English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
EFE (via 14ymedio), Havana, 4 October 2022 — Hurricane Ian has been a “demolishing blow” for Cuba’s most select tobacco cultivation, the official press reported, with major material damage and the loss of thousands of tons of raw material. Hurricane Ian — a category three storm with heavy rains and winds of up to 125 … Continue reading “Cuban Tobacco ‘Has Suffered the Largest Blow in its History’”
14ymedio, Eliás Amor Bravo, 30 September 2022 — It is not clear that getting everyone to pitch in is what is needed, or the most efficient way to restore normalcy in the aftermath of a hurricane. Though there are more appropriate ways of dealing with natural disasters, Cuba’s communist regime still prefers to rely on … Continue reading “The Post-Hurricane Landscape”
14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, 30 September 32022 — Analysts have been surprised that the Cuban communist regime has not openly asked for international aid to compensate for the disaster caused by Hurricane Ian. However, the regime has rushed to disclose information about the bank accounts authorized to receive emergency donations to Cuba that individuals … Continue reading “Hurricane Ian in Cuba: Does Anyone Know What They’re Going to Do With the Donations?”
14ymedio, Elias Amor Bravo, 29 October 2022 — Now the state press is describing in detail the “desolate panorama that the most violent meteorological phenomenon to hit Vueltabajo in the last 14 years has left in its wake.” That is, they even dare to grant the hurricane this honor by its strength and its devastating … Continue reading “Cuba: The Economic Consequences of Hurricane Ian (Part 2)”
14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, 28 September 2022 — At the moment, there is no doubt that the most worrisome news for Cubans is the damage caused by the passage of Hurricane Ian through Pinar del Río. With its proverbial propagandist efficacy, the official newspaper Granma has referred to the consequences in the important region … Continue reading “Cuba: The Economic Consequences of Hurricane Ian (Part 1)”
14ymedio, Ricardo Fernandez, Pinar del Rio, 19 July 2016 — “I pledge that very soon you will have your homes,” Carlos Lage Davila, vice president of the Councils of State and Ministers, said in 2002 to those who had lost everything and still today have not received what he promised. Alexander Sanchez Villafranca, 33, was … Continue reading “Hurricane Isidoro’s Victims Are Still Waiting / 14ymedio, Ricardo Fernandez”
14ymedio, Havana, 30 August 2023 — Florida remains in suspense before the imminent arrival of Idalia, which will reach the coast of Big Bend as a category 4 hurricane, according to the forecasts of the National Hurricane Center (NHC) of the United States. Its fleeting passage through Cuba, even as a tropical storm, left hundreds … Continue reading “While Florida Evacuates the Population in the Face of Idalia’s Threat, Cuba Evaluates the Damage”
14ymedio, Havana, 20 May 2023 — Despite his busy schedule of support to Russia in the last 48 hours, Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel found time to receive this Friday Ahmed Bin Aqeel Al-Khateeb, Minister of Tourism of Saudi Arabia and president of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Development Fund. As in the case … Continue reading “Diaz-Canel Exuberantly Receives a Minister From Saudi Arabia and His Millionaire Proposals for Cuba”
14ymedio, Havana, 2 March 2023 — Cohiba Behike cigars, flagship product of the Habanos SA company and self-proclaimed “most expensive cigars in the world”, are priced at 400 dollars a piece. The Island’s authorities are boasting about this fact in a frenetic campaign, launched this week in the official press to attract foreign clients to … Continue reading “Cuba Sells ‘Most Expensive Cigar in the World’, at 400 Dollars Each”
14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, 4 March 2023 — Don’t let the party stop! We’ll see later how everything is paid for. It seems like a lie. Those who have cemented a political and ideological system against free enterprise, the market, profitability and obtaining profits, do not skimp on expenses as soon as they have … Continue reading “The Enemies of Capitalism Enjoy Themselves at the Cigar Festival”
14ymedio, Madrid, February 28, 2023 — The Festival of the Cigar was inaugurated this Monday in the Cuban capital with the presence of Miguel Díaz-Canel, who had the peace of mind of being present at one of the few sectors that can boast good figures in Cuba. The company, Habanos S.A., took the opportunity to … Continue reading “The Cuban State Receives 545 Million Dollars for Cigars While the Producers Are Ruined”
14ymedio, Yankiel Gutiérrez Faife, Camajuaní, 21 February 2023 — The hands of Emilio, a 66-year-old farmer, say everything about his trade: rough, firm, and smeared with soot. For decades he has gotten up at dawn, along with his brother Daniel, and they go to work in the fields of Vueltas, a town a few kilometers from Camajuaní, in … Continue reading “With the Blackouts, Charcoal Making Starts Up Again in Cuba”
14ymedio, Havana, 16 December 2022 — The fire in the Francisco Vega Sánchez rail maintenance workshops in Luyanó, Havana, on Thursday night was put out by the fire service. Pictures on social media showed huge clouds of smoke and flames coming from the building, as well as electric sparks caused by the fire reaching the … Continue reading “Fire in the Railway Workshops in Luyano, in the Cuban Capital”
14ymedio, Havana, 10 December 2022 — The leaders of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC) took advantage of the closure, this Saturday, of the 5th Plenary of the Central Committee, to justify their actions, which have led the country to a generalized crisis with daily blackouts. “It was a hard and difficult year,” admitted the … Continue reading “In the Absence of Raul Castro, the PCC Plenary Avoids its Responsibility in the Cuban Disaster”
14ymedio, Madrid, 24 November 2022 — Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel is heading to China now. It’s the last stop of a presidential tour aimed at courting some partners to whom, in return, little can be promised except influence on the American continent and agreements in countries where the Island still retains some prestige, such as … Continue reading “Cuban President Diaz-Canel Arrives in China to ‘Promote the Adaptation of Marxism to Our Time’”
