Six Cuban Evangelical Leaders Call for the Release of the Obispo Street Detainees

14ymedio, Havana, 22 May 2021 —  Six evangelical pastors have addressed an open letter to the Cuban State to request the freedom of those detained in Obispo Street in Havana on April 30, after a demonstration in favor of the artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, then on a hunger strike in his home. In their letter, made public … Continue reading “Six Cuban Evangelical Leaders Call for the Release of the Obispo Street Detainees”

The Macabre Performance of Cuban State Security

14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 22 May 2021 — Since Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara fell into the hands of State Security 20 days ago, the narrative of every second of his existence has been under the power of the Government. Luisma, as his friends call him, likes to turn on his cell phone and go live … Continue reading “The Macabre Performance of Cuban State Security”

Mary Karla Ares is Serving Two Weeks in Prison for Filming the Obispo Street Protest

14ymedio, Havana, 13 May 2021 — Journalist Mary Karla Ares turned 29 this Tuesday, May 11. On that day she had also served 11 days in provisional prison since her arrest on April 30 on Obispo Street, in Havana, during a solidarity protest with the artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, then on a hunger and … Continue reading “Mary Karla Ares is Serving Two Weeks in Prison for Filming the Obispo Street Protest”

Cuban Authorities Still Haven’t Explained Why Alcantara Can’t Leave the Hospital

14ymedio, Havana, 11 May 2021 — The artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara is still hospitalized despite the fact that he was admitted to the Calixto García in Havana nine days ago and the authorities released clinical data indicating that his health was more than good. The Provincial Directorate of Health of Havana released a statement on Tuesday in which it assures that the … Continue reading “Cuban Authorities Still Haven’t Explained Why Alcantara Can’t Leave the Hospital”

Special Troops, Police Officers and Plainclothes Agents Surround Calixto Garcia Hospital

14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodriguez, Havana, 4 May 2021 — A strong security operation guards the entrances to the Calixto García hospital, in Havana, where the Cuban authorities have isolated artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara since he was forcibly taken from his home last Sunday to force him to suspend the hunger strike and thirst started … Continue reading “Special Troops, Police Officers and Plainclothes Agents Surround Calixto Garcia Hospital”

When Anger is Not Enough / Jeovany Jimenez Vega

Jeovany Jimenez Vega, 14 April 2021 — The controversy is useful: there are recent high-octane videos circulating in the social network where we can hear certain activists, or rather another chorus of Habaneros (people from Havana), who rant and rave in the street, hurling insults at the police and at (Cuban president) Diaz-Canel himself, and every day … Continue reading “When Anger is Not Enough / Jeovany Jimenez Vega”

Dozens of Activists Demonstrate in Old Havana, Shouting “Patria y Vida” (Homeland and Life)

14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 30 April 2021 — Dozens of activists were repressed in a protest in the park on the corner of Obispo and Aguacate, in Old Havana. The protesters were trying to reach the home of Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, only a few blocks away. The artist is on his sixth day of a … Continue reading “Dozens of Activists Demonstrate in Old Havana, Shouting “Patria y Vida” (Homeland and Life)”

State Workers Called to Participate in ‘Operation San Isidro’

14ymedio, Havana, April 29, 2021 — Workers at state-owned restaurants and bars in Old Havana, most of whom are at home due to the pandemic and the drop-off in tourism, were summoned to join surveillance and “confrontation with the counterrevolution” operations in the San Isidro neighborhood. There, at 955 Damas Street on Thursday, the artist Luis … Continue reading “State Workers Called to Participate in ‘Operation San Isidro’”

Activists and Reporters Denounce Police Sieges and Arbitrary Arrests

14ymedio, Havana, 23 April 2021 — This Friday independent activists, artists and journalists again suffered another day of repression by State Security. Police surveillance, bans on leaving homes, and arbitrary arrests marked the day in Havana. The reporter from the CiberCuba portal, Iliana Hernández, after spending 14 days under constant surveillance around her home in Cojímar, decided to go out … Continue reading “Activists and Reporters Denounce Police Sieges and Arbitrary Arrests”

“I Know that at Some Point People in Cuba are Going to Wake Up En Masse”

14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez, Havana, 23 April 2021 — Curiosity is the hallmark of the work of the Cuban journalist and filmmaker Eliécer Jiménez-Almeida (b. Camagüey, 1983). It was the desire to investigate that led him to make documentaries such as Persona (2014), in which he approaches the lives of five individuals; Now! (2016), which denounces the repression against human rights … Continue reading ““I Know that at Some Point People in Cuba are Going to Wake Up En Masse””

Cuba’s Political Police Lock Up Opponents in Their Homes and Cut Off Their Phones

14ymedio, Havana, 19 April 2021 — The Cuban government unleashed a repressive wave against independent activists, artists and journalists this weekend, while the Eighth Congress of the Communist Party of Cuba was held at the Palace of Conventions in Havana. The artist Tania Bruguera, who had planned to give an online conference last Friday on art, activism and censorship … Continue reading “Cuba’s Political Police Lock Up Opponents in Their Homes and Cut Off Their Phones”

Report on Government Actions and Repression in Cuba / Cubalex

Cubalex, 13 April 2021. Summary: Coronavirus cases are continuing to increase and the government announces new coronavirus strains in the country. Repression of activists, members of the opposition and journalists continues before the Party Congress Government actions April 5th. New measures in Ciego de Avila against increasing number of coronavirus cases. These include restriction on … Continue reading “Report on Government Actions and Repression in Cuba / Cubalex”

San Isidro Movement Artists Organize a ‘Patria y Vida’ Street Party

14ymedio, Havana, 4 April 2021 — At the headquarters of the San Isidro Movement (MSI) a collective birthday was celebrated this Sunday, planned by the artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara. Damas Street, in Old Havana, was filled with residents of the neighborhood with a strong police operation remaining in the afternoon. During the celebration, and from loudspeakers placed in … Continue reading “San Isidro Movement Artists Organize a ‘Patria y Vida’ Street Party”

Should the Opposition Dialogue with the Cuban Government?

14ymedio, Havana, 15 March 2021 — Since last November 27, when some thirty artists managed to force a meeting with the Vice Minister of Culture, Fernando Rojas, after the unprecedented demonstration of some 300 people before the ministry, the question has divided activists: should the Cuban opposition recognize the Government as an interlocutor in a dialogue that guides … Continue reading “Should the Opposition Dialogue with the Cuban Government?”

“The National Dialogue Will Allow Us to Move from Complaint to Strategic Action”

14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 12 March 2021 — The San Isidro Movement (MSI) explained during a press conference details about the National Dialogue initiative proposed by the Patria y Vida [Homeland and Life] platform, inspired by the song by Yotuel Romero, Gente de Zona, Descemer Bueno, Osorbo and El Funky. Iris Ruiz, Michel Matos, Amaury Pacheco and Luis … Continue reading ““The National Dialogue Will Allow Us to Move from Complaint to Strategic Action””