The Best Novel by Reinaldo Arenas and an Anthology on the ’11J’ Protests Among Cuban Books of July

14ymedio, Xavier Carbonell, Salamanca, July 30, 2023 — After the success in bookstores of Antes que anochezca [Before Night Falls], the heterodox autobiography of Reinaldo Arenas reissued in 2022, Tusquets offers readers El mundo alucinante [The Amazing] World, considered by critics as the best Cuban novel The deranged memoirs of the Mexican friar Servando Teresa de … Continue reading “The Best Novel by Reinaldo Arenas and an Anthology on the ’11J’ Protests Among Cuban Books of July”

Diaz-Canel Resumes His Visits to the ‘Potemkin Villages’ To Learn About Cuba’s Successes

14ymedio, Havana, 30 June 2023 — Early this Thursday, Cubadebate announced the visit of Miguel Díaz-Canel to Guantánamo, one of the most forgotten provinces on the Island but one that has recently been on the tips of everyone’s tongues. First for the resounding protests against the Government — followed by the corresponding arrests — last … Continue reading “Diaz-Canel Resumes His Visits to the ‘Potemkin Villages’ To Learn About Cuba’s Successes”

With Delay, Civil Defense Reacts to the Heavy Rains in Eastern Cuba

14ymedio, Havana, 11 June 2023 — It took several days for the National General Staff of Civil Defense to react to the heavy rains that have caused flooding in the east and center of the Island. The death by drowning of a 60-year-old man in Jiguaní (Granma), the precarious evacuation of thousands of those affected … Continue reading “With Delay, Civil Defense Reacts to the Heavy Rains in Eastern Cuba”

Two American Businessmen Meet with ‘SMEs’ in Cuba to ‘Do Business’

14ymedio, Madrid, 7 June 2023 — Two American businessmen visited Havana on Tuesday to talk “about the possibilities of doing business, scientific exchanges, cooperation and instruction,” according to Prensa Latina, which presented the meeting as one with large attendance. At a press conference, the president of the Chamber of Commerce of Cuba, Antonio Carricarte, highlighted … Continue reading “Two American Businessmen Meet with ‘SMEs’ in Cuba to ‘Do Business’”

The Cuban Regime Hijacked the Academy of Languages for Critcising Daniel Ortega

Xavier Carbonell, Salamanca, 15 May 2023 – On 20 June 2022, the Cuban Language Academy (ACuL) sent out a laconic message: the poet Roberto Méndez, who should have led the institution until 2026, gave up his post “for health reasons”. His successor would be the essayist Jorge Fornet, the then vice-director and one of the … Continue reading “The Cuban Regime Hijacked the Academy of Languages for Critcising Daniel Ortega”

‘Eros and Politics’, by the Irreverent Juan Abreu, Stands Out Amongst Books by Cuban Authors Published in April

14ymedio, Xavier Carbonell, Salamanca, 1 May 2023 – To celebrate the centenary of the Cuban author Fina García Marruz, who died in June 2022, the Spanish publishing house Huso has reprinted her book Pequeñas memorias [Little Memories], which they first published in 1955. Wife of essayist Cintio Vitier and member of Grupo Orígenes, García Marruz … Continue reading “‘Eros and Politics’, by the Irreverent Juan Abreu, Stands Out Amongst Books by Cuban Authors Published in April”

Cuba’s Diaz-Canel, Five Years as Hand-Picked Dictator

14ymedio, Yunior García Aguilera, Madrid, 5 April 2023 — That April 19, 2018, when deputies had to “elect” the president of the Republic, there was only one name on their ballots aspiring to the position. Raúl Castro himself cleared away all doubts by declaring that his appointment was not a coincidence, that it was planned … Continue reading “Cuba’s Diaz-Canel, Five Years as Hand-Picked Dictator”

D Frente Fears that This Year Could be Worse than Last Year for Cubans

14ymedio, Havana, 5 January 2023 – The platform D Frente, made up of activists, intellectuals and opposition groups, sent a message to the Cuban government on Thursday denouncing its responsibility for the visible impoverishment of the Island at the start of 2023. The message challenged the regime to respond to the “hard reality of the … Continue reading “D Frente Fears that This Year Could be Worse than Last Year for Cubans”

Cuban Siblings Frank Artola Plasencia and Hillary Gutierrez Plasencia Remain in Prison / Cubalex

Along with hundreds of innocent people incarcerated for exercising their right to peaceful protest: they all should be released immediately and the Cuban government should halt this repressive practice. Cubalex, 10 December 2022 — Cuban siblings Frank Artola Plasencia (18 years) and Hillary Gutiérrez Plasencia (26) were beaten and arrested in the early hours of … Continue reading “Cuban Siblings Frank Artola Plasencia and Hillary Gutierrez Plasencia Remain in Prison / Cubalex”

Former Presidents Opposed to the US Embargo are Asked to Make a Statement About Freedom in Cuba

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”

Three Coyotes Who Demanded $15,000 From Relatives of Cuban Rafters Are Arrested In Order To Free Them

14ymedio/EFE, Havana, 19 September 2022 — Didier Pérez Pérez, Lester Leyniel Soca Díaz and Yoandy Alonso, arrested last Thursday, are accused of belonging to a human trafficking network that was transporting Cubans by sea to Monroe County, Florida (USA), where they were kept kidnapped in a house in Hialeah, until their relatives paid $15,000. A … Continue reading “Three Coyotes Who Demanded $15,000 From Relatives of Cuban Rafters Are Arrested In Order To Free Them”

Six Cuban Opposition Organizations Unite to Refound the Republic

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”

11J (July 11th) Far From Cuba

14ymedio, Havana, 11 July 2022 — Thousands of Cubans in exile joined their compatriots on the island in the surprise and hope entailed in 11 July 2021. A year after those historic demonstrations, 14ymedio asked 15 of them – artists, writers, historians – what did 11J mean, how did they experience it from a distance, … Continue reading “11J (July 11th) Far From Cuba”

Seven Minors Convicted for July 11th (11J) Protest in Cuba Will Not Serve Prison Sentences After a ‘Special Analysis’

14ymedio, Madrid, 21 June 2022 — The more than 30 individuals convicted for their participation in the July 11th (11J) demonstrations on the corner of Toyo in Havana, where an overturned police patrol became a symbol of the protests that day, have had their sentences reduced by the Supreme People’s Court (TSP) of Cuba after the … Continue reading “Seven Minors Convicted for July 11th (11J) Protest in Cuba Will Not Serve Prison Sentences After a ‘Special Analysis’”

Almost 2,000 Years of Jail Time for 128 of the July 11 (11J) Protesters in Cuba

14ymedio, Havana, 17 March 2022 — In contrast to the previous trials of July 11 protesters, in which the final sentences were lower than those sought by the prosecutors, the Diez de Octubre Tribunal in Havana, which tried 33 people on January 31, has been relentless. Thus, it has sentenced Brandon David Becerra Curbelo, 17 … Continue reading “Almost 2,000 Years of Jail Time for 128 of the July 11 (11J) Protesters in Cuba”