‘No to the Cuban Dictatorship’s Blackmail of Offering Exile in Exchange for Freeing Political Prisoners’

14ymedio, Havana, 26 October 2021 — Maykel Castillo ‘Osorbo’ is on a hunger and thirst strike in a dungeon at the Kilo 5 and a Half prison, in the province of Pinar del Río, according to art curator and activist Anamely Ramos. After several hours of uncertainty in which the San Isidro Movement (MSI) expressed its concern about the … Continue reading “‘No to the Cuban Dictatorship’s Blackmail of Offering Exile in Exchange for Freeing Political Prisoners’”

Cuban Dissident, Jose Daniel Ferrer, is Held in an Isolation Cell Despite Health Issues, his Family Denounces

14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, October 9th, 2021–Dissident, José Daniel Ferrer is currently held in isolation and is suffering health issues, according to his son, the only family member who has been able to visit him since July 11th when he was arrested and subsequently transferred to Mar Verde prison in Santiago de Cuba. José Daniel … Continue reading “Cuban Dissident, Jose Daniel Ferrer, is Held in an Isolation Cell Despite Health Issues, his Family Denounces”

The Space and Time of Words

14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar, Havana, 6 October 2021 — Something that I have never managed to do is pronounce two words at the same time. This “deficiency” has led me to understand how difficult it is to state two ideas simultaneously in a grammatical sentence. In this arduous struggle of half a century, I have also learned that … Continue reading “The Space and Time of Words”

Cuba: Report Records Five Actions Against Foreign Currency Stores and Patrols in September

14ymedio, Madrid, 2 October 2021 — “The repression and terror” instituted by the Cuban government “fail to neutralize this new generation of dissident citizens.” The Cuban Conflict Observatory (OCC) reaches this conclusion in its latest report, made public this Friday, which includes 312 protests in September. Since September 2020, when 42 demonstrations took place, until the same month … Continue reading “Cuba: Report Records Five Actions Against Foreign Currency Stores and Patrols in September”

“My People Will Never Allow any Kind of Injustice to be Done to Me”

14ymedio, Havana, Luz Escobar, 31 August 2021 — It’s not so long since the reggaetoner Roberto Hidalgo Puentes, known as Yomil, distanced himself from politics and asked that artists be left alone, but it’s been an eternity. The death of his colleague in the duet, El Dany, changed everything forever and now he not only … Continue reading ““My People Will Never Allow any Kind of Injustice to be Done to Me””

Cuban Police Accuse Tania Bruguera of Wanting to ‘Overthrow the Government’

14ymedio, Havana, 21 July 2021 — The artist Tania Bruguera was subjected to an 11-hour interrogation this Tuesday by the investigator is is leading the trial of Hamlet Lavastida, accused of “instigation to commit a crime,” and is currently detained in Villa Marista, the headquarters of State Security in Havana. In a post published on Facebook signed by “Estudio … Continue reading “Cuban Police Accuse Tania Bruguera of Wanting to ‘Overthrow the Government’”

State Security Surrounds the Homes of Several Artists and Cuts Their Phone Service

14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 1 July 2021 — The homes of several artists and members of 27N are surrounded by police operations this Thursday. Tania Bruguera, Carolina Barrero, Katherine Bisquet and Camila Lobón denounced the police fences on their social networks and warned that a greater number of State Security agents and officers participate than on previous … Continue reading “State Security Surrounds the Homes of Several Artists and Cuts Their Phone Service”

What Denigrates the Cuban Peso the Most?

14ymedio, Yoani Sanchéz, Havana, 2 July 2021 — Before he was arrested and taken to the State Security barracks in Havana, the artist Hamlet Lavastida had been accused by government voices of promoting the writing of phrases on the Cuban peso (CUP) bills circulating on the island. Now, locked in Villa Marista, investigators seek to … Continue reading “What Denigrates the Cuban Peso the Most?”

It is Irresponsible to Offer Hope

14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar, 29 June 2021 — The Cubans who inhabit the island receive hope from two sources. From the spheres of power they assure them that everything is under control, that the difficulties are transitory and that the country will not only come to the fore, but that it has not renounced development. On the other hand, … Continue reading “It is Irresponsible to Offer Hope”

Padilla’s Shadow: Commemorative Act in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the Cuban Poet’s Confession

PRESS RELEASE                                               4.21.2021 PADILLA’S SHADOW Commemorative Act in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the Poet’s Confession A virtual performance that will be streamed on the internet and social media (Available now) (In Spanish with English subtitles) On April 27, 2021, a choral reading of Cuban poet Heberto Padilla’s legendary confession will be streamed … Continue reading “Padilla’s Shadow: Commemorative Act in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the Cuban Poet’s Confession”

Cuba’s Independent #00Bienal Resists Government Pressures and Carries Off Event

14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 15 May 2018 — The #00Bienal has withstood the pressures of the Cuban Government and concluded its first edition on Tuesday, having completed its program despite them. The authorities, who marked the event from the beginning with accusations of it being financed by the “counterrevolution,” have made every effort to prevent the participation … Continue reading “Cuba’s Independent #00Bienal Resists Government Pressures and Carries Off Event”

Independent #00Bienal Opens in Spite of Official Pressures

14ymedio, Havana, 5 May 2018 — This Saturday the independent #00Bienal was opened, an event that in recent days has been at the center of official attacks. In the vicinity of the site in Old Havana several members of the State Security dressed in civilian clothes were visible but they did not prevent the more than … Continue reading “Independent #00Bienal Opens in Spite of Official Pressures”

UNEAC Statements Show “A Lack of Respect” Towards Young Artists, Say Promoters of #00 Biennial

14ymedio, Havana, 3 May 2018 — Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, one of the organizers of #00Bienal, lamented the “lack of respect” with which Cuba’s Writers and Artists Union (UNEAC) and the Hermanos Saíz Association (AHS), have addressed the event and the artists who support it, in the statement made public this Thursday. In the statement, … Continue reading “UNEAC Statements Show “A Lack of Respect” Towards Young Artists, Say Promoters of #00 Biennial”

Luis Pavón, the Forgotten Official / POLEMICA: The 2007 Intellectual Debate, Alejandro Armengol

It’s not that Luis Pavón died without fanfare, it’s that he died officially forgotten. No one mentioned his death in the official Cuban press, no brief note, not even a moment on the cable news agency to record the fact. Another of the ironies of fate, history and politics — rhetoric doesn’t matter here — … Continue reading “Luis Pavón, the Forgotten Official / POLEMICA: The 2007 Intellectual Debate, Alejandro Armengol”

Luis Pavon Tamayo Dies, One of the Executors of Castro Censorship / Diario de Cuba

He chaired the National Council of Culture in the ‘70s, which marginalized hundreds of intellectuals and artists. He reappeared on TV in 2007 and caused the “little war of emails.” —- The political commissar Luis Pavón Tamayo, one of the executors of censorship in the ‘70s, died Saturday in Havana, according to the writer Norberto … Continue reading “Luis Pavon Tamayo Dies, One of the Executors of Castro Censorship / Diario de Cuba”