English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
14ymedio, Mario J. Pentón/Antonio Delgado — Tens of thousands of Venezuelans cross the border with Colombia every day in search of food and work. They sell candy, bread, chewing gum and contraband gasoline. They prostitute themselves or simply ask for handouts on corners. They are the new faces of the Venezuelan migration in the Colombian … Continue reading “Thousands of Venezuelans Flee to Colombia to Escape From Hunger”
14ymedio, Antonio Maria Delgado and Mario J. Pentón, Bogota, 6 February 2018 — “Venezuela … I would not wish it on even my worst enemy,” says Luis Alfredo Rivas in a bus terminal in Bogotá, with tears in his eyes. The young man, 32, is one of the thousands of Venezuelan immigrants in Colombia who left … Continue reading “Rich in Venezuela, Beggars in Colombia”
Lia Villares, 5 February 2018 — The low blow of a sudden search of a dissident’s home, orchestrated by members of Cuba’s counterintelligence “with the objective of seizing objects of illicit origin” and using this to accuse us, to charge us with a common crime (“illicit economic activity”), even if only for political motives, is … Continue reading “Defending Freedom is Not a Profession / Lia Villares”
14ymedio, Havana, 4 February 2018 — A police search of Havana’s independent El Círculo Gallery, managed by the activist Lía Villares and the painter Luis Trápaga, ended with the seizure of computers, cameras and video cameras, several hard drives, USB drives and cell phones. The authorities informed Villares and Trápaga, the owner of the house … Continue reading “Cuban Police Detain El Círculo Gallery Artists Villares and Trapaga for 24 Hours”
14ymedio, Mario J. Pentón, Miami, 23 December 2017 — Several Cuban economists consulted by 14ymedio consider the growth of 1.6% in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) announced on Thursday by Cuban Economy Minister Ricardo Cabrisas before the National Assembly, meeting in Havana, unlikely. Cabrisas offered a series of growth figures including numbers for construction (+ 2.8%), tourism (+ … Continue reading “Cuban Government Happy Talk About the Economy is Not Convincing”
14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez, Havana, 7 December 2017 – She pauses to think in front of a stand at the market. My mother is not evaluating the size of the tomatoes or the quality of the garlic, but making calculations. A mathematical operation where subtraction and division are the stars. With a pension of 250 Cuban … Continue reading “Life in Numbers”
The book ‘The Compañero Who Watches Me’ was presented last Thursday in Coral Gables (Florida) and reflects its authors’ preoccupation with the omnipresence of surveillance in Cuba 14ymedio, Mario J. Penton, Miami, 3 November 2017 — Writing a book can be like an exorcism, especially when trying to leave behind ghosts of the past. This … Continue reading “The Cuban ‘Big Brother’ Seen by 57 Writers”
14ymedio, Havana, 5 August 2017 — Economist Karina Gálvez received the prosecution’s petition on Saturday for the alleged crime of “tax evasion.” According to this petition, the member of the Center for Coexistence Studies (CEC) could be sentenced to three years of house arrest and confiscation of her home, she informed 14ymedio. “A messenger from the Tribunal, … Continue reading “Prosecutors Demand Three Years in Prison for Karina Gálvez and the Confiscation of Her Home”
14ymedio, Mario J. Penton, Panama City, 2 July 2017 – They managed to escape Cuba to leave behind traces of corruption and negligence that, according to Yudenny Sao Labrado and her husband Yoendry Batista, reflect the prevailing system on the island. From a neighborhood on the outskirts of Panama City, the couple relates the story … Continue reading “Cuban Couple Prefers to Face the Jungle Rather Than the Law in Cuba”
14ymedio, Mario J. Penton, Miami/Havana, 4 May 2017 — The team at the Cubalex Legal Information Center and its director, attorney Laritza Diversent, have obtained political refuge in the United States following the intensification of repression against the nonprofit organization dedicated to legally advising Cubans. Diversent, told 14ymedio, from a stop at Miami International Airport this … Continue reading “Laritza Diversent and Cubalex Begin Their Life In Exile”
14ymedio, Miami, 17 April 2017 — Cuban professional services abroad are the main source of foreign exchange for the government and represent an estimated 11.543 billion dollars annually, according to an article published in the official press by the island’s former Minister of the Economy, José Luis Rodríguez. Most of the income comes from the … Continue reading “Ex-Minister: Cuba Earns $11.5 Billion From Export of Professional Services”
14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 16 February 2017 – In the photo the couple smiles with one glass of beer in hand, all they were able to obtain after waiting in a long line at a Varadero resort. Nine years after the government allowed Cubans to enter hotels in Cuba (a right previously denied them in what … Continue reading “Cuban Customers: Collateral Damage In The Tourism Boom / 14ymedio, Luz Escobar”
14ymedio, Miami, 3 February 2017 — The Ministry of Public Health released a statement Thursday in the official newspaper Granma to reiterate the willingness of Cuban authorities to take back health professionals who have “defected” from medical missions abroad. The announcement comes three weeks after the outgoing U.S. president, Barack Obama, eliminated the Cuban Medical Professional Parole (CMPP) program. This initiative, … Continue reading “Government Invites Doctors Who Fled To Return To Cuba / 14ymedio”
14ymedio, Chiapas, 25 January 2017 — Mexican Government authorities have reported the deportation of 70 Cuban migrants who were in the country without visas or transit permits. Among the deportees were 22 women and 48 men who were sent back to Cuba on Wednesday on a plane belonging to the Mexican Federal Police. The returnees from … Continue reading “Mexico Deports Another Group Of Cubans / 14ymedio”
