El Salvador Reaffirms its Support for the Two Cuban Reporters Stranded in the Country

14ymedio, Havana, 7 January 2021 — “We are going to support them to do whatever they want to do,” says the Foreign Minister of El Salvador Alexandra Hill in relation to independent journalists Esteban Rodríguez and Héctor Luis Valdés Cocho, who were admitted to the Central American country last Wednesday after being forced to leave … Continue reading “El Salvador Reaffirms its Support for the Two Cuban Reporters Stranded in the Country”

‘In Seconds, the Bus Became the Freest Place in Cuba’

14ymedio, Anonymous, Havana, 6 January 2022 — The 11J [July 11 nationwide protest] was so spontaneous, popular and genuine that it is funny, or a shame, to see how officialdom tries to sell the idea of ​​a small group paid by federal agencies in the United States. That day I was very close to the … Continue reading “‘In Seconds, the Bus Became the Freest Place in Cuba’”

The Last of Those Arrested on Obispo Street, Esteban Rodriguez, Exits Cuba ‘Fleeing Terror’

14ymedio, Havana, 5 January 2022 — Journalist Esteban Rodríguez, detained in Combinado del Este prison until Tuesday for participating in the protest on Obispo street is in El Salvador with his colleague Héctor Luis Valdés Cocho after Nicaragua refused them entry. Both are reporters for the Cuban independent daily, ADN, and members of the San … Continue reading “The Last of Those Arrested on Obispo Street, Esteban Rodriguez, Exits Cuba ‘Fleeing Terror’”

Sixty-Three Anniversaries of the Cuban Revolution

14ymedio, Carlos Alberto Montaner, Miami, 1 January 2022 — It is worth reviewing what happened in Cuba in the preceding months. Year after year, and we are already on our way to the 63rd anniversary, I have said we were near the end. I believed it, but it was not true. I thought that Fidel … Continue reading “Sixty-Three Anniversaries of the Cuban Revolution”

Luis Manuel Otero Alcantara: One Year Harassed by Cuban State Security

14ymedio, Havana, 26 December 2021 — Before being arrested on July 11 , without having had time to participate in the protests that day, Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, leader of the San Isidro Movement (MSI), had long been subjected to permanent harassment by the political police. Specifically, since November 26, 2020, when State Security evicted … Continue reading “Luis Manuel Otero Alcantara: One Year Harassed by Cuban State Security”

‘Patria y Vida’, The Anthem for Cuban Freedom

14ymedio, Havana, 25 December 2021 — Barely a week had passed since the premiere of the song Patria y Vida (Homeland and Life), in February, when these two words began to be used as a slogan by different opponents of the regime, inside and outside of Cuba. Opposed to the Castroist “homeland or death”, the images extolling the blackness of five artists, … Continue reading “‘Patria y Vida’, The Anthem for Cuban Freedom”

Yes, Cuba is a Failed State / Dimas Castellanos

Dimas Castellanos, Havana, 29 November 2021– “The U.S. government is following a script, seeking to portray Cuba as a failed state,” grumbled Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla on Wednesday, November 10, during his appearance before the accredited diplomatic corps in Cuba. Among the defining elements that characterize a failed state, those related to its economy are … Continue reading “Yes, Cuba is a Failed State / Dimas Castellanos”

The Trial of the ‘Young Man With the Placard’ Concludes Under a Strong Police Operation in Havana

14ymedio, Havana, 16 December 2021 — The trial of Luis Robles Elizastigui, the “young man with the placard,” lasted almost two hours this Thursday, taking place in the Municipal Court of Marianao, in Havana, under a strong security operation. “The place is full of police, and not only will Luis’ trial be held, there will … Continue reading “The Trial of the ‘Young Man With the Placard’ Concludes Under a Strong Police Operation in Havana”

The Cuban Conflict Observatory Documented 79 protests on November 15th (15N)

14ymedio, Havana, December 1, 2021 — Threats from State Security and the deployment of the military throughout main streets in Cuba gripped the population with fear and thwarted the massive protests planned for November 15th (15N), but that same day, there were 79 protests in the country. These were logged by the Cuban Conflict Observatory … Continue reading “The Cuban Conflict Observatory Documented 79 protests on November 15th (15N)”

Cuban journalist Camila Acosta, Accused of ‘Instigation to Commit a Crime’ on July 11

14ymedio, Havana, 30 November 2021 — Independent journalist Camila Acosta, in home confinement for more than four months, has had the charges against her changed for reporting on the July 11 protests, for which she was detained for four days later. The political police informed her this Tuesday, at the Zapata y C Police Unit, in Havana, … Continue reading “Cuban journalist Camila Acosta, Accused of ‘Instigation to Commit a Crime’ on July 11”

The Battle of the Grammys and the Example of Spain

14ymedio, Carlos Alberto Montaner, Miami, 29 November 2021 — The Cuban regime turns everything into a ridiculous battle. It’s incapable of looking at itself in the mirror. It fears the image of octogenarians defeated by life and takes on a heroic vision of them. Right now, it has transformed the 2021 Latin Grammy awards into … Continue reading “The Battle of the Grammys and the Example of Spain”

In Prison, Osorbo is Punished for Expressing Gratitude for the Grammys Awarded to ‘Patria y Vida’

14ymedio, Havana, November 27, 2021–Rapper Maykel Castillo Osorbo, jailed for the six months, had his phone calls suspended for three months as punishment. As art curator Anamely Ramos explained on Friday, the motive was the recorded messages the artist has been sending from jail. One of them was the one he sent in regards to … Continue reading “In Prison, Osorbo is Punished for Expressing Gratitude for the Grammys Awarded to ‘Patria y Vida’”

Rapper Denis Solis Leaves Cuba

14ymedio, Havana, 29 Noviembre 2021 — The rebellious rapper Denis Solís, who was released from jail in July after an eight-month sentence for contempt which was decreed in a summary trial, has left Cuba. After speaking with an uncle of the artist, Vladimir Lázaro González, 14ymedio was able to confirm that the trip took place … Continue reading “Rapper Denis Solis Leaves Cuba”

Yunior Garcia Aguilera: ‘Cuba is a Dictatorship of Bureaucrats’

EFE/14ymedio, Madrid, 26 November 2021 — The playwright Yunior García Aguilera, one of the promoters of the Civic March for Change in Cuba on November 15, finally frustrated by the regime, insisted this Friday in Madrid that the Island Government is “a dictatorship of bureaucrats.” They are neither “revolutionary” nor “have anything to do with … Continue reading “Yunior Garcia Aguilera: ‘Cuba is a Dictatorship of Bureaucrats’”

We Can Only Avoid a Blood Bath in Cuba if the World Stops Looking Away

14ymedio, Madrid, 18 November 2021 — “The Cuban problem is not called Yunior García, the Cuban problem is called dictatorship.” This is how forceful the playwright and opponent has been from Madrid, where he has held a press conference to relate the “terror” to which he has been subjected by the Cuban Government and which pushed him to leave … Continue reading “We Can Only Avoid a Blood Bath in Cuba if the World Stops Looking Away”