English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
14ymedio, Elías Amor Bravo, Economist, September 29, 2020 — President Díaz Canel told the Council of Ministers in September that “failure will never be an option for the Revolution.” It’s all well and good for him to think that, even to say it, but when the official communist newspaper says otherwise on a daily basis, … Continue reading “Failures of the Cuban Revolution for Diaz Canel: Food Production”
14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar, Havana, 14 September 2020 — It takes time and consumes energy to analyze the special tabloid Cuba and its economic and social challenge, prepared by the Ministry of Economy and Planning, where the strategy is outlined “to boost the economy and face the global crisis caused by Covid- 19.” Reading the title is already … Continue reading “An Innocent Caricature”
Cubanet, Ernesto Pérez Chang, Havana, 13 August 2020 — They invented the bici-agro in Ciego de Ávila, the local press announced, and the TV National News repeated it in spite of how ridiculous the news item was. In essence, the “great invention” is nothing more than an ordinary tricycle to market food on the streets, … Continue reading “From Ubre Blanca to the “Bici-agro”, the Absurd News of the Revolution / Ernesto Perez Chang”
14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez, Havana, 7 August 2020 – Knife grinder, water carrier, blacksmith… No, this is not the list of occupations in a medieval village, but some of the 123 occupations that individuals have been allowed to perform privately in Cuba in recent years. Now, with the country plunged into a deep economic crisis, the authorities … Continue reading “Cuba Needs a True Opening to the Private Sector, Not a Simulation”
14ymedio, Havana, July 9, 2020 — Beginning now, the campesinos (farmers) who are members of farming cooperatives will be responsible for supplying the bodegas (ration stores) in their region. According to what several of them told 14ymedio in the province of Pinar del Rio, the farmers must take 30 pounds of food for each consumer … Continue reading “Farmers Must Provide Food to the Ration Stores”
14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez, Generation Y, Havana, 1 July 2020 — It was going to be a Tuesday like any other amid the restrictions imposed in Havana by the pandemic. A day of long lines to try to buy food, of walking enormous distances in the absence of public transport and of calling friends to find out … Continue reading “The Aborted Protest”
14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar, Desde Aqui, Havana, 28 May 2020 — It was in the 1980s, durng one those trips to the provinces which I took as a journalist for the magazine Cuba International, accompanied by the Luis Manuel Fernández, better known as Pirole. In the midst of the boredom of those hotels with no diversions, … Continue reading “From ’Protoplin’ to Sugarcane Juice”
Fernando Dámaso, 12 May 2020 — Hoarding happens when there is scarcity. When the latter is eliminated, the former disappears. It cannot be eliminated by persecution, repression, or confiscation. In Cuba, during the Republican era, I remember the hoarding of certain products such as lard imported from Chicago, Castile soap, and fuels, during World War … Continue reading “Hoarding Versus Scarcity / Fernando Dámaso”
14ymedio, Havana, April 19th, 2020 — Cubans fear that added to the Covid-19 crisis on the Island will be electrical black-outs due to exhaustion of fuel supply, a concern that has increased this week when the authorities made an appeal to save energy on account of the increased consumption due to confinement and the elevated … Continue reading “Cubans Dread the Return of Lengthy Blackouts”
14ymedio, Pedro Acosta, Havana, 16 April 2020 — For lack of other meats, pork has taken center place in the diet of Cubans who can classify as “emerging middle class” or who are on the way to taking their place on that social perch. Fresh fish, sea food and beef are the privilege of that … Continue reading “The Uncertain Path of Pork”
14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar, Havana, 20 March 2020 –Although no one from the official media has explained the reasons why General Raúl Castro fails to fulfill his obligation to place himself at the forefront of the situation generated by the presence of the coronavirus on the Island, only two possible responses can be ventured: he cannot … Continue reading “The Unexplained Absence of Raul Castro”
14ymedio/EFE, Havana, 13 March 2020 — A Cuban resident in Santa Clara, Villa Clara province, is the fourth confirmed case of coronavirus in Cuba. The patient’s wife, a Bolivian citizen based in Milan, traveled to the Island from the Lombardy region, in Italy, according to a statement from the Ministry of Public Health read this Thursday on … Continue reading “Fourth Confirmed Coronavirus Case in Cuba, Where Shortage of Soap is an Aggravating Factor”
14ymedio, Marcelo Hernandez, Havana, November 24, 2019 — One of the products most sought-after by the throngs of people inundating the Cuatro Caminos Market has been the tomato, an essential ingredient in many recipes. With supplies scarce and prices for the product high, prepackaged tomato concentrate is the only option for customers who want to … Continue reading “Tomato Production in Cuba Tanks and Prices Soar”
14ymedio, Havana, 10 November 2019 — A little more than a year has been enough for the authorities to have back down on several measures adopted at the end of 2018 that restricted the work of private carriers in the Cuban capital, a sector that responded to these limitations with complaints and several strikes. After … Continue reading “Cuban Government Gives Way and Modifies License for Private Carriers”
14ymedio, Zunilda Mata, Havana, November 5th, 2019 — Bank accounts freezing has been implemented in Cuba and not many knew about it. Marta Karla just learned it the hard way when she tried to withdraw $500 US she deposited in her account six months ago, which she was required to do to qualify for a … Continue reading “Cubans Unable to Withdraw Money from Accounts with Foreign Currency”
