this area of the Cuban capital where there are frequent coastal floods. The sewers, … Continue reading “The Sea Returns Havana’s Garbage and More to the Malecon”
14ymedio, Madrid, 4 March 2024 — The Cuban Government has waited five days to respond to the revelation that, for the first time in history, it has had to resort to an urgent request for aid to the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) in the face of milk shortages. The regime tries to tone … Continue reading “The Cuban Regime Trips Over Itself in Justifying Its Request for Milk to the UN”
14ymedio, Miguel García, Havana, 15 January 2024 — Not even the Cuban military are saved from the mountains of garbage that are seen everywhere on the Island. The neighborhoods of Villanueva 2 and Villanueva 3, in the city of Holguín, where hundreds of workers of the Ministry of the Interior reside, is about to be … Continue reading “Not Even the ‘Integrated’ Neighborhoods in Cuba Are Saved From Garbage Piles Everywhere”
14ymedio, Havana, 6 December 2023 — The most recent cigar presented by the monopoly Habanos SA to its international clientele is the El Rey del Mundo Royal Series, a formidable medium-strength tobacco that is recommended to be paired with rum. Along with its impeccable presentation – cedar box, quality certificate and ring with gold details … Continue reading “Luxury Cigars for the World’s Princes, ‘Peso’ Tobacco for Cuban Beggars”
14ymedio, Yunior García Aguilera, Madrid, 8 November 2023 — In 1895, when almost all of the rest of Latin America had already achieved its independence, we Cubans were still a colony of Spain. All previous attempts had failed: the Big War and the Little War. And Martí’s War, as Máximo Gómez called it, began with the … Continue reading “Cuba’s ‘Peacemaker’”
14ymedio, Havana, 23 October 2023 — At the end of September, with just four months left until the end of the year, 649 houses had been built in Ciego de Ávila, fewer than half of the 1,321 in the state annual plan for 2023. According to the official press, even building 40,000 homes would not … Continue reading “Cuban Authorities: Even Building 40,000 Houses Will Not Help the Housing Shortage in Ciego de Avila”
14ymedio/Yucabyte, Havana, 18 October 2023 — In a context of maximum international tension, the news that there were Cuban soldiers fighting in the service of Russia during the invasion of Ukraine generated countless rumors. Meanwhile, on the Island, the leaders did not give an official explanation, and soon – after the arrival in Havana of … Continue reading “September Rumors in Cuba: Soldiers in Russia, Splurges for the G-77, Punishment for Small Private Businesses”
