English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
Miriam Celaya, Cubanet, West Palm Beach, 4 November 2018 — When, at the end of last October, it was learned through various media outlets that Russia would grant 50 million dollars to the Cuban government for the purchase of weapons, alarms went off. Immediately, nervous headlines began to appear, stirring the old unburied ghosts of … Continue reading “What “Armaments” Can the Castro Regime Buy in Russia? / Miriam Celaya”
Ivan Garcia, 2 January 2018 — When the old Soviet-era truck was parked in front of a pharmacy in Havana’s La Víbora neighborhood, a line of more than thirty people soon formed to acquire some of the medicines unloaded. Nearby, at the entrance of a produce market, dozens of retirees and housewives waited to buy tomatoes. In the … Continue reading “Cuba 2017: Waiting for a Miracle / Iván García”
14ymedio, Mario J. Pentón, Miami, 23 December 2017 — Several Cuban economists consulted by 14ymedio consider the growth of 1.6% in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) announced on Thursday by Cuban Economy Minister Ricardo Cabrisas before the National Assembly, meeting in Havana, unlikely. Cabrisas offered a series of growth figures including numbers for construction (+ 2.8%), tourism (+ … Continue reading “Cuban Government Happy Talk About the Economy is Not Convincing”
14ymedio, Mario Penton, Miami, 12 October 2017 — Russia is again aiding Cuba and, as with the Soviet Union in the 1970s and 1980s, the aid comes in the form of oil. Moscow is trying to compensate for the collapse of Venezuelan shipments, but part of the bill comes from Caracas, says Jorge Piñón, director of … Continue reading “Venezuela Finances Russian Oil Coming To Cuba”
14ymedio, Mario Penton, Miami, 4 August 2017 – “It doesn’t matter when, all we get are feathers,” complains the father of a family, disgusted on finding no kind of meat other than chicken in the Hard Currency Collection Stores (TRD), the state chain that sells only in Cuban Convertible Pesos (CUC). Since the beginning of … Continue reading “Cuba Has No Plan B To Make Up For The Loss Of Venezuela”
14ymedio, Havana, 30 June 2017 — The latest Council of Ministers, chaired by Raul Castro, has extended the term of the country’s land leases under the usufruct system to 20 years, but the leases can be cancelled if the beneficiaries use illicit funds, according to an announcement today in the official press. The meeting analyzed … Continue reading “Cuban Government Extends Land Lease Period to 20 Years”
Dimas Castellanos, 17 January 2017 — By 2007, after forty-eight years of revolutionary rule, inefficiency and a lack of productivity had turned state-run farmland into fields infested with marabú weed. Meanwhile, food prices were increasing on the world market. In light of this situation, General Raúl Castro proposed “changing everything that needs to be changed.” … Continue reading “Why Foreign Investments Don’t Work in Today’s Cuba / Dimas Castellano”
14ymedio, Zunilda Mata, Havana, 3 January 2017 – This week Luisa Camejo’s biggest headache will be getting the rebar she’s lacking. For months she’s been piling up stacks of cement, bricks and other materials to build an improvised room in the Cerro district of Havana. If she’s lucky she’ll soon finish her house built with … Continue reading “Housing Construction In Cuba Remains Very Slow / 14ymedio, Zunilda Mata”
14ymedio, Miriam Celaya, Havana, 28 December 2016 — On December 27th, at the Havana Convention Center, the Eighth Session of the Eighth Legislature of the Cuban Parliament opened, with a balance sheet on the socio-economic results of the year ending and the proposed draft of the National Budget Law for 2017. This time, there is … Continue reading “Cuban Parliament Sessions Predict Somber Times / 14ymedio, Miriam Celaya”
14ymedio, (With information from EFE), Havana, 27 December 2016 – The Cuban economy closed the year with a 0.9% contraction in GDP, well below the 1% growth forecast, according to an announcement from Ricardo Cabrisas Ruiz, Minister of the Economy and Planning, during the final 2016 session of the National Assembly on Tuesday, 27 December. … Continue reading “Cuban Economy in 2016: GDP Contracted 0.9% / 14ymedio”
14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar, Havana, 15 July 2016 — The ouster of Marino Murillo as head of the Ministry of Economy and Planning (MEP) raises the question of whether it was a fall into disgrace or an act of protection. An official statement said that Murillo would dedicate himself to the implementation of the Communist Party Guidelines … Continue reading “Mariano Murillo, the Marked Card Up Raul Castro’s Sleeve/ 14ymedio Reinaldo Escobar”
EFE/14ymedio, Havana, 14 July 2016 – Cuba’s Council of State, at the request of president Raul Castro, has named Ricardo Cabrisas minister of the economy, replacing Marino Murillo, who remains a vice president and will chair a commission in charge of reforms to update the country’s economic model. The change was announced Wednesday in an … Continue reading “Marino Murillo Leaves His Ministry To Devote Himself To The Management Of Cuba’s Economic Crisis / EFE, 14ymedio”
One of the central figures of the Cuban opposition, who participated in the revolution before its ultimate victory but ended up being sentenced to 20 years in Castro’s prisons, was the independent economist Oscar Espinosa Chepe, who died in Madrid. He recounts his life and ideas in this interview. Born in Cienfuegos on November 29, … Continue reading ““I Always Did What My Conscience Dictated” / Dimas Castellano, Oscar Espinosa Chepe”
Raúl Castro arrived in China this week as part of a four day trip and today, Saturday, he will visit Vietnam. This is the first official visit to both nations since the younger Castro officially assumed the presidency of the Island in February 2008. After meeting in Beijing with Chinese President Hu Jintao, both leaders … Continue reading “Urgently In Need of a New Lifeline, Raúl Castro Visits China and Vietnam / Yoani Sánchez”
14ymedio, Havana, 14 March 2024 — Being a key partner and reliable ally of the Kremlin has its advantages. Cuba knows this well all too well. During an intergovernmental meeting in the Russian capital on Friday, Russia committed to prioritizing “the supply of hydrocarbons, wheat and fertilizers” as part of its alliance with the island. … Continue reading “Russia Promises Cuba a Stable Supply of Petroleum, Wheat and Basic Necessities”
