English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
The announcement of the liberation of 52 political prisoners was described by some as “great news”, while others received it with caution and even suspicion. However, the legal grounds for the release, an event considered to be the most significant of its type in a long time, remained unclear. It would be incorrect to speak … Continue reading “Libertation or Exile?”
Yoani Sánchez, born in Havana, 1975. I studied for two terms at the Pedagogical Institute, majoring in Spanish Literature. In 1995, I moved to the Faculty of Arts of Letters, and after five years finished a degree in Hispanic Philology. I majored in contemporary Latin American Literature, presenting an incendiary thesis entitled, “Words Under Pressure: … Continue reading “Yoani Sánchez”
There are certain Cuban laws that, from the looks if it, have a quality as native as it is original. A peculiarity so ours, it even takes us back to the rebel periods, when it was necessary to send subversive messages in absolute confidentiality. It is all about the laws that seem to have been … Continue reading “Laws in Lemon Juice”
How Did I Get Here? Photo: Claudio Fuentes Madan I was born in 1983, and was a happy child living in the socialist paradise until I was six, when the disintegration of the Soviet Union showed me that I had been raised in an atmosphere of privilege. Economic necessity, however, did not make my parents … Continue reading “Claudia Cadelo”
It was by chance that I heard the story of this twenty-nine-year-old doctor and her husband, Horacio Piña Borrego, 42, a freelance journalist imprisoned for the cause of 75. As she told me the odyssey of her fate, it was as if she was reading from a chapter of Wuthering Heights. These things don’t happen … Continue reading ““My husband is worth it,” Telephone Interview with Suyoani Tapia Mayola (I)”
Photo: Luis Orlando On this island where even the news circulates of contraband, we have been witnessing a kind of spiritual mass that has brought back to the public sphere the political specter of the ex-president, Mr. F. It is no coincidence that so many public appearances have taken place following the start of the … Continue reading “Legitimate Doubts”
Link to Spanish post with the other pages of the documents. Translator’s Note: This post is entirely made up of the images of an 8-page report plus an order for a hearing on Yamil’s case within ten days. It is doubtful we can find someone to translate this, but briefly, it appears to be VERY … Continue reading “First Vice Minister of Justice… Gives Yamil Cause to Hope!”
San Rafael Boulevard was swarming with pedestrians on Wednesday, July 7. Braving insufferable heat and humidity, an old newspaper vendor, his face unshaven, his clothes patched, loudly announced the news of the moment. “Learn about the release of the political prisoners,” the old man shouted, while a line of fifteen or sixteen people bought the … Continue reading “While Waiting for Raúl Castro's Speech . . .”
I wouldn’t be exaggerating if I said that the most persistent recount I have made at my age is of precisely those things I still have left to do. A friend, psychologist by profession, attributes it to the obsessive features my personality brings but, I tend to disagree a little on the analytic categories so … Continue reading “Small Dreams”
This is about José Cano Fuentes, one of the most active defenders of human rights in Guantanamo. His membership in the Eastern Democratic Alliance has put him in the middle of the most talked about repression of recent weeks. On Wednesday, July 7, when he was returning from supporting Idalmis Reinosa Núñez, who was also … Continue reading “One More Beating?”
The gods do not descend from the ecstasy of the clouds, nor do psychopaths apologize for the consequences of their actions. Sometimes, however, they need to show signs of life, like people who, in an extreme situation, go to the notary to prove their existence in a public way. Something like this happened with Fidel Castro … Continue reading “Proof of Life”
Movement is a universal property: nature changes and society changes. The difference is that changes in nature respond to objective laws which operate with or without human involvement, while history is made by men, allowing them to hasten or delay change, but not to stop it. The need for social change manifests itself as a … Continue reading “Everything Changes!”
Freedom of expression is internationally recognized in the Declaration of Human Rights (Article 19). These prerogatives include being safe from oppression due to expressing an opinion, conducting research and receiving and spreading information, regardless of borders, by any means. Article 53 of the Cuban Constitution <em>gives citizens the right to freedom of speech and the … Continue reading “Freedom of Expression in Cuban Legislation”
Freedom of expression is internationally recognized in the Declaration of Human Rights (Article 19). These prerogatives include being safe from oppression due to expressing an opinion, conducting research and receiving and spreading information, regardless of borders, by any means. Article 53 of the Cuban Constitution gives citizens the right to freedom of speech and the … Continue reading “Freedom of Expression in Cuban Legislation”
In principle, States enjoy sovereign power, which they are able to express through the actions of their government bodies and the enactment of laws. The latter are the suitable instrument for exercising their right to prescribe crimes and penalties (the right to punish). But it is disturbing how the Cuban government uses the coercive force … Continue reading “Using the Criminal Law for Political Purposes”