English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 18 January 2020 — After one in the afternoon last Thursday, Eloísa and Miguel were preparing lunch for their grandchildren who were about to return from school when they were moved by a noise they felt in their window. It was the liquefied gas truck. The roar of the canisters crashing into each other … Continue reading “Without Liquified Gas, "Lighting the Firewood, Like Our Grandmothers"”
14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez, Havana, 25 September 2019 — We have always been promised a Holy Grail. At the end of the 60s, the heart of all Cuba beat to the rhythm of the so-called Ten Million Ton Harvest, while in the years of the economic crisis known as the Special Period, hope focused on the Food … Continue reading “A Country Waiting For A Ship”
14ymedio / Mario J. Pentón, Havana, 14 July 2019 — Despite the government’s commitment not to allow “programmed blackouts” this summer, power cuts of several hours are multiplying throughout the country and causing annoyance among the population. Pinar del Río, Artemisa, Mayabeque, Villa Clara, Cienfuegos, Camagüey, Las Tunas, Holguín and Santiago de Cuba are the most … Continue reading “Cubans Increasingly Annoyed by Blackouts and Government Silence”
14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar, Havana, February 4, 2019 — If someone wanted to find a definition of what is most current and important from what is happening in Cuba, they could assert that today there is happening a transition of authority from symbol to force of law. For almost half a century Cuba was basically driven … Continue reading “Ratifying the Constitution Will Institutionalize the Dictatorship of One Party”
14ymedio, Miami, 13 July 2018 — Fernando Ravsberg, a Uruguayan journalist living in Cuba, has closed his blog Cartas desde Cuba (Letters from Cuba), after an intense campaign of harassment on the part of the most radical sectors of official journalism. Ravsberg published his last post on Thursday, explaining that he made the decision because the authorities refused to … Continue reading “Fernando Ravsberg: "In Cuba There Are Good Journalists and Bad Press"”
14ymedio, Ricardo Fernandez, Camagüey, 20 February 2018 — Darkness and silence envelops the nights in the city of Camagüey since the fire at the 10 de Octubre Thermoelectric Company, in Nuevitas, on 25 January. Almost a month later, blackouts and annoyance continue to affect residents. Brigades from various parts of the country are working under the … Continue reading “Blackouts and Annoyance Continue in Camagüey”
14ymedio, Luz Escobar and Zunilda Mata, Havana, 18 September 2017 — Black smoke from charcoal rises from an improvised fire in Dinora’s yard, which is close to the area most affected by Hurricane Irma in Caibarién, in the province of Villa Clara. In addition to half her house being on the ground, her new problem now … Continue reading “Charcoal, the Expensive and Only Cooking Fuel After Irma”
14ymedio, Zunilda Mata, Havana/Cienfuegos, 12 September 2017 — The air smells of damp and feces. Using a shovel without a handle, Óscar Rodríguez’s family is shoveling the mud out of all the corners of their house on Gervasio Street, a few yards from Havana’s Malecon, an area recently flooded by Hurricane Irma. Everyone is working on … Continue reading “Cuba After the Hurricane: The Drowning of San Leopoldo”
14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar, 14 August 2017 — With so much secrecy, so much myth and legend, it is not even known for sure if this August 13 was the actual date of the 91st anniversary of Fidel Castro’s birth. His life was so surrounded by exaggerations and lies that even the moment he was born and … Continue reading “The Teachings of ‘Don Castro’”
14ymedio, Mario Penton, Miami, 30 January 2017 — The controversy between the most radical wing of Cuban officialdom and the correspondent of Uruguayan origin resident in Cuba, Fernando Ravsberg, is rising in tone. The latest blasts from the most orthodox defenders of “revolutionary” journalism call out nine alleged false pieces of news from the communicator. … Continue reading “Voices Of Official Journalism Strike Against A Foreign Correspondent / 14ymedio, Mario Penton”
14ymedio, Zunilda Mata, Havana, 30 November 2016 – Cuba’s official press and, oddly, a good part of the international media, never stop repeating that Fidel Castro brought Cubans free education and healthcare for all. Cuba was already, however, one of the most developed countries on the continent before the Revolution, much more so even than … Continue reading “Fidel Castro’s 13 Most Notorious Failures / 14ymedio, Zunilda Mata”
14ymedio, Miriam Celaya, Havana, 26 November 2016 — The official media have just announced the last and definitive death of Fidel Castro, and I think I have perceived more relief than bereavement in the mournful message. If I were a religious person, I would feel at least a tiny bit of grief, but that is … Continue reading “The Ancient Dictator Died Long Ago / 14ymedio, Miriam Celaya”
14ymedio, Havana, Reinaldo Escobar, 30 July 2016 — Ten years after the Proclamation in which Fidel Castro announced his departure from power, that document continues to reveal distinctive features of a personality marked by the desire to control everything. More than an ideological legacy, the text is a simple list of instructions and it is unlikely … Continue reading “Fidel Castro’s Proclamation, A List Of Unmet Instructions / 14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar”
14ymedio, Zunilda Mata, Havana, 30 May 2016 – Every evening he emerges with his briefcase from the place where he purges his fate of being ousted. Carlos Lage, former vice president of Cuba’s Council of State, works on the campaign against the Aedes aegypti mosquito at the 19 de Abril polyclinic. Seven years ago he … Continue reading “Away From “The Honey Of Power” Carlos Lage Focuses On Fighting Mosquitoes / 14ymedio, Zunilda Mata”
Miriam Celaya, Sin Evasion (Without Evasion), 15 February 2016 – This Sunday in February, Saint Valentine’s Day, my neighbor Miguelita was overjoyed, although it was not exactly because of it being day of love. He had just finished paying for his Haier refrigerator, made in China, that he had acquired almost a decade earlier by … Continue reading “The Fable of Miguelito and His "Haier" Chinese Refrigerator / Miriam Celaya”
