English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez, Generation Y, Havana, 14 October 2021 — They are dressed in civilian clothes and pretend to wait for the bus or to converse on a street corner, but everyone knows that they are segurosos, the popular word applied to agents of the dreaded political police. Their presence has increased in Cuba’s streets since … Continue reading “Cuba, The Rope Tightens as November 15 Approaches”
Site manager’s note: This article was published in 14ymedio before the date for the opposition marches was changed to 15 November. 14ymedio, Havana, 8 October 2021 — With the alibi of the celebration of National Defense Day, the Cuban Government will militarize the country on November 20, coinciding with the marches called by the opposition in … Continue reading “Promoters of the 20 November Marches in Cuba Denounce ‘The Threat of Tanks’”
14ymedio, Havana, 12 October 2021 — On Tuesday, the Cuban government described as “illegal” and a “provocation” the Civic March for Change called by the Archipiélago platform, scheduled for November 15. That is the “official response” that the Municipal Assemblies of Old Havana, Consolación del Sur, Santa Clara, Cienfuegos, Nuevitas, Las Tunas, Holguín and Guantánamo … Continue reading “Government Calls Planned 15 November (15N) Marches a ‘Provocation for a Regime Change’ in Cuba”
14ymedio, Havana, 8 October 2021– As a result of the Cuban Government’s declaring November 20th “National Defense Day,” Archipiélago announced this Friday that it has decided to reschedule for November 15th the march that was originally scheduled for that day. During an eventful press conference, in which the participants suffered telephone and internet interruptions, Yunior … Continue reading “Date for Civic Marches in Cuba Moved Up to November 15 to Avoid Coinciding with Military Maneuvers”
14ymedio, Havana, 23September 2021 — This Thursday in Villa Clara, about twenty citizens joined the Archipelago collective in its call to peacefully demonstrate on 20N. In addition, the thirty signatories joined the initiative this Wednesday in Holguín. As playwright Yunior García did in Havana, citizens from Villa Clara and Holguín submitted a document notifying local … Continue reading “Cuban Organizers of the Peaceful Marches on November 20th (20N) Expect 8,000 People in Holguin and Santa Clara”
14ymedio, Havana, 29 November 2022 — On Tuesday, Cuban activist and opponent, Carlos Ernesto Díaz González, known as Ktivo Disidente, was sentenced to two years and six months in prison for disobedience and contempt. Díaz González had spent almost seven months in Ariza prison, in Cienfuegos, after he asked for freedom for political prisoners while … Continue reading “Ktivo Disidente, Sentenced to Jail for Asking for Freedom for Political Prisoners in Cuba”
14ymedio, Madrid, November 10, 2022 — The controversial Cuban rapper Denis Solís has been in Germany for a few days with an aunt, an uncle and a cousin, like the activist Daniela Rojo, who is in the same refuge in Nuremberg, and who spoke to 14ymedio. Together with his relatives, the artist crossed the border … Continue reading “Cuban Rapper Denis Solis, of the San Isidro Movement, Seeks Asylum in Germany”
14ymedio, Madrid, November 8, 2022 — The Cuban platform, D Frente [D Front], has penned a letter to former Latin American leaders who, last week, asked the U.S. to end the embargo against Cuba, inviting them now to make statements about the situation of rights and freedoms on the Island. Furthermore, they requested the leaders … Continue reading “Former Presidents Opposed to the US Embargo are Asked to Make a Statement About Freedom in Cuba”
14ymedio, Havana, 8 September 2022 — Members of the Cuban opposition inside and outside Cuba announced their support for “D Frente,” a group of “coordination of plural Cuban civil and political actors, whose central objective is to achieve the refounding of the Republic, guided by José Martí’s idea of building a country ’with everyone and … Continue reading “Six Cuban Opposition Organizations Unite to Refound the Republic”
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’”
The opposition rapper Denis Solís, a former prisoner of conscience recognized by the United Nations, and subsequently forced into exile, is in a situation of extreme poverty in Novi Sad, Serbia, where he has lived since he left Cuba at the end of 2021. The organization Prisoner Defenders has tweeted an alert about the situation … Continue reading “Cuban Rapper Denis Solis is Living in Extreme Poverty in Serbia”
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, 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”
