English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
14ymedio, Havana, 25 February 2015 – The Cuban Civil Society Open Forum held its third meeting this Wednesday with 25 people attending, among them activists, opponents and members of civic groups. The first point on the agenda was the approval of a document titled “Ethical Path for Cuban Civil Society,” which lays out the basic … Continue reading “Cuban Civil Society Open Forum Holds Third Meeting / 14ymedio”
Iván García, 27 January 2015 — The shifting political landscape of the Middle East is probably more complicated. No doubt it is. But given the spectacular diplomatic about-face on December 17 between Cuba and the United States — two sparring nations huddled in their respective trenches since the Cold War — the White House was not expecting … Continue reading “Cuban Dissidents: Some in the Trenches, Others Applauding / Ivan Garcia”
14ymedio, 16 January 2014 – This Friday, almost 300 activists, artists, journalists, academics and trade unionists representing diverse groups within the Cuban opposition presented a roadmap of proposals for what the civil society movement hopes to see beyond the reestablishment of US/Cuba diplomatic relations. The statement by the Forum for Rights and Freedoms was presented … Continue reading “Activists present proposals for the next phase of US / Cuba relations”
Announcements made by United States President Barack Obama and his administration have sparked an intense controversy about the Cuban conflict. Many opponents and civil society activists, within the island and in exile, have lamented, especially, the lack of transparency and the unilateral and unconditional nature of the new measures. It is indisputable and indispensable that … Continue reading “Forum for Rights and Freedoms / Estado de Sats (see endnote)”
Leaders of the opposition call Obama’s reconciliation with the Cuban government a “betrayal” during a press conference in Havana Cubanet, Ernesto García Díaz, Havana, 18 December 2014 — From the headquarters of the Estado de SATS project in Miramar, on Wednesday afternoon (12/17/14), Cuban opposition leaders held a press conference for national and international media, … Continue reading “We Shall Fight to the End for the Liberty of Cuba / Cubanet, Ernesto Garcia Diaz”
14YMEDIO, Havana, September 25, 2014 – An important meeting of Cuban civil society took place this Thursday in Havana, involving 16 activists from across the country, including five ex-prisoners from the 2013 Black Spring. The meeting was not announced ahead of time, and several of the invitees were unable to attend due to other commitments. … Continue reading “Activists Gather Around Four Points of Consensus / 14ymedio”
14ymedio, Havana | May 23, 2014 A letter published this week, signed by more than forty American personalities, asked Barack Obama to ease measures toward Cuba. In an unusual gesture of consensus, former senior U.S. politicians, military, analysts and businessmen advocate relaxing the embargo on the Island. Among the signatories are Republicans and Democrats who … Continue reading “Letter to Obama Sparks Controversy / 14ymedio”
We, the undersigned members of the plural group ALDECU (Cuban Democratic Alliance), issue this document in order to express our deep satisfaction with the success achieved by the scores of hunger strikers belonging to the valiant Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU), headed by José Daniel Ferrer García, a member of our group. On Tuesday night ended … Continue reading “Declaration from Cuban Democratic Alliance on the Successful End of the Hunger Strike / ALDECU”
Five years after Cuba’s representative signed the United Nations Covenants on Civil and Political Rights and on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the situation with regards to fundamental rights in Cuba remains precarious. The violation of fundamental rights is not only a part of the repressive apparatus of the State, but our national legislation itself … Continue reading “The United Nations Covenants, Five Years Later / For Another Cuba, Estado de SATS”
Our Position: Félix Navarro, José Daniel Ferrer, Librado Linares, Antonio G. Rodiles, Wilfredo Vallín Havana, August 16, 2012 TO NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL PUBLIC OPINION Yesterday, August 15 of this year, while handing out the Citizen Demand for Another Cuba in a central area of the Marianao neighborhood in Havana, Cuba, three citizens were arrested and … Continue reading “For Another Cuba: Press Release in Response to Arrest of Activists / For Another Cuba”
Citizen Demand for Another Cuba As Cubans, legitimate children of this land and an essential part of our nation, we feel a deep sorrow at the prolonged crisis that we are experiencing and the demonstrated inability of the current government to make fundamental changes. This obliges us, from civil society, to seek and demand our … Continue reading “Citizen Demand for Another Cuba – 536 Signatures and Counting”
Citizen Demand for Another Cuba As Cubans, legitimate children of this land and an essential part of our nation, we feel a deep sorrow at the prolonged crisis that we are experiencing and the demonstrated inability of the current government to make fundamental changes. This obliges us, from civil society, to seek and demand our … Continue reading “For Another Cuba – Citizen Demand for Another Cuba”
In politics, all isn’t what it seems. Considering that there is no way out, a solution always looms. Above all and more than ever, dictators desire power. But when this isn’t possible, they negotiate the future. Not so much for love of their country or her people. Simply to preserve their lives and their perks. … Continue reading “Could the dissidence become a valid interlocutor for the Cuban regime? / Iván García”
As a child whenever I heard the name of Perico*, a town in Matanzas Province, I ended up with a pain in my stomach from laughing so hard. Until I learned that a part of my father’s family was from that area and the joke didn’t seem so funny to me any more. Last Saturday … Continue reading “Twelve Men in Brief / Yoani Sánchez”
I remember that distant but unforgettable 18 March 2003. Two friends of mine went to my home after lunchtime and informed me that the home of Pedro Arguelles Moran was filled with State Security agents. I visited the residence of my friend and colleague, and I began to make some phone calls to the capital, … Continue reading “Why the Black Spring of 2003? / Pablo Pacheco”