Translating Cuba

They Confront Us So That We Do Not Confront them

Reinaldo’s cell phone rings: someone is stuck in the elevator during the power cut this Thursday

The elevator stopped due to power outage, in the building of the editorial office of ’14ymedio’. / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Yoani Sánchez, Havana, 22 August 2024 — There is a sudden silence. It is daytime, so the signs of the blackout do not appear through a lack of lighting but through the absence of sound. A deep emptiness that we all know what it means: the power has gone out. Reinaldo’s cell phone rings. Someone is stuck in the elevator with the power cut this Thursday, when the energy deficit in Cuba reaches 39% of consumption. I see him walking down the hall, with his 77 years on his back, and his enthusiasm of a 20-year-old.

On the Facebook account of the Cuban Electric Union, messages are posted in a cascade. People complain that they cannot sleep because of the heat and the mosquitoes, they tell of towns plunged into darkness and faces with large dark circles under their eyes who can barely perform at work. Along with these complaints, another is repeated: Havana is privileged and does not suffer from the same power cuts as the rest of the country. Regional hatred is stoked and divisions are emerging, even though the person responsible for our disaster is the same one.

It suggests that the residents of the Cuban capital are enjoying the darkness of others, while we enjoy our own illumination. Nothing could be further from the truth. Weeks with scarce water supplies and mountains of garbage with their constant flow of flies and rats have made life in this city an ordeal. The tall buildings, converted into prisons for the elderly, because they cannot bring supplies up or down, add to the deterioration of the entire city infrastructure. What we are experiencing is not a privilege, it is a trap. continue reading

Railing against the people of Havana for the supposed regional “privileges” that we enjoy only benefits those who have plunged us into this situation.

Railing against the people of Havana for the supposed regional “privileges” that we enjoy only benefits those who have plunged us into this situation. Those who, incapable of managing a country, distribute cuts at their convenience in order to also stir up internal conflict, make us lose our bearings over responsibilities and confront us in a fratricidal struggle without end. No, it is not about here or there, about El Vedado or Piedrecitas, it is about “them.” Setting us up to fight each other is a strategy that has been effective in the past. They threw us into a fight by region, by political colors and by economic levels to prevent us from facing up to them from a civil perspective.

They confront us so that we do not confront them.

Lunch is served, but it is getting cold. It is better that way. It is hard to put hot food into your mouth in the heat. Rei comes back and washes his hands, covered in the thick grease that comes from equipment with bearings. The whole apartment is filled with that rough, industrial smell. I see that he has a bleeding wound on his leg, small but deep. It is the bruises of those who try to rescue those who get stuck in a metal box when the power goes out. They are a brotherhood in retreat.

Some are old, others are sick, and most of those who once helped rescue those “stuck” in the elevator have died. Rei is one of the few vestiges left of that mixture of altruism and technical knowledge. The gusano — the ‘worm’ — on the 14th floor, the independent journalist about whom so many have made reports to the political police or have distanced themselves from, is the only salvation when they are stuck between those four metal walls, with no supply of fresh air. There is no ideology there: “Get Macho,” even the reddest ones whine . And there he goes to save them. A big heart is like that, and I hope that the future Cuba is full of those wide and generous auricles.

Then he comes back with his hands covered in grease and his wounds. “It’s nothing,” he says, because heroes don’t strut. But I see that the cut on his leg is a deep, dark color and he puts his foot up on a chair so that it doesn’t drain any more. What will happen when the “counterrevolutionary” from the 14th floor can no longer get everyone out of the elevator? I ask him to provoke him. Are they going to tear each other apart or will they work together to get the shaft moving again, raise the cabin, lower the counterweight, open the doors and get the prisoners out?

____________

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.

Chile and Guatemala, Governed by the Left, Denounce the ‘Electoral Fraud’ in Venezuela

The Cuban Foreign Minister insists on “the victory of the Bolivarian and Chavista Revolution and the re-election of Maduro”

Gabriel Boric, president of Chile, accused chavismo of being “a dictatorship that falsifies elections” / EFE

EFE (via 14ymedio), Caracas, 23 August 2024 — The governments of Chile, Uruguay, Paraguay and Guatemala described as “fraud” the ruling of the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) of Venezuela, which attributed the election victory to Nicolás Maduro, while the leaders of Colombia, Brazil and Mexico, who tried to mediate in the post-election crisis, have not yet pronounced themselves.

The sentence of the Supreme Court, with which the review of the elections concludes in an “unambiguous and unrestricted” way, comes 22 days after Maduro himself requested this process, through an amparo appeal that was never known and for which the ten former presidential candidates were summoned to the Supreme Court.

“The verdict consolidates the fraud,” said the Chilean president, Gabriel Boric, on social networks. “The Maduro regime obviously enthusiastically welcomes this verdict that will be marked by infamy. There is no doubt that we are facing a dictatorship that falsifies elections, represses people who think differently and doesn’t care about the largest exile in the world, only comparable to that of Syria as a result of a war.” continue reading

Luis Lacalle Pou said that “Maduro’s regime confirms what the international community has been denouncing: fraud

In the same vein, the head of state of Uruguay, Luis Lacalle Pou, said that “the Maduro regime confirms what the international community has been denouncing: fraud. It’s a dictatorship that closes all doors to an institutional and democratic life of its people.”

The president of Paraguay, Santiago Peña, also considered the decision of the Supreme Court “unacceptable,” without an “exhaustive and independent” review of the votes. He “deeply regretted the decision of the Government of Venezuela to advance in the ratification of electoral results that do not reflect the will of the Venezuelan people.”

Bernardo Arévalo de León, for his part, insisted that Guatemala does not accept the electoral “fraud” perpetrated by Nicolás Maduro’s regime. “The crisis in Venezuela is indisputable, and we have already said that the recent elections only demonstrate that the Maduro regime is not democratic, and we do not recognize his fraud,” said the president in a message on social network X.

The opposition leader of Venezuela, María Corina Machado, thanked Boric and Lacalle Pou, respectively, on Thursday, for their positions on the ruling of the Supreme Court of Justice. “President Lacalle, we are deeply grateful for your solidarity and support to the Venezuelan people,” wrote Machado in a message in response to the Uruguayan president on X. The former deputy said that Venezuelans will move forward with “strength and conviction,” to ensure that “popular sovereignty” is respected.

She also applauded the position of the Chilean president, who said, “We will respect the will of Venezuelans. We are counting on you.”

Other political figures in the region have also denounced the TSJ’s biased ruling. Former Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos, 2016 Nobel Peace Prize winner, called the decision an “obstruction.” Iván Duque, who led a “diplomatic siege” against the Maduro government between 2018 and 2022, said that the ruling was “a blow to the Venezuelan people. The ruling of the Supreme Court of Venezuela is a hoax. Colombia cannot, nor should it, endorse the ruling, as we told Chancellor (Luis Gilberto) Murillo yesterday in the Advisory Commission on Foreign Relations,” said Santos, who ruled the Andean country between 2010 and 2018, in a message published on X.

For his part, Duque stated that “what the dictator hopes now is that, based on that opinion, which has no sustenance or support but validates the National Electoral Council, which helped him steal the elections, several sympathizing countries in the international community will come out to recognize him as the legitimate president.”

Likewise, the opposition Nicaraguan Democratic Concertación (CDN-Monteverde) rejected “the attempt of Nicolás Maduro’s regime to legitimize electoral fraud, through a resolution of the Electoral Chamber of the TSJ of Venezuela, which also aims to legalize the coup d’état against the popular sovereignty of the people that was expressed at the polls on July 28, with a majority in favor of Edmundo González Urrutia.”

At the moment, the Governments of Brazil, Colombia and Mexico, close to Maduro, have not spoken out

At the moment, the Governments of Brazil, Colombia and Mexico, close to Maduro, have not spoken out. They have offered to mediate to find a peaceful way out of the crisis. Last week, the president of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, hardened his speech and proposed two solutions: the formation of a coalition government that integrates members of chavismo and the opposition, or the holding of new elections, which were rejected by both parties. The president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, suggested a “national front” as a “transitory” step towards a “definitive solution” to the crisis.

On the other hand, there were two countries that celebrated: Nicaragua and Cuba. Daniel Ortega congratulated his ally and said that it was a “historic day in Venezuela, because today the victory of the people of (Simón) Bolívar, the people of (Hugo) Chávez, the people of Nicolás Maduro has been confirmed.”

The Government of Cuba also described the TSJ’s decision as a “victory” on Thursday. “The ruling of the Supreme Court of Justice of Venezuela confirmed the victory of the Bolivarian and Chavista Revolution and the re-election of Nicolás Maduro as president,” the Cuban Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bruno Rodríguez, wrote on X. “The decisions of Venezuelan institutions must be respected, and interference in Venezuela must cease,” he stressed.

The ruling, with which the review of the elections concludes in an “unequivocal and unrestricted” way, according to the text, comes 22 days after Maduro himself requested the process, through an appeal for “amparo” (a protection order) that never became known and for which the 10 former presidential candidates were summoned to the TSJ.

Cuba, Venezuela’s political ally, was one of the first countries to recognize Maduro’s triumph decreed by the CNE, despite protests against this result.

Translated by Regina Anavy

____________

A ‘Sophisticated Gang’ of Cubans Is Prosecuted in the United States for Trafficking Migrants by Land and Sea

The group of traffickers was discovered after 20 migrants from Ecuador and China landed in Florida / X/@USBPChiefMIP

14ymedio, Havana, 22 August 2024 — Accused of illegally trafficking 20 Ecuadorian and Chinese migrants to Florida by land and sea, Dianelys Pérez Escourido, Omar Liván Ripoll Pérez, Humberto Tamayo and Víctor Febles Gualpa will be prosecuted in the United States. The Cubans are in the Cayo Hueso prison, along with a fifth person involved, Joel Gil Egued, whose nationality was not specified.

According to Rick Ramsay, Sheriff of Monroe County, the detainees are part of a “sophisticated gang” that charged $20,000 to each Ecuadorian to reach the United States (no details were given about the payments required from Chinese migrants).

The officer explained to the Miami WPLG television station that each migrant deposited “$4,000 to leave Ecuador, another $3,000 in the Bahamas, in addition to $1,000 to the operator of the vehicle that would transfer them when they made landfall in the United States.” Another $12,000 had to be paid to reach the final destination: New York or New Jersey.

Dianelys Pérez Escourido with her partner, both accused of migrant smuggling / Facebook/Dianelys Perez

The migrants, intercepted after disembarking near County Road, offered details of the group’s modus operandi, which used speedboats and SUV-type vans, in which they transported the undocumented migrants. continue reading

Ramsay did not specify the immigration status of the detained Cubans, but he did reveal that they are originally from Havana and Camagüey. Also, according to local television Channel 12 News, bail for each person involved was set “at $100,000.”

Dianelys Pérez Escourido, 44 years old, has a discreet profile in Miami, where the Camagüeyans Omar Liván Ripoll Pérez (28) and Humberto Tamayo (48) were also arrested. The investigators located the Havanan Victor Victor Febles Gualpa (38) in West Palm Beach, and Joel Gil Egued (48) was found in Cabo Coral.

The sheriff said that the local prosecutor’s office decided to take the case after officials from the Federal Prosecutor’s Office decided not to file charges. “The Sheriff’s Office and the State Prosecutor’s Office do not tolerate criminal behavior and will always work to hold those who violate the law accountable,” he stressed.

Victor Victor Febles is originally from Havana, according to investigators / Facebook/Victor Victor Febles

Cases of people from the Island involved in crimes of migrant smuggling are not new. On Monday, Cuban Enrique Nerey Valdivia was found guilty of smuggling migrants in the state of Texas. Judge David S. Morales, who presided over the trial, set sentencing for November 6.

Two other Cubans, Diojany Carrillo Rodríguez and Dariel Ibáñez Hernández, were also arrested in July and face charges of human trafficking. According to Texas State Security spokesman Chris Olivarez, the Maverick County Police caught them on Highway 277 while they were transporting two Mexican migrants and handed them over to the U.S. Border Patrol.

Carrillo Rodríguez, who was driving a Chevy Malibu vehicle, acknowledged that he picked up the undocumented Mexican at an Eagle Pass point and that he had a GPS location for an address in the city of Houston. As for Ibáñez Hernández, a source confirmed to 14ymedio that his situation is yet to be defined, although he was informed that once the sentence is known, he will be deported to the Island.

Meanwhile, Cubans Rainel Lázaro Silies and Lima Gálvez González were arrested in April 2023 for the crime of migrant smuggling in U.S. County Kinney (Texas). The couple’s arrest took place in the town of Brackettville, when five undocumented people were transported in a vehicle with a license plate from the state of Kentucky.

Translated by Regina Anavy

____________

The Cuban Regime Brags About its ‘Exemplary’ Trials in Santiago de Cuba

Police officers during a meeting with judges at the Municipal Court of Santiago de Cuba / Tribunal Municipal de Santiago de Cuba

14ymedio, Havana, 21 August 2024 — No official media published details about the four trials that were held this week in the municipal court of Songo-La Maya against two people accused of theft, slaughter and trafficking of livestock, and two others for attacking law enforcement officers. The important thing – and the Communist Party newspaper in Santiago de Cuba dedicated a whole article to explain it – was to emphasize the “exemplary” character of the trial, which was attended by a “representation of the people” and Cuban Television´s cameras.

In one of the cases of attack, according to Sierra Maestra, the assaulted person was a police station chief who “went to carry out prophylactic work with a suspect.” The accused was arrested and taken to the police station, where he was given an official warning.

However – the newspaper ambiguously says – something provoked the detainee again, who “once they were inside the office, the accused stood up violently and assaulted the police officer, even tearing the shirt of the military uniform he was wearing.” Several police officers immobilized the man, they add, “to avoid more violent physical aggressions.” continue reading

“When we carry out exemplary trials, we enhance communication so that the message we want to convey reaches specific recipients”

Regarding another case linked to illegal slaughter, Sierra Maestra limited itself to saying that the accused had incurred “very repeatedly” in meat trafficking. “It is about a defendant who was caught by the police authorities on the public road in a public transport at the time he was transporting a certain amount of beef,” they explain. There was no information on the other two prosecutions

“When we carry out exemplary trials, we enhance communication so that the message we want to convey reaches certain recipients,” said Geovanis Mestre, one of the judges of the provincial court of Santiago, interviewed by Sierra Maestra. It is essential, he argued, that criminals know that the authorities are targeting illegal cattle slaughtering and that the punishments will be severe.

These trials were not chosen “at random,” said Mestre, but due to the “recurrence” of cattle theft and slaughter in Santiago, a moment that has been “drawing the attention” of the Police, the court decided to make it a “priority behavior in the criminal legal confrontation.”

Mestre invoked Article 29, paragraph 1, of the Criminal Code, which allows for trials guaranteeing “public participation,” as an exercise of “control” over jurisdictions where the crime is repeated. He stated that the ruling is issued “in the name of the Cuban people” so that the authorities can have the population attend the proceedings. It is not a matter of informing – he stressed – but of giving the trial a “preventive” character.

The judge was interested in emphasizing that Justice did not exaggerate the severity of the sentences and that his colleagues acted following the law. The defendants, he said, had “every opportunity to present the evidence they wanted and to make statements on several occasions.” These were ordinary proceedings, whose sentence has not yet been published.

The judge was interested in emphasizing that Justice did not exaggerate the severity of the sentences and that his colleagues acted following the law

From the massive criminal show trials of 1959, at the time of the Revolution – not infrequently resulting in capital punishment – to the famous case of Arnaldo Ochoa in 1989, the practice of the exemplary trial has not lost its validity in Cuba. As Mestre admits, the target of this kind of proceeding is clear: the offender and the entire population as well. That is why many international organizations and Cuban activists, such as Dagoberto Valdés, have harshly criticized the method.

“This is not exemplary because it is not educational, because instead of educating so that the courts exercise their function, they miseducate by using television and networks to take justice into their own hands,” explains Valdés, the founder of the Centro Convivencia, who – contrary to Mestre’s argument – claims that it is not legal, since it goes against human dignity, which, in theory, is guaranteed by the Constitution. “Can there be a decree, a discrete disposition of some entity that can publicly and repeatedly contradict the Law of Laws?”

Although the cattle situation has recently fallen into this category, it is in the opposition to the Government – and the crimes, such as contempt or attempt, attributed to it – where the exemplary trial has enjoyed stellar moments on Cuban Television. Programs such as Hacemos Cuba (We Make Cuba), led by the regime’s spokesman Humberto López, are presented as the media channel of Justice.

During the coronavirus pandemic, the Government also held more than a few exemplary trials. According to the Cuban Observatory for Human Rights, in June 2020 the police carried out “at least 67 arbitrary arrests,” mainly in the provinces of Havana, Santiago de Cuba and Villa Clara, and 74 “repressive actions of other types,” in particular, harassment through police subpoenas.

These arrests were followed by a “wave of exemplary trials” to “intimidate the population affected by the country’s poor economic situation.” “Several of these trials have been broadcast by the official media so that citizens can see how ruthless the system can be,” the Spain-based organization denounced at the time.

Translated by LAR

____________

Cuba’s Electricity Deficit Reaches a New Record of 39 Percent of Consumption

The breakdowns in seven thermoelectric plants and the lack of fuel oil have brought back the blackouts of more than 12 hours

Two days ago, Cubans suffered blackouts of up to 19 hours / EFE

14ymedio, Havana, August 22, 2024 — If with a deficit of less than 500 megawatts (MW) two days ago Cubans suffered blackouts of up to 19 hours, for this Thursday they fear it will be worst. The Electric Union of Cuba (UNE) predicts in its daily report a deficit of 1,235 MW for peak hours and an impact – which will finally switch off – of 1,305 MW.

It is a record figure for the last three months, very close to the 1,400 megawatts reached on May 28, and it will affect 39% of the island’s consumption during Thursday afternoon and night.

The Island had not reached such a high deficit for weeks, but the lack of fuel and breakdowns in seven thermoelectric plants have brought back the blackouts of more than 12 hours. “It has not been possible to avoid the impacts,” the UNE excuses itself in its statement without further arguments.

On Tuesday, the the Felton ’Lidio Ramón Pérez’ thermal power plant (CTE) in Holguín broke down due to a “puncture in the boiler” that will have it offline until at least Sunday. This was followed by the exit from the system of the ’Diez de Octubre’ CTE in Nuevitas (Camagüey) on Wednesday, by a “critical route,” said the state company. The UNE determined that they need to clean the boiler in a process that will last at least 40 hours. In continue reading

addition, unit 5 of the ’Máximo Gómez’ CTE, in Mariel, units 1 and 3 in that of Santa Cruz del Norte (Mayabeque) and unit 4 of Carlos Manuel de Céspedes (Cienfuegos) are out of service due to breakdowns.

The Island had not reached such a high deficit for weeks, and it appears that the blackouts of more than 12 hours have returned

The residents of Avellaneda Street, in the city of Camagüey, are among the few who have electricity in Cuba. The reason is that they live near the headquarters of the Cuban Telecommunications Company (Etecsa), and the state monopoly does not have the fuel necessary to restart its own generators, so they never cut off the power. “They can’t take electricity away from the company because they don’t have a way to run their own plants,” explains Sury, 48, who lives a few meters from the premises.

“We were surprised when we saw that suddenly we no longer had blackouts although the whole city spends more than ten hours a day without power,” she tells this newspaper. “When we began to investigate, it turns out that the reason is that Etecsa has run out of oil and that office is prioritized. If the power is removed, most of Nauta’s mobile communications and services in Camagüey are dropped,” he explains. “We are a small group of people who are happy that there is no oil, a tremendous irony of life.”

For the rest of the Island, however, the situation borders on the unsustainable. In Thursday’s UNE report, a user identified as Orlando Perez Atencio shared some details of how the last hours of blackouts have been experienced in the Cuban East; to be more specific, in the city of Campechuela where he resides and where yesterday the lack of service was from 9:08 p.m. to 5:52 a.m.

For the rest of the Island, however, the situation borders on the unsustainable

He described it as “a sad spectacle” with children going hoarse from inconsolable crying caused by the heat and the mosquitoes. “The parents are powerless in the face of such a scene, and the grandparents are hopelessly moaning,” he said.

In the months of February, March and May, the lack of power – more than 40% — sent people to the street to protest in numerous places such as Sancti Spíritus, Baracoa and Cienfuegos. The regime’s response on those occasions was, as usual, repression. Units of red berets (Army Prevention Troops) made arrests and deterred the demonstrators.

Translated by Regina Anavy

____________

Marrero Left Iran Empty-Handed and With Few Promises of Economic Aid for Cuba

The Prime Minister hopes that, with the new Government, Tehran will invest more in the Island

Journalist Jaime Yoan Batista, a holguinero like Marrero and resident of Tehran, was a complacent interlocutor / HispanTV

14ymedio, Havana, 22 August 2024 — “To what extent is Cuba willing to change?” The key question of the HispanTV journalist who interviewed Manuel Marrero during his visit to Iran, at the beginning of the month, produced an uncomfortable silence in the prime minister. After a long detour, he summarized the immobility that his Cabinet – in conjunction with the Presidency headed by Miguel Díaz-Canel – represents: “Well, we will never give up the principles of the Revolution.”

In less than 30 minutes of conversation with an interlocutor who was not going to set traps for him – Jaime Yoan Batista, who came from Holguin as did Marrero and is now a resident of Tehran – the Prime Minister relayed the message that interested him: Iran’s economic aid could reach the Island faster, but there is reluctance.

The two countries are allied in their enmity toward the United States, he argued, and they recognize a “very strong” alliance between them. “We always coincide in different points of view” with Iran, because of the “cruel and unjust persecution” by “Washington and all its allies.” Both feel they are victims of the United States in the international arena. “We are two warrior peoples,” he said; hence, he does not understand why economic relations are going so slowly. continue reading

“We have identified all the fields in which we could cooperate, among them biotechnology, which is key, and important steps have already been taken,” he said

“We have identified all the fields in which we could cooperate, among them biotechnology, which is key, and important steps have already been taken,” he said. He alluded to the Soberana 02 vaccine for Covid, which Iran and Cuba jointly manufactured, and which the Persian country sold under the name of PastuCovac, which so far has not received the endorsement of the World Health Organization. “Western countries were not going to help us,” Marrero alleged, so they made a “technology transfer” to the Pasteur Institute of Iran, which was willing to finance the manufacture of the product.

“In the field of energy we have important negotiations that we need to continue consolidating,” he said, alleging Cuba’s “need for fuel” that Iran could alleviate.

“We need to move to another stage,” Marrero pressed. Batista asked if that advance was expected to happen at least in the medium term. The prime minister again diverted the question and said that he hoped that his presence at the inauguration of the new Iranian president, Masoud Pezeshkian, would mark “a before and after” in trade relations.

Marrero celebrated the “change in the direction of the Government,” which, he said, brings favorable signs for Cuba in economic terms. He soon realized that his comment implied that his relations with Ebrahim Raisí, the previous president – who died in a helicopter crash on May 19 – were not the best. “All our people felt his unfortunate death,” he said. “But well, they had new elections and there is a new direction.”

From Tehran, Marrero leaves with a promise from the Ayatollah regime: at the end of the year, an Iranian commission will visit Havana by order of Pezeshkian “to now update all the agreements and set dates for their implementation.” Just words, at least for the moment.

Marrero spoke of other points in common with Iran, in particular its position against Israel in favor of the Palestinians. “With the State of Israel, everyone knows that we don’t have any kind of diplomatic relationship,” he said. He “totally” endorsed Tehran’s position in the war and its military support for Hamas. “Israel is not sanctioned, but Iran, Venezuela and Cuba… I was missing Russia,” Batista agreed.

The prime minister stuck to common subject matter to extend his conversation, which only at the end dealt with the internal situation of Cuba

The prime minister stuck to common subject matter – the blockade, the isolation by the axis of “allies,” independence,” the “doctors in more than 50 countries when no one helped us in the pandemic” – to extend his conversation, which only at the end dealt with the internal situation of Cuba.

“What is the Government of Cuba doing to help alleviate what is happening from the economic point of view?” Batista asked, and it seemed that the tone of the interview was going to be raised. It was, of course, a false alarm. Marrero took advantage of the opportunity and appealed to other topics, such as that the country does everything it can with its own resources and that Cuba “lives from one day to the next with its current situation.”

“Even friendly banks tell us that they can’t give us credit because we can be sanctioned,” he lamented. “Times have changed; there are things and measures that we applied at the time that no longer make sense today, and they have to be corrected. We identified eight strategic objectives,” he said, although he alluded only to containing inflation, “intervening in the illegal foreign exchange market” and a “ferocious fight against illegalities.”

Asked about the new elections in the United States, he practically announced Donald Trump as the winner. “We already know it, and we have prepared a program for Trump’s second term,” he said. “But we are open to foreign investment, even to Cubans living abroad who want to invest in their country.”

“We are not afraid of change,” he insisted, and to prove it he gave an example that borders on science fiction: “Even if Artificial Intelligence is used for evil, we are preparing for that too.”

Translated by Regina Anavy

____________

A Private Company Is Hired in Havana To Collect Mountains of Accumulated Garbage

People must deposit solid waste in designated areas starting at 6:00 p.m.

In the capital alone, between 20,000 and 25,000 tons of waste are produced daily / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Havana, 21 August 2024 — Havana’s municipality of Cerro has turned to a private company to collect the mountains of garbage that have accumulated for months in the streets. In the area, one of the most densely populated in the Cuban capital, Talleres Delis was hired “to improve communal hygiene,” the official media Canal Habana reported on Tuesday.

The company was founded by Delis Antonio Espinosa Hernández and, according to the Ministry of Economy and Planning’s list of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises ( MSMEs), is dedicated to the maintenance and repair of motor vehicles. At the end of last year, Espinosa Hernández himself announced, in an interview with Tribuna de La Habana, that he intended to “insert himself in the search for solutions to the problems of transportation and Communal Services.”

He explained that the repair work carried out by the company was a “quasi-rescue” and a “reconstruction” of vehicles of all kinds – including buses used for state transport – that arrived at his workshop “practically unusable.”

Less clear is the result obtained in the municipality of Diez de Octubre, where they also prepared “recovered trucks” to collect garbage, an action similar to the one that will now be carried out for Cerro. continue reading

This is not the first time a government entity has hired him. Others already did so, he said, during the Covid-19 pandemic, in Mayabeque and Artemisa.

Juan Alonso Street, in Diez de Octubre, still has mountains of garbage, despite the work of Talleres Delis / 14ymedio

The municipality’s authorities argue that they cannot cope with the collection of waste due to a lack of personnel, fuel and equipment. For this reason they made an “agreement” with the Espinosa Hernández MSME to improve the fleet of equipment destined for garbage collection “especially on the most important avenues in the area.”

Other measures taken by the authorities to alleviate the problem of waste, which is proliferating everywhere, are collection brigades that will work starting at 6:00 pm. They will make a tour of the Cerro road, from Boyeros Avenue to Monte, and also along the Ayestarán road.

Residents will only have to deposit their rubbish after that time, and fines will be imposed if they do so before then.

The “experiment,” as Canal Habana describes it , will last a month “to evaluate its results” and will be carried out alongside other actions, according to Johanna Despaigne, deputy mayor of Social Programs in that area, who, without giving further details, indicated that “health hearings” are being held with the population.

In Havana, waste flourishes on every corner, although it also happens in other places, as reported by 14ymedio, including Matanzas, Las Tunas, Santa Clara and Manzanillo.

In Havana, waste flourishes on every corner, although it also happens in other places, as reported by 14ymedio, including Matanzas, Las Tunas, Santa Clara or Manzanillo

In the capital alone, there are between 20,000 to 25,000 tons of waste created each day, which, combined with overcrowding in thousands of buildings, serious problems with the water supply and the poor sewage system, creates an unhealthy environment.

As one example: the water shortage has caused something that has not been seen since the Special Period: Havana residents relieve themselves in a plastic bag, which they then throw into the garbage dump in the open air.

This situation has contributed to the spread of diseases such as Oropouche, which, according to the Government, has led to only 400 cases in the country, although it is present in all provinces and there are hundreds of complaints on social media. In fact, the authorities hinted in July that 35,000 cases had been registered in the country during the first half of this year.

The same is true for dengue fever, which has had resulted in more than 3,000 cases each year since 2019 and has caused several deaths in the country; among the most recent is that of the journalist Magda Iris Chirolde López, editor-in-chief of Canal Caribe, who died at the age of 33 at the end of last month. This disease is “the main health problem in the region,” according to Dr. María Guadalupe Guzmán — head of the Research, Diagnosis and Reference Center of the Pedro Kourí Institute of Tropical Medicine (IPK) — speaking during the international course on dengue and other arboviruses that is being taught in Havana.

____________

Authorities in Ciego De Ávila, Cuba, Have Not Hired Teachers Despite Having the Budget

Cuba’s Minister of Education Naima Trujillo blamed the local cadres for not using the budget surplus and criticized their lack of “originality” / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Havana, August 21,2024 — It would take 1,161 teachers for the school year in Ciego de Ávila to get off on the right foot. The local authorities say that they have enough budget to hire the necessary staff, but prefer to return it to the state coffers at the end of the year rather than “relieve the pockets a little” of the teachers. The reason for this attitude is a mystery that the Minister of Education, Naima Trujillo, failed to clear up this Tuesday.

Meeting with teachers and leaders from Avila, Trujillo attributed the non-use of the budget surplus to the lack of originality of the local cadres. She alluded to the “mechanical thinking” when organizing the course, the lack of “flexibility and intelligence,” and stressed that everything seems to indicate that it will be a year “full of tensions.”

Trujillo asked the managers to be “honest” with the families in the face of the shortages that she foresees for the sector. “This year we will only be able to deliver two uniforms in preschool, one in each initial grade and one in the fifth grade. And we don’t want it to be like that, because the school uniform is a symbol of equity, which we can’t lose. But in the current economic situation we lack the raw materials to make more,” she said. continue reading

“This year we will only be able to deliver two uniforms in preschool, one in each initial grade and one in fifth grade”

In fact, the official press has been filled in the weeks prior to the school year with official “apologies” because the textile factories have not lived up to the demand for uniforms. Escambray reported on Tuesday, in a sarcastic tone, that the industry has a number of uniforms that are “unstitched,” in the neighboring province of Sancti Spíritus. One of the explanations for the lack of uniforms bordered on the hilarious: garments are missing because they are manufactured according to a “historic” record – if a child needs a preschool uniform in 2023, the following year he will have to buy a first grade one – and this year the calculation was not made correctly.

“There are no recipes” to make the school year successful, summarized Trujillo, who suggested a kind of personal formula: “in everything we implement, we must go from diagnosis to transformation and innovate incessantly,” because there will be multiple “limitations.”

But Cuban teaching does not depend only on uniforms: computers, indispensable for children to do their work according to the requirements of the Ministry, are missing in at least 65 schools in Avila, most of them rural primary schools. The data, provided by a local official, was answered with another slogan from Trujillo: “It is important to overcome the difficulties.”

The minister admitted a situation that has dozens of families complaining: the student meals, which are nothing more than rice and bread”

Another disturbing issue is the food for scholarship students, which is going through a critical moment. The minister admitted the situation that dozens of families have denounced: the kids “find at the time of the meal a tray with rice and bread, nothing else.”

Given these problems, Trujillo said, few want to dedicate themselves to careers linked to teaching. Only 67% of the planned students entered the Teaching program, and the managers are preparing for the classrooms to be decimated in the first months of the course. The center for higher studies is characterized, she said, by its “low retention” of students during the first year.

“Among the most affected specialties are Early Childhood, Special, Primary, Mathematics and Chemistry. Ciego de Ávila, Florencia and Ciro Redondo are the municipalities where fewer high school students opt for teaching,” she said.

In the midst of the shortcomings, Trujillo celebrated that they at least have textbooks. An “important” shipment of 29 titles – she did not say how many copies of each – are about to arrive in Cuba; she did not reveal which country had printed them. It was the only “good news” of the meeting, commented Invasor.

“There can’t be a single Avileño teacher who hasn’t received a knock on the door trying to convince him to return”

During the opening of the discussion, several leaders indicated to Trujillo their ideas and complaints about the beginning of the course. Alfredo Menéndez, governor of the province, said that the schools had to go out to “motivate” those who had abandoned teaching. “There can’t be a single Avila teacher who hasn’t received a knock on the door trying to convince them to return,” he said, without referring to the “unexecuted budget” that the minister attributed to her office.

On September 2, another school year begins, marked by shortages, the lack of materials and with few teachers, and the situation is expected to be even worse the following year. According to a report by the National Bureau of Statistics and Information, in the first half of 2024, the Island devoted 21% less of its budget to education, while it invested 112% more in the construction of hotels and restaurants. Despite the seriousness of the situation, the Ministry of Education has had no qualms about declaring on X that everything is “assured” for a return to the classrooms.

Translated by Regina Anavy

____________

Maduro’s Government Seeks To ‘Terrify’ Public Employees, Says María Corina Machado

“Much sooner than some believe, you will all be able to express yourselves freely,” said the Venezuelan opponent.

Political leaders and organizations have denounced unjustified dismissals of public employees / EFE

EFE (via 14ymedio), 22 August 2024, Caracas — Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado said on Wednesday that the Government of Nicolás Maduro seeks to “terrify” public employees so that they do not express themselves against chavismo. “They have spied on your social networks, your privacy, checked your phone. This is monstrous, and what they are looking for, what they intend, is to terrify public employees, isolate them, paralyze them all,” said the former deputy, who defends the electoral triumph of her standard-bearer, Edmundo González Urrutia.

In a “message to public employees” disseminated on social networks, Machado urged these workers to “help each other,” despite the fact that “the regime wants to sow distrust” among them, in the midst of the political crisis that the country is going through, with post-election protests and police operations that resulted in 25 deaths and 2,400 detainees, according to state sources.

“Get ready, because change is inevitable. Much sooner than some believe, you will all be able to express yourselves freely,” said Machado, after political leaders and organizations denounced “unjustified dismissals” of public employees for allegedly supporting the opposition in the elections. continue reading

Machado urged these workers to “help each other,” despite the fact that “the regime wants to sow distrust” among them

“We understand the anguish you feel today when you cannot openly express and share with us your conviction that this regime that has brought much corruption and must come to an end. We understand your fears, because this regime is ruthless,” she added.

The coalition that backs González Urrutia, the Democratic United Platform (PUD), states that its candidate won the presidential elections by a wide margin. They also published 83% of the electoral results to reinforce this claim, which has been supported by several countries and national and international organizations.

However, the National Electoral Council (CNE) proclaimed Maduro the winner, without publishing the disaggregated results, something that was expected in the election schedule, and which has been demanded by a large part of the international community.

Translated by Regina Anavy

____________

The Oropouche Virus, An Unwanted Visitor in Thousands of Cuban Homes

Most people with Oropouche symptoms do not seek medical attention

Mountains of garbage grow on the streets due to the lack of fuel and trucks to collect them / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Yoani Sánchez, Generation Y, Havana, 22 August 2024 — A few months ago we didn’t even know how to pronounce its name, but the Oropouche virus has already become an uninvited guest in Cuban homes. In the neighborhood where I live, in Havana, every day we hear about a neighbor who has isolated themself because of high fevers and weakness. They are almost always elderly people who live alone, because their children and grandchildren have emigrated; they almost never go to hospitals for treatment.

After months of hiding the numbers, Cuban authorities have recently confirmed that, as of early August, more than 400 people have been infected with the Oropouche virus throughout the country. The official statement, however, does not mention the alert issued by the United States for those traveling to the island. The alert from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) asks visitors to take extreme precautions.

But beyond statistics and tourism, the Oropouche virus is becoming the final straw in an epidemiological situation that is deteriorating every day. While the mountains of garbage pile up in the streets, due to the lack of fuel and vehicles to transport it, there is no water due to the deterioration of the pumping equipment and the countless breaks in the distribution pipes. The lack of hygiene suits rodents as well as other vectors, such as the Culex mosquito, the main transmitter of the virus on the Island. An alarming sanitary storm has been underway for months. continue reading

Lack of hygiene suits both rodents and other vectors, such as the ‘Culex’ mosquito

Most people who start showing symptoms do not seek medical attention. The Cuban population is increasingly convinced that hospitals lack the necessary supplies to treat many illnesses, that they have fewer and fewer specialists due to the mass exodus the country is experiencing, and that their facilities suffer from such poor hygiene that it can lead to more infections. Many of the sick prefer to stay at home or resort to practices that have more to do with superstition than science

The most dramatic effect of this mixture of scarcity and suspicion is the deterioration of the quality of life, a possible increase in mortality and the increase in the consumption of drugs from the informal market that do not pass the controls of health entities. The belief is spreading that in matters of health each person must manage on their own. Relatives abroad pay out of their own pockets for everything from the suture thread for surgery to painkillers and antibiotics. The regime that boasted of having one of the best public health systems in the world can hardly rely on its propaganda campaigns and its high-sounding headlines to maintain the international image of medical power

A resident in my neighborhood has already recovered from the fever and malaise of the Oropouche, but now she has no water to bathe with or to wash her clothes. The virus of the crisis seems to last much longer

Editor’s note: This article originally appeared in DW and is reproduced under license from the author.

____________

The Cuban Regime Denies Its Involvement in Venezuela, Despite the Evidence Provided by the Opposition

The Cuban Foreign Ministry accused María Corina Machado of being a “promoter of lies” and of responding to the interests of the United States.

Machado said in an interview that Cuba is partly responsible for the repression in Venezuela / EFE

EFE (via 14ymedio), Havana, August 21, 2024 — The Cuban Government denied on Tuesday any involvement in the repression of the protests in Venezuela and criticized the opponent María Corina Machado, whom it described as a “promoter of lies” and a “person of the oligarchies” and “the interests” of the United States. In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs attacked the former deputy – without mentioning her by name – four days after the opposition leader said in an interview with Mexican journalist León Krauze that the Island “has had an impact” on “methods of repression, persecution, espionage and torture” in her country.

In this regard, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs pointed out that, “once again, invention and delirium come to life in the construction of a matrix of lies against Cuba.” It also added that Machado’s statements respond to “despair to hide the failure of the coup plans in Venezuela.”

“Cuba emphatically rejects the falsehoods that are fabricated to reinforce the policy of harassment,” the statement says. In the same way, it stressed that the Island does not “interfere – and never will – in the political and economic life of another country with sanctions, pressures and regime change plans.” continue reading

“Cuba emphatically rejects the falsehoods that are fabricated to reinforce the policy of harassment,” the statement says

The Cuban president, Miguel Díaz-Canel, applauded last Sunday the pro-government demonstrations that took place on Saturday in response to the opposition marches in Venezuela and in dozens of cities around the world that same day. “The people of Venezuela spoke again. In marches for peace and against fascism, it ratified the recognition of President Nicolás Maduro,” Díaz-Canel wrote, ignoring that the overwhelming majority of participants in those marches demonstrated in support of the opposition.

According to the Venezuelan Government, the post-election protests have left more than 2,400 detainees and 25 deaths in the numerous protests that have taken place after the elections of July 28, when Maduro declared himself the winner.

For its part, the largest opposition coalition assures that its standard-bearer, Edmundo González Urrutia, obtained the majority of the votes and exhibited the 83% of the tally sheets that they managed to collect, which validate his victory.

In this scenario, where the international community has recognized González Urrutia as the winner or, at least, has asked Maduro to prove his alleged victory with its voting records, Cuba has been one of the few countries, along with others such as Russia or Nicaragua, that insist on declaring Maduro as president-elect.

Translated by Regina Anavy

____________

The Debacle of Tourism in Cuba Continues, With a 14 Percent Decrease in July

Foreign tourists in Old Havana / 14ymedio

14ymedio/EFE, 20 August 2024 — Far from improving, or even maintaining, as happened with the June figures, tourism in Cuba continues to sink. In July, according to the report published on Tuesday by the National Office of Statistics and Information (ONEI), 153,261 travelers from abroad arrived in the country, a figure similar to that in the same month of 2022, but 13.56% lower than last year, when 177,306 tourists were received.

Between January and July, a total of 1,463,097 international travelers entered, 26,230 fewer – 1.8% – than in the same period of the previous year. Although the largest market is still Canada – with 613,227 people – the North American country registers a fall in its travelers to the Island, and the same happens with other European countries, such as Spain, Italy and France.

In July 2023, the United States measure eliminating Europeans from the ESTA rapid visa eligibility who have been in Cuba since January 12, 2021 – the date on which the U.S. Administration included the Island on the list of state sponsors of terrorism – came into force, a reason that may be behind the decrease in European tourists.

Visits by Cubans living abroad also decreased by 14.4%: in 2023 there were 210,026 such visitors between January and July, in the same period this year there were 179,746. continue reading

Year-on-year comparison of international travelers to Cuba / ONEI

On the other hand, visitors from Russia rose by 41%. With 123,358 travelers in the first seven months of 2024, it is still the second largest market, and with the bilateral agreements signed in the last two years, Russian tourism is expected to continue growing.

In any case, the Regime’s goal is to achieve 3.2 million international visitors in 2024, which was already a figure much lower than the data prior to the COVID-19 pandemic (4.2 million in 2019 and 4.6 million in 2018), and which contrasts dramatically with the Island’s direct Caribbean competitors – the Dominican Republic and Mexico – which have had historic high numbers of tourists in these post-COVID years.

The authorization, a few days ago, of the eVisa to facilitate the entry procedures into Cuba is also not expected to help much, taking into account the internet connection problems on the Island.

At the same time, and according to another report published on Tuesday by ONEI — Cuba’s National Office of Statistics — Cuba increased by 112% per year, more than double, its investment in hotels and restaurants in the first half of 2024. In absolute terms, it allocated 15,779.1 million pesos to the Tourism sector, 36.5% of the 43,12 billion pesos authorized in the first six months of the year.

For Pedro Monreal, these data confirm the “persistence of a very deformed investment structure”

If the investments are divided by segments, the Business Services, Real Estate and Rental Activities section – which includes the construction of hotels – accumulated 26.4% of the total investment. It is followed by the manufacturing industry, with 19.5%, and hotels and restaurants, with 11.4%.

Faced with this, public spending decreased by more than 20% in education, construction and public administration.

For the Cuban economist Pedro Monreal, these data confirm the “persistence of a very deformed investment structure in Cuba,” with almost 40% of spending concentrated on tourism-related activities. In a thread on X, the specialist highlights the growing investment in hotels and restaurants “despite the low occupancy rate of 28.4%.”

Similarly, he draws attention to the low agricultural investment, only 2.5% of total public spending (15 times less than what is allocated to tourism), which, in his opinion, indicates that the official “priority” “with respect to food security is no more than a slogan.”

Translated by Regina Anavy

____________

The OAS Considers Democracy in Venezuela To Have Collapsed

The president of Paraguay, Santiago Peña, expressed his concern about the resurgence of authoritarianism and populism in the region

The OAS Secretary General, Luis Almagro, sent a video message during the XVII Inter-American Meeting of Electoral Authorities / Nina Osorio/EFE

EFE (via 14ymedio), Luque (Paraguay), August 20, 2024 — The lack of transparency in the July 28 elections in Venezuela shows that the democratic system of that country has collapsed, the Secretary for the Strengthening of Democracy of the Organization of American States (OAS), the Mexican Francisco Guerrero, declared on Tuesday.

“In what electoral process in the world do you wait three weeks to know the evidence that guarantees a result? Nowhere else in the world. What this confirms is that the democratic system in Venezuela has collapsed,” he told the EFE Guerrero agency, which is participating in the Paraguayan city of Luque of the XVII Inter-American Meeting of Electoral Authorities (RAE).

According to the official, the Venezuelans decided “on a direction that was opposite” to the results issued by the National Electoral Council (CNE), which formalized Maduro’s victory for a third six-year term in power, a result questioned by the opposition and by a large part of the international community. continue reading

The electoral authority has been characterized as ’being in the hands of the regime’

“In the case of Venezuela, in particular, I think it has been evident, it has been very clear, that people decided on a direction contrary to what the electoral authority says,” Guerrero said. In addition, he considered that the electoral authority “has been characterized as being in the hands of the regime of Nicolás Maduro.”

The Democratic United Platform (PUD), the largest Venezuelan opposition coalition, called the results announced by the CNE fraudulent and said that its standard-bearer, Edmundo González Urrutia, was the winner of the elections. Guerrero pointed out that the electoral “lack of independence” in Venezuela, as well as the “lack of political capacity” of the Maduro Government “to recognize what people have truly said at the polls, is what generated this crisis.”

In that context, the OAS delegate stressed the importance of “the electoral authorities being autonomous, being independent, not responding to the dictates of the powerful or to the interest groups.”

At the inauguration of the meeting, the Secretary General of the OAS, Luis Almagro, said, through a video, that they will continue to “fight for the return to democracy in Venezuela.” “The goal remains a democratic future, without political persecution, with full respect for fundamental rights,” said Almagro, who urged the electoral authorities to ensure that every voice and vote counts.

The OAS will continue to fight for the return to democracy in Venezuela, Almagro assured

During the opening of the meeting, which will conclude this Wednesday, the president of Paraguay, Santiago Peña, expressed his concern about the “slow resurgence of authoritarianism, populism and anti-democratic ideas” in the region.

He mentioned that many want to make people believe “that democracy is not up to the great challenges,” such as transnational crime, economic inequalities or insecurity.

To him, to them, I say today loud and clear: false prophets. On the contrary, I am convinced that the only way to fight against these dangers is not with authoritarianism or its first cousin, demagogic populism, but with democracy,” he concluded.

Peña also urged the representatives of the 27 countries participating in the meeting to ensure the validity of democracy and to give “clear answers” that guarantee citizen confidence.

“I hope that in these days when we hear voices of hopelessness that struggle for the return of authoritarian models, this meeting will constitute a true beacon of hope, of struggle for democracy, and that it is a light in the midst of darkness,” he said.

The crisis in Venezuela is not explicitly on the agenda

In Paraguay, the authorities of the 35 inter-American electoral bodies will analyze the impact and risks of artificial intelligence on democracy and the integrity of electoral processes.

Likewise, they will discuss multilateral efforts to preserve democracy, the health of the system and democratic institutions, and the promotion of secure information ecosystems in the electoral sphere.

Similarly, there will be a space for dialogue on the effects of political violence on the elections. The crisis in Venezuela is not explicitly on the agenda, although it will surely be one of the topics of debate.

Translated by Regina Anavy

____________

The Mystery of the Dominican Eggs at Half Price: They Arrived in Cuba and Disappeared

Sale of eggs in foreign currency in La Época on Saturday / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Natalia López Moya, 19 August 2024 — A candle with the number seven is all that Jean Carlos’ family has for the cake they need to celebrate his birthday this Tuesday. The shortage of eggs has caused a crisis in the private sweet shops that prepare the traditional cakes, made with brown sugar and meringue. On the black market in Havana, a carton of 30 eggs is close to 3,600 pesos, and “they don’t have them anywhere,” complains the child’s mother.

This Saturday, Jean Carlos’ grandmother paused all household chores after receiving a call: “They brought out eggs in La Época and people are taking them in quantities because they are 5.95 MLC (freely convertible currency) a carton,” a friend residing near the corner of Galiano and Neptuno streets in Central Havana alerted her. “Run and see if you can get any!”

Traditionally, when the product reaches the foreign exchange markets, a carton is sold above 10 MLC (equivalent to 2,750 pesos, according to the parallel exchange rate); hence the astonishment of the 69-year-old habanera. Between doubt and despair, she took her wallet and ran to Rancho Boyeros Avenue where, after waiting half an hour, she managed to find an almendrón. After paying 200 pesos, she arrived at the market, which was already surrounded by a crowd of people.

“By the time I arrived they had run out because people were buying cartons and cartons”

However, she had no luck. “By the time I arrived they had run out because people were buying cartons and cartons,” she says. Through the door of the foreign exchange store, customers loaded down with dozens of cartons were leaving, while the line to get in stretched along Neptuno Street, as verified by this newspaper. The frenzy of grabbing the product was such that, a couple of hours after the market opened, there weren’t any eggs left. continue reading

With a small red and yellow Endy label that revealed their origin in the Dominican Republic, the cartons looked somewhat dirty on the outside, as if they had been stored in a place with little hygiene. “They are very cheap; each egg comes out at less than 20 cents (from MLC), and I don’t know whether to get in line to buy them because they may not be fresh at all,” said a client who roamed around the store.

“The egg might contain a surprise, and that dirt on them makes me suspicious,” the woman added. Next to her, another potential buyer also expressed doubt: “At this price they must have been confiscated from some MSME, or maybe they’re in a hurry to get rid of them because they’ve been without refrigeration for days. I prefer not to risk it,” she said.

Others, more daring, chose to try their luck and take all the cartons they could carry and that their MLC cards allowed. The final destination of so much merchandise was not exactly the frying pans of their homes but resale. “Tomorrow we will see these eggs on San Rafael Street at 3,000 pesos per carton,” complained an employee of La Época. “But we haven’t been told to set a limit, so we have to sell all the cartons they ask for.”

The anxiety to acquire more and more was spurred on by the deficit of food sold in Cuban pesos on informal networks. The private businesses that sell sweets are the most affected by the shortage of the product, to the point that some have preferred to close until lower prices appear among the informal sellers.

In the neighborhood of Nuevo Vedado, an MSME dedicated to the preparation of cakes for weddings and birthdays has not been providing service for more than two weeks due to the lack of the essential ingredient. The place, next to Tulipán Street, has a loyal clientele among several neighbors in the area who can afford to pay the high prices of their sweets and cakes.

With a small red and yellow Endy label that reveals their origin in the Dominican Republic, the cartons looked somewhat dirty on the outside / 14ymedio

The owner of the candy store was excited about the sale at La Época, believing that the resellers were going to flood the market with new offers, but on Monday her frustration reached a higher level. “There’s nothing at all; it’s a mystery because everyone I’ve called keeps telling me that there aren’t any eggs left, that we have to wait. Where did all those cartons go?” she asks. Her hypothesis is that much of the product has already been sold directly to those who offer sweets through digital portals in foreign exchange.

“It gives them more business like this because there the prices are 25 dollars and up for a cake, and it is a quick way to get the product out without having to risk the eggs spoiling or having to offer them at retail on the street,” she says. One solution is to “buy egg powder to replace the fresh eggs, but it doesn’t work for all kinds of recipes,” she admits.

“We are not getting orders because we don’t have eggs,” the owner of the candy store warns several residents nearby who share a WhatsApp group. “We will let you know when we can make the cakes again, but at the moment we don’t have a reopening date,” said the entrepreneur, illustrating her message with the emoticon of a piece of cake.

The image of the appetizing sweet, like the candle with the number seven for Jean Carlos, is the closest thing to a birthday cake that those enrolled in the group – and a good part of the Cubans who suffer from the shortage of eggs – have seen in several days.

Translated by Regina Anavy

____________

In the Café of the Terry Theater in Cienfuegos, Business Is Done Behind the Bar

In the state cafeteria “everything is bought and sold, even what one cannot imagine”

Located in front of José Martí Park, the Tomás Terry Theater cafeteria has a privileged location / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Julio Cesar Contreras, Cienfuegos, 20 August 2024 — At the cafe tables in the Tomás Terry Theater in Cienfuegos, all kinds of deals and business agreements take place, and the authorities turn a blind eye. From foreign currency and illicit substances to the body of a cienfueguera girl, in a place managed by the state-owned Artex, “everything is bought and sold on the premises, anything one can imagine,” whispers a bar customer.

Facing José Martí Park, a central area of the city, Terry’s cafe is not empty even when there is a blackout. Sitting at a table, tapping his foot impatiently, Adrián – who uses a false name so that he is not “booked” by the Police – waits for a foreigner who is looking to rent a room in a hostel. “This is my daily struggle: Getting tourists and hosting them in private homes, with a commission for me for each client I get,” the 26-year-old man tells 14ymedio.

Even when there are blackouts, Terry’s café always has customers / 14ymedio

Those who, like him, travel around the city looking for potential customers are known as “managers,” a name that gives more prestige to their profession than it really has. “The owners of the hostels charge between 15 or 20 dollars a night, and I take a percentage of that,” he says. continue reading

For a few months – Adrián has only been in business for two years – the difficulty in attracting foreigners has increased, and tourists hardly arrive in the city or prefer to stay in state hotels. Because of this, the business of the young cienfueguero has been “low,” and the customers who do stay in private homes are now, for the most part, those who have a very specific interest: to be out of sight of the authorities.

“It’s not that you like this mess of prostitution, but sometimes the opportunity presents itself and you have to take advantage of it, because things are very hard wherever you turn, and that’s one way to hook tourists,” he explains. Normally, Adrián says, the cost for a night with a jinetera is around 100 dollars or euros, but “when things are tight” and there are almost no tourists, sometimes they accept 50. The woman is given part of the take depending on the deal, reveals the young man. He prefers to settle matters because the “question” brings its own risks.

From the outside, life in the Terry seems to be quiet, although, from the prices, anyone can deduce that those who come to have a coffee do not live on a worker’s salary

From the outside, life in the Terry seems to be quiet, although, from the prices, anyone can deduce that those who come to have a coffee do not live on a worker’s salary. With espressos at 60 pesos – a year ago one cost a third as much – cocktails between 150 and 300, or a beer at 280, the place still maintains a menu that is obviously State but also expensive. The tricks to keep the business afloat happen behind the bar.

Behind the bar is where the tricks that keep the business afloat happen / 14ymedio

“To maintain the service you have to stretch the coffee powder as much as possible, because the supply is very scarce and the demand is very high,” an employee tells this newspaper. At the cocktail bar is thrown “a lot of ice and a little alcohol,” and to “fatten” the salaries a little, which do not reach 3,000 pesos, some workers resell on the left “what appears.” As to what happens inside Terry’s doors, the workers prefer to turn a blind eye.”

Appearances are deceiving, and while the music goes on through Saturday night and into the next morning, there are also those who are selling, buying and negotiating anything,” explains Mercedes, another of the unique customers of the cafe. “Right now I bought 80 MLC (freely convertible currency) from a woman who has just left,” says the cienfueguera. She pretends to be surprised at the fact that the Government is persecuting the foreign exchange black market at the same time that it lets it happen on its own premises.

While the music goes on through Saturday night until the next morning, there are also those who are selling, buying and negotiating anything

If it were not for everything that is “offered” on the left in Terry’s cafe, the place, with an illuminated sign that, between blackouts and technical failures, never works – in addition to the 100 pesos that are requested to enter any event – would always be empty. “I shouldn’t say this, but sometimes certain drugs are even sold here,” says Mercedes, who has seen customers “pass pills” while hiding among the crowd and the music. “In the end everyone just minds their own business,” the woman alleges, for whom it is also a relief that – paraphrasing the famous Las Vegas saying – what happens in the Terry stays in the Terry.

Translated by Regina Anavy

____________

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: