Search results for: Committee for the Defense of the Revolution

Cuba’s Young Communist Union Comes Late To The National Blogosphere / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Havana, 1 February 2017 — The Union of Young Communists (UJC) has joined the national blogosphere, the newspaper Juventud Rebelde (Rebel Youth) reported on Wednesday. The Young Cuban arrives ten years behind the world of blogs, that the opposition, independent journalism and civic activism have successfully developed over the last decade. The managers of the new … Continue reading “Cuba’s Young Communist Union Comes Late To The National Blogosphere / 14ymedio”

Juvenile, Always Juvenile / 14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar

14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar, Havana, 27 January 2016 — An old Soviet joke from the time of Leonid Brezhnev relates his attempts to enthuse young people to celebrate the six decades of the October Revolution in the autumn of 1977. The septuagenarian leader entrusted to his friend, Aleksei Kosygin – who had a reputation of being a … Continue reading “Juvenile, Always Juvenile / 14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar”

The Challenge of a Government without Fidel / Dimas Castellano

Diario de Cuba, Dimas Castellano, 15 December 2016 — Fidel Castro spent decades leaving his personal imprint on Cuba. Wielding absolute power and imbued with a high degree of of messianism, populism and voluntarism, he determined the fates of several generations. He undertook important social projects but hampered the economy and rolled back civil liberties. The … Continue reading “The Challenge of a Government without Fidel / Dimas Castellano”

The One Who Left Ashes / Miriam Leiva

Cubanet, Miriam Leiva, Havana, November 29, 2016 – Fidel Castro died on November 25 at 10:29 p.m. and, according to his own will, his remains will be cremated, according to the brief statement read by Raúl Castro on Cuban television. at midnight. As a deceased person, the former president deserves respect. Surely he expired on … Continue reading “The One Who Left Ashes / Miriam Leiva”

Party In A Whisper: The End Of The Year To Come / 14ymedio, Marcelo Hernandez

Pánfilo’s program has not been broadcast for three weeks. In the video above Obama and Pánfilo appear in a ‘sketch’ recorded during the visit of the American president to the Island. 14ymedio, Marcelo Hernandez, Havana, 15 December 2016 — Celebrations postponed, revelry suspended and a call not to party in the street, is the reality … Continue reading “Party In A Whisper: The End Of The Year To Come / 14ymedio, Marcelo Hernandez”

Denunciation and Fear: Fidel Castro’s Family Treasure / Luis Felipe Rojas

Luis Felipe Rojas, 28 November 2016 — Who in Cuba has not been asked to speak a little more softly? Who has not lowered his or her voice while making a comment about Fidel Castro? This is the regime’s family treasure: a snitch on every corner. When the triumphant son from the town of Birán — … Continue reading “Denunciation and Fear: Fidel Castro’s Family Treasure / Luis Felipe Rojas”

Raul Castro at the Crossroads / Carlos Alberto Montaner

Carlos Alberto Montaner, 10 December 2016 — Raúl Castro is on his own. Gone is his mentor, his paternal figure, the man who molded his life and led him at gunpoint — literally — from insignificance to the nation’s leadership. But he did so brusquely, reminding him every so often that he despised him for … Continue reading “Raul Castro at the Crossroads / Carlos Alberto Montaner”

The Film ‘Santa and Andrés’ is Excluded From Havana Festival / 14ymedio, Luz Escobar

14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 23 November 2016 — The film Santa and Andrés will not be screened at the 38th edition of the Havana Film Festival, to be held between 8 and 18 December. Sources from the industry guild commented to 14ymedio that the exclusion of the independent film, directed by Carlos Lechuga, could be motivated by its theme, focusing … Continue reading “The Film ‘Santa and Andrés’ is Excluded From Havana Festival / 14ymedio, Luz Escobar”

Weeping (or Faking It) at Fidel Castro’s Farewell / Iván García

Ivan Garcia, 3 December 2016 — The flag with the three blue and two white stripes, red triangle and solitary star in the middle hung from a black flagpole. For the Rodriguez family, it served as the perfect diversion, taking the attention of the neighborhood’s informers and die-hard supporters off them. They live right in the … Continue reading “Weeping (or Faking It) at Fidel Castro’s Farewell / Iván García”

Period of National Mourning, or Curfew? / Rebeca Monzo

Rebeca Monzo, 27 November 2016 — On Saturday 26 November of this year, my telephone rang at almost 2 in the morning. I picked it up with trepidation because normally at that hour one expects to hear bad news. The reality, however, was different: a friend was calling to inform me of Fidel’s death. I was … Continue reading “Period of National Mourning, or Curfew? / Rebeca Monzo”

Who Has The Right to Tell a Country’s Stories? All Its Citizens / Periodismo de Barrio

Periodismo de Barrio, 16 October 2016 – On 11 October 2016, six members of our Periodismo de Barrio (Neighborhood Journalism) team and two collaborators were arrested in the town of Baracoa, Guantanamo province. We were not arrested for smiling. Nor we were arrested for taking a photo in the state café at the viewpoint from El Gobernadora … Continue reading “Who Has The Right to Tell a Country’s Stories? All Its Citizens / Periodismo de Barrio”

UMAP: Selective Memory

Ernesto Hernández Busto, Penultimos Días, 13 September 2016 — It seems that in Cuba one can now talk about UMAP, the notorious Military Units to Aid Production (in Spanish: Unidades Militares de Ayuda a la Producción), internment and forced labor camps where the Cuban government imprisoned homosexuals, the religious, intellectuals, dissidents and any other “suspicious … Continue reading “UMAP: Selective Memory”

Voices In Cuba’s Official Press Question Dismissal Of Radio Holguin Journalist / 14ymedio, Mario Penton

14ymedio, Mario Penton, Miami, 27 August 2016 — Jose Ramirez Pantoja, the journalist recently fired from Holguin Radio, never imagined that some colleagues from the official press would come to his support. This unusual situation has arisen following the statements by the vice president of the Cuban Journalists Union (UPEC), Aixa Hevia, who in an … Continue reading “Voices In Cuba’s Official Press Question Dismissal Of Radio Holguin Journalist / 14ymedio, Mario Penton”

‘Coffee, Three Cents’ / 14ymedio, Pedro Campos

14ymedio, Pedro Campos, Havana, 23 August 2016 – Self-employed Cubans are tossed out of places where they’ve contracted with the State to work, without consideration of the consequences for them and violating what is established in their “contracts.” Recently this happened in Pinar del Rio, according to various reports, thanks to the redevelopment of the … Continue reading “‘Coffee, Three Cents’ / 14ymedio, Pedro Campos”

Two July 26ths, And The Same Crisis / Dimas Castellano

Dimas Castellanos, 5 August 2016 — In Sancti Spiritus, the second secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC), delivered a speech marking the 63rd anniversary of the assault on the Moncada barracks. José Ramón Machado Ventura began by wishing Fidel Castro well on his 90th birthday and reasserting “the commitment to remain faithful to the ideas for … Continue reading “Two July 26ths, And The Same Crisis / Dimas Castellano”