English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
14ymedio, Yunior García Aguilera, Madrid, 16 November 2022 — Ever since we first called for the Civic March for Change we knew that it would be a practical impossibility to make it happen. Even so, it was worth it to make them unmask themselves to show their absolutely tyrannical character, above all in a context … Continue reading “15 November, The Day the Cuban Dictatorship Lost all its Masks”
14ymedio, Madrid, 27 July 2022 — The Municipal Court of Cienfuegos reversed its decision to release Carlos Ernesto Díaz González (known on social networks as Ktivo Disidente) on bail, and in prison since last April 28. His offense: he climbed a wall on the boulevard of San Rafael in Havana to claim the freedom of Cubans. According to Diario … Continue reading “Cuban Court in Cienfuegos Agrees to the Request of the Prosecutor’s Office and Denies Bail to ‘Ktivo Disidente’”
14ymedio, Havana, 1 June 2022 — Saily González Velázquez was freed on Tuesday night, after spending several hours in the custody of State Security, which detained her as she marched down a Santa Clara street demanding freedom for Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara and Maykel Castillo Osorbo. They told several family members who were waiting for her at the door of the … Continue reading “Cuba: Saily González is Freed After Covering Up the “Free Maykel and Luis Manuel” Slogan on Her T-Shirt”
14ymedio, Havana, 18 May 2022 — The activist Daniela Rojo is with her two children in a refugee center in Frankfurt. The young woman, age 26, girl arrived in the German city on May 15, where she immediately requested political asylum, but she had not wanted to make it public until now. “Here, my children and I … Continue reading “Faced with Harassment by State Security, Cuban Activist Daniela Rojo Requests Political Asylum in Germany”
14ymedio, Havana, 5 May 2022 — Carlos Ernesto Díaz González (known on social media as Ktivo Disidente) is accused of disobedience and contempt after climbing a wall on San Rafael Boulevard in Havana last Thursday, April 28, and demanding freedom for Cubans. According to his Facebook account, which is managed by another person, the rapper is detained in … Continue reading “For Asking for Freedom in the Streets of Havana, Ktivo Disidente is Imprisoned in Cienfuegos”
14ymedio, Havana, 28 April 2022 — “If you want Fidel to live, well let Fidel live, that is your problem. I do not want to be a communist!” The phrase was spoken very loudly early on Thursday morning on San Rafael boulevard in Havana. Some stood and watched, others filmed with their cell phones. The … Continue reading “Standing on a Wall in Central Havana, an Activist Asks for Freedom for Cubans”
14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, 18 March 2022 — The employees of the luxurious Grand Aston La Habana hotel, inaugurated this Thursday on the Malecón, between 1st and D, received the few clients this Friday between bows. “Come in, ma’am,” said one of the employees offering antibacterial gel, while two others joined their hands and … Continue reading “Cameras in Every Corner and Sky-high Prices in a New Hotel Owned by the Cuban Military”
14ymedio, Yoani Sánchez, Havana, 17 March 2022 — Every day it is more common to go to a doctor’s office and hear “we don’t have a doctor, you’ll have to come another day.” The exodus in the Public Health sector is increasing despite the obstacles that the Cuban Government puts up to prevent the bleeding of … Continue reading “‘I Left Cuba Because I Felt Alone in My Struggle,’ Says Dr. Manuel Guerra”
14ymedio, Havana, February 22, 2022–Activist Silverio Portal, leader of Independent and Democratic Cuba (CID), was released on Monday after fully serving his four-year prison sentence for contempt and public disorder. “This is the letter, releasing me from the little prison, to the big prison. Homeland, life, and liberty,” wrote Portal on his Facebook profile along … Continue reading “Cuban Opponent, Silverio Portal, is Released from Prison After Completing His Sentence”
14ymedio, Havana, 22 February 2022 — Cuban activist Fernando Almeyda joined this weekend the list of dissidents who are leaving the island. After requesting a humanitarian visa from Spain, which was not granted, the former Archipiélago coordinator decided to go to Serbia, a country that currently does not require a visa for Cubans, although his intention does … Continue reading “Two Jurists Harassed by State Security Leave Cuba”
14ymedio, Madrid, 24 January 2022 — The playwright Yunior García Aguilera will request asylum in Spain, where he arrived in mid-November 2021, after leaving the island forced by the siege around his apartment that he was subjected to by Cuban State Security. The founder of the Archipiélago platform traveled to Madrid with a tourist visa … Continue reading “Yunior Garcia Will Request Asylum in Spain Because ‘It Would be Suicide’ to Return to Cuba Now”
14ymedio, Havana, 18 December 2021 — Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel acknowledged that his government has been late in defending certain social rights. Speaking this Friday, at the closing of the Third Plenary Session of the Central Committee of the Communist Party, for the umpteenth time,he again defended socialism as “the only way to development with … Continue reading “Cuban President Diaz-Canel Admits That His Government has ‘Lagged Behind’ in the Recognition of Some Rights”
Dimas Castellanos, Havana, 29 November 2021– “The U.S. government is following a script, seeking to portray Cuba as a failed state,” grumbled Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla on Wednesday, November 10, during his appearance before the accredited diplomatic corps in Cuba. Among the defining elements that characterize a failed state, those related to its economy are … Continue reading “Yes, Cuba is a Failed State / Dimas Castellanos”
14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, December 8, 2021 — On Tuesday, Cuban political prisoner Andy García Lorenzo, detained following the protests on July 11th (11J), received a visit from his lawyer at the Guamajal prison in Villa Clara, where he had been transferred last week from La Pendiente prison in that same province. The young man’s … Continue reading “Andy Garcia’s Lawyer Confirms His Transfer to Guamajal Prison in Villa Clara”
14ymedio, Havana, December 9, 2021 — Minutes before he was to give a telephone interview to Actualidad Radio on Thursday, Cuban State Security detained Guillermo Fariñas, coordinator of the United Antitotalitarian Forum. “People from State Security came dressed as nurses,” denounced the activist’s mother, Alicia Hernández, before that same media outlet. Fariñas’s detention occurred right … Continue reading “Cuban Activist Guillermo Fariñas is Detained and Taken Against His Will to a Hospital”
