Search results for: Rapid Response Brigade

Dungeons and Physical Blows on Patriotic Anniversaries / Luis Felipe Rojas

The news of the arrests of more than fifty Human Rights activists throughout the entire country has only further confirmed the violent nature of the regime which governs my country. Some people had illusions. Once again, those detained and beaten in their own homes were peaceful dissidents and their families. No voluntary actions, little solidarity … Continue reading “Dungeons and Physical Blows on Patriotic Anniversaries / Luis Felipe Rojas”

The Journalist Reinaldo Escobar Enters the Debate / Polemica, The 2007 Intellectual Debate

“The Little Email War,” “Little Glasnost,” “Rebellion of the Intellectuals” or “The Created Situation,” have been some of the names used to baptize this phenomenon which I prefer to call, “words of the intellectuals” (with the “of” in bold and underlined). Evidently a hole has been opened in this Pandora’s box (which was a gift … Continue reading “The Journalist Reinaldo Escobar Enters the Debate / Polemica, The 2007 Intellectual Debate”

Riot Squads? … If There Are No Riots in Cuba… / Luis Felipe Rojas

Why is everyone so surprised to see photos of riot troops putting down a student protest in Jaguey Grande**? I saw riot troops, led my Military Counterintelligence in Camagüey. Their objective was to avoid the public joining the demonstrations of the Eastern Democratic Alliance, which took to the streets in solidarity with Reina Tamayo while … Continue reading “Riot Squads? … If There Are No Riots in Cuba… / Luis Felipe Rojas”

Fariñas, Ready to Die, Like Zapata

In the poor, out-of-the-way neighborhood of La Chirusa, in the city of Santa Clara of Villa Clara Province, about 185 miles east of Havana, Guillermo Fariñas Hernandez, 48 years of age, is quite a character. When a stranger, asking for directions, asks where Guillermo Fariñas lives, all of the neighbors widen their eyes and don’t … Continue reading “Fariñas, Ready to Die, Like Zapata”

María Corina Machado Comes out of Hiding To Participate in a Demonstration in Caracas

14ymedio/EFE, Havana/Caracas, August 3, 2024 — Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado left her hiding place this Saturday, where she had been for security reasons after President Nicolás Maduro threatened the leaders of the opposition with prison. Machado reappeared standing on a truck that traveled the streets of a neighborhood in the capital, until she … Continue reading “María Corina Machado Comes out of Hiding To Participate in a Demonstration in Caracas”

November Rumors in Cuba: Diaz-Canel’s ‘Liquidation’, Healthcare Debacle, Crime Unleashed

14ymedio/Yucabyte, Havana, December 16, 2023 — Cuba is plummeting, and the first head to roll could be that of President Miguel Díaz-Canel. As he finishes without a single success to his credit, in what should have been his “better year” — he had promised it at the end of 2022 — the rumors collected in … Continue reading “November Rumors in Cuba: Diaz-Canel’s ‘Liquidation’, Healthcare Debacle, Crime Unleashed”

Gaesa Used the ‘Small Business’ Law to End the Competition of Cuban Entrepreneurs

14ymedio, Madrid, 7 March 2023 — The Grupo de Administración Empresarial S.A. (Gaesa), the all-powerful conglomerate belonging to the Revolutionary Armed Forces, has been deliberately drowning the private sector in Cuba since 2016, and the SME law (micro, small and medium enterprises), promulgated in 2021, is only a “false opening” to attract foreign investment and … Continue reading “Gaesa Used the ‘Small Business’ Law to End the Competition of Cuban Entrepreneurs”

‘Imperialist Agencies, AFP and EFE Incite a Social Uprising’ in Cuba

14ymedio, Havana, Cuba, October 14, 2021–Three European media outlets have been added to the list of imperialist press headed by CNN. British media chain BBC, the Spanish agency EFE, and the French France Presse “do not tire of inciting from within their pages a social uprising that would justify the much desired military intervention from … Continue reading “‘Imperialist Agencies, AFP and EFE Incite a Social Uprising’ in Cuba”

Why Do Independent Journalists Matter? / Cubanet, Luis Cino

Cubanet, Luis Cino Álvarez, Havana, 11 March 2019 — Oftentimes while traveling in other countries, independent journalists are challenged for, as some say, being “hyper-critical” and “lacking objectivity.” Thus, their dispatches are received with doubts and skepticism. But it turns out that the detractors of Cuban independent journalism do not harbor good intentions. Among those … Continue reading “Why Do Independent Journalists Matter? / Cubanet, Luis Cino”

Soup Under the Eclipse / 14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar

14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar, Havana, 28 September 2015 — On the night of a red moon eclipse, the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution (CDR) celebrated the 55th anniversary of the founding of their organization. Updated reports state that more than 8,500,000 people (91% of the population over age 14) are enrolled in the CDRs, … Continue reading “Soup Under the Eclipse / 14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar”

Payá, Posthumous President / Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo

The trashed cityscape reaches all the way to the gate of the parish, in the arid Cerro neighborhood. “The Savior of the World,” says the sign, so distant from the desert outside, beyond the gates. And one thinks, sleepwalking before sunrise: how poor any form of expression is in this country. Dawn lingers on the … Continue reading “Payá, Posthumous President / Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo”