Search results for: Orlando Zapata Tamayo

Sakharov for Fariñas: Acknowledgment of Cuban Democrats / Voices Behind The Bars

Generally, awards give rise to controversies, and that is normal. Only totalitarian regimes are bent on wanting everyone to think and act the same way. But, despite some voices who disagree (most of which come straight from those who defend the regime), the most popular and prestigious awards handed out throughout the world during the … Continue reading “Sakharov for Fariñas: Acknowledgment of Cuban Democrats / Voices Behind The Bars”

Miguel Galban Gutiérrez: Gratitude for Freedom of Expression Award 2011 / Voices Behind The Bars

The blog, “Voices Behind the Bars” would like to welcome Miguel Galban Gutierrez, one of the independent journalists imprisoned during the Black Spring 2003, and who is now exiled in Spain. Miguel Galban has written the following entry as an appreciation for being granted the “Freedom of Expression Award 2011″. ___________________________________________________________ Covadonga Porrúa, I would … Continue reading “Miguel Galban Gutiérrez: Gratitude for Freedom of Expression Award 2011 / Voices Behind The Bars”

Reports I Would Prefer Not to Write / Luis Felipe Rojas

Photo: Luis Felipe Rojas When I dictated this post this morning to a friend who has always been aware of my aspirations and having and maintaining my blog from Holguin, she told me, and here I want to record it in writing, “You never thought you were going to face, from your writing, a ‘reality’ … Continue reading “Reports I Would Prefer Not to Write / Luis Felipe Rojas”

Requiem for Franklin Brito / Ricardo Medina

Franklin Brito. Source: Google Images The just will remain in memory, and will not fear the onslaughts of evil… On Monday, August 30, I received a heartbreaking text message from the author of Generation Y, Yoani Sanchez: “Now Chavez has his Zapata,” referring to the death while on hunger strike of the Venezuelan farmer Franklin … Continue reading “Requiem for Franklin Brito / Ricardo Medina”

Orphaned From Journalism (Part 2, Almost Final) / Ernesto Morales Licea

If someone were to ask me, what is the principal weakness, the most glaring problem suffered by Cuban journalism today, I believe I could summarize it without hesitation: It doesn’t resemble Cubans. It doesn’t resemble anyone. Neither the audience to whom it is addressed, which recognizes less and less these triumphalist news items they read … Continue reading “Orphaned From Journalism (Part 2, Almost Final) / Ernesto Morales Licea”

Homage to Coco Fariñas / Claudia Cadelo

I met Boris by an odd coincidence. One day he came to my house to find some music and we ended up talking about literature. I discovered that we had a world in common: the desire to be free, to know the truth, to dream about another, less battered, Cuba. He left me this text … Continue reading “Homage to Coco Fariñas / Claudia Cadelo”

Fariñas and Sakharov: The Totalitarians Cannot Be Reformed / IntraMuros

Cuba dawned today in the monotony typical of these systems. But a text message broke into my room at 5 am: Farinas won the Sakharov Prize. The morning dawned differently for me and for many other Cubans who began to send from heart to heart — that is from cellphone to cellphone — the good … Continue reading “Fariñas and Sakharov: The Totalitarians Cannot Be Reformed / IntraMuros”

“Akiro” / Luis Felipe Rojas

Photo: Luis Felipe Rojas Known by the name “Akiro,” thanks to his martial arts talent and his involvement with combat sports, Juan Luis Rodriguez Desdin has been confined to the provincial jail of Holguin. There, he has been condemned to suffer two years due to a supposed act of “disrespect,” which in Cuba can be … Continue reading ““Akiro” / Luis Felipe Rojas”

Zoé Valdés, a Pen Like a Whip / Iván García

On one of those nights in Havana, when the sky is clear with a handful of stars as a witness, someone told me that the Castro brothers feel a particular hatred for three Cubans. The list, what a coincidence, three writers: Guillermo Cabrera Infante, Reinaldo Arenas and Zoé Valdés. The resentment was so great, this … Continue reading “Zoé Valdés, a Pen Like a Whip / Iván García”

Rolando Against the Impunity in Guantanamo / Luis Felipe Rojas

I’ve been avoiding writing this post for a few months. I was afraid I might not be objective enough, being close to Rolando Rodríguez Lobaina, to sound the alert to the world. Even so, my duty towards justice and truth is more important. This young man, a computer engineer who graduated from Havana’s university system … Continue reading “Rolando Against the Impunity in Guantanamo / Luis Felipe Rojas”

Riot Squads? … If There Are No Riots in Cuba… / Luis Felipe Rojas

Why is everyone so surprised to see photos of riot troops putting down a student protest in Jaguey Grande**? I saw riot troops, led my Military Counterintelligence in Camagüey. Their objective was to avoid the public joining the demonstrations of the Eastern Democratic Alliance, which took to the streets in solidarity with Reina Tamayo while … Continue reading “Riot Squads? … If There Are No Riots in Cuba… / Luis Felipe Rojas”

Similarities / Rebeca Monzo

They say that comparisons are never good. This can be very true, because the comparison almost always ignores the notion of time and space. Each phenomenon should be seen in the context within which it manifests itself. But there are similarities, it can’t be denied. Again listening to the shortwave, I hear the sad news: … Continue reading “Similarities / Rebeca Monzo”

The Cuban Catholic Church and the Opposition: An Unnecessary Conflict / Miriam Celaya

The dialogue between the government of General Raúl Castro and the top hierarchy of the Catholic Church continues to generate discussions between different opposition groups and the independent civil society sectors. It was expected that half a century of stagnation would bring, as its first consequence, the creaking of rusty hinges when trying to turn … Continue reading “The Cuban Catholic Church and the Opposition: An Unnecessary Conflict / Miriam Celaya”

The Same Old Story Again / Antunez

Here comes the same old story again, the elimination of restrictions on commerce with the Havana dictatorship.  Once again the same voices, influenced by powerful interests, continue talking about the same thing.  Sometimes, it’s as if we lose faith in our own efforts as Cubans. Not long ago, I read and heard about an important … Continue reading “The Same Old Story Again / Antunez”

Will the Prisons be Filled Again? / Iván García

It is a likely probability.  It is known that the Castros are unpredictable.  At times, they attempt to behave like brothers respectful of international norms.  The truth is the rules of democracy and human rights agreements are instruments against which the government in Havana holds grudges. The three-way negotiations between General Raul Castro with the Cuban … Continue reading “Will the Prisons be Filled Again? / Iván García”