English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
14ymedio, Havana, December 21 2019 — The appointment of the Cuban Prime Minister this Saturday was a surprise. Neither female nor mestizo, the man appointed to the new post is a 56-year-old colonel with a beard that recalls the times of the guerrillas who came down from the Sierra Maestra. Manuel Marrero Cruz, the Minister … Continue reading “Diaz-Canel Appoints Colonel Manuel Marrero as Prime Minister”
14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar, Havana, 22 December 2019 — Along with the appointment of Manuel Marrero Cruz as prime minister, the deputy prime ministers were also appointed this Saturday and the holders of six government portfolios were renewed. In total, 19 ministers were ratified in their posts, including the most important, such as the Interior and … Continue reading “Cuba’s New Ministers: Obey Blindly or Dare to Innovate”
14ymedio, Havana, November 15, 2019 — Breaking the tradition of Spanish diplomacy of using the word “embargo” for the economic restrictions that the US maintains over Cuba, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrell, spoke yesterday of a “blockade.” “We are going to call things by their name,” he stressed. The Spanish Minister of Foreign … Continue reading “Statements of Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs Against the "Blockade" Relegate Felipe VI to the Background”
14ymedio, José Gabriel Barrenechea, Santa Clara, 1 Aptil 2019 — Perhaps to keep us in suspense, as usual, Gustavo Andújar and Jorge Domingo Cuadriello again bring us their magazine, Espacio Laical (Lay Space), at least in its paper edition. But the resource works, because when it finally appears, the accumulated impatience is such that one can not … Continue reading “"Lay Space" Arrives Late But is a Must Read”
14ymedio, Ernesto Hernández Busto, 15 March 2019 — Poor Venezuela! After having undertaken what it announced as a radical process of social transformation, a process intended to mark a turning point in Latin American ideology and guarantee a project of social equality baptized as “21st century socialism,” today the country has ended up becoming a … Continue reading “An Open Letter on the Situation in Venezuela”
Dimas Castellanos, 17 January 2018 — The impact of fundamental rights on the development of society is of such magnitude and significance that it becomes impossible to comprehend the advancement, stagnation or regression of a population without accounting for it. To mark the tenth anniversary of Convivencia (Coexistence), the current issue addresses a central theme … Continue reading “Cuba and Fundamental Rights / Dimas Castellano”
14ymedio, Miami, August 18, 2018 – Cuban doctor Ramón Domínguez Rivera, originally from the province of Pinar del Río, who was on assignment in Brazil, died on August 16, as reported by his Medical Brigade. Dominguez Rivera worked in Melgaço, Pará state. His body was found three days after he disappeared, according to the local … Continue reading “Another Another Cuban Physician from the Mais Medicos Mission Dies in Brazil”
14ymedio, Maynor Salazar, Managua | 19 June 2018 — The woman touched the child’s little feet. She played with them, caressed them, kissed them. She slowly passed her index finger over the little nose. “My son, my son,” she exclaimed sadly as many times as she could. The baby, barely five months old, was motionless, with his eyes closed, with burns on his body … Continue reading “"They Killed My Whole Family"”
14ymedio, Havana, 3 April 2018 — During the month of March in Cuba, there were 319 arbitrary arrests against activists, a figure “slightly lower than the one recorded” in February, which was 347, according to the Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation (CCDHRN). The Cuban Observatory of Human Rights (OCDH), on the other hand, reported … Continue reading “Report Denounces Nine Physical Attacks by Cuban Secret Police in March”
14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez, Havana, 22 March 2018 — The images of the Cuban government’s shock troops at the Summit of the Americas in Panama in 2015 will seem tame this April. The Government of the Island is preparing for the meeting of presidents and the Civil Society Forum in Lima, Peru, as if the event is … Continue reading “Cuban Government Prepares for Pitched Battle at Lima Summit”
Ivan Garcia and Leonardo Santos, 15 March 2018 — It is difficult, for the macho mentality that prevails among Cubans, to relate to a woman with bold attitudes that require determination and bravery. Regarding Rosa María Payá Acevedo, freelance journalist José Hugo Fernández said that “she has a graceful, elegant appearance, a candid look.” This is the leader … Continue reading “Interview with Rosa Maria, Oswaldo Paya’s Daughter / Iván García”
14ymedio, Ricardo Fernandez, 4 December 2017 — Five days after an ammonia leak that kept some people in the city of Camagüey in suspense, the neighbors of the Coppelia ice cream factory fear that the consequences of the spill will be more serious than what has been announced, and they are reproaching the authorities for not … Continue reading “In Camaguey Coppelia’s Neighbors Live with Ammonia Leaks”
The book ‘The Compañero Who Watches Me’ was presented last Thursday in Coral Gables (Florida) and reflects its authors’ preoccupation with the omnipresence of surveillance in Cuba 14ymedio, Mario J. Penton, Miami, 3 November 2017 — Writing a book can be like an exorcism, especially when trying to leave behind ghosts of the past. This … Continue reading “The Cuban ‘Big Brother’ Seen by 57 Writers”
14ymedio, Havana, 8 March 2017 — The headquarters of the Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU) were assaulted by police forces in the early hours of Wednesday. The troops forcibly entered five homes located in the Altamira and José María Heredia areas in Santiago de Cuba, where they arrested a dozen opponents, according to opposition sources. Two … Continue reading “Police Forces Assault UNPACU Headquarters, Activists Arrested / 14ymedio”
Iván García, 6 October 2016 — One week. Perhaps two. That’s the shelf-life of news in Cuba about the recovery process after a hurricane has passed through. You can read information, which has a slight smell of triumphalism, about the various teams of linesmen who re-establish communications and power. A gallery of moving photos of the disaster … Continue reading “Cuba After a Hurricane / Iván García”
