Translating Cuba – Page 96 – English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island

Up to Eight Years in Prison for Those Arrested for the Altercations at the Finca de Los Monos

Of the 20 defendants, 18 will go to prison for between four and eight years and two were sentenced to correctional labor without confinement.

Trial in the Provincial Court of Havana, on Tuesday, for those arrested for the altercations at the Finca de los Monos*, in the municipality of Cerro / Capture/Canal Caribe

14ymedio, Havana, June 13, 2025 — The 20 defendants for the street fight that took place a year ago at the Finca de los Monos*, in the municipality of Cerro in Havana, received their sentences this Friday. In a statement from the Ministry of the Interior issued by official media, it was reported that 18 of them received between four and eight years’ imprisonment; one was punished with seven years of correctional work without internment and another with three years of the same penalty.

At the trial, which took place on Tuesday, they were accused of public disorder and illegal carrying and possession of weapons and explosives. According to Cubadebate, seven of the detainees had provisional detention, and two were tried for “committing other subsequent acts,” without the details. The remaining 11 are still at large.

With its usual pedagogical prose, the government emphasized that “the rights and guarantees of the accused” were respected, and that the trial sought to “contribute to the formation of awareness of respect for socialist legality, order, discipline, citizen peace and correct observance of social coexistence rules.”

They did not, however, disclose the identities or ages of the defendants

They did not, however, disclose the identities or ages of the defendants. The Prosecutor’s Office stated that investigations into other potential participants are “temporarily on hold, subject to reactivation if new evidence emerges.” continue reading

The facts for which they were tried happened on Saturday, June 8, 2024 and, at first, they were not very clear. Teenagers and young people were involved in the violent clash, and several were injured, according to the testimony collected at the time by 14ymedio from several people who were there. The clash took place mainly between members of gangs that exist in Havana, they reported.

According to one of the witnesses, “it all started by a stomp” at the concert of “repartero” music* celebrating the beginning of summer, which was finally suspended. “There was a little boy who was an initiate in the Santería religion, and he accidentally stepped on a gang member. He apologized, but the other was with a large group of bullies, who started the fight,” said the source.

Research on other potential participants is “temporarily on hold, subject to reactivation

Social media and messaging apps circulated videos showing groups of teenagers running in various directions in the middle of the blows, and some carried machetes and sticks. Immediately, photos of alleged deaths in the fights began to circulate, which were denied shortly after.

The absence of law enforcement officers was also evident during the fight, although in one of the videos that this newspaper could see, apparently recorded long after the fights began, it was possible to see a teenager inside a patrol car surrounded by dozens of young people.

The government released a report more than 24 hours later, denouncing the lies propagated by social networks. An official identified as Claudia Cancio said on Facebook, along with the tags #FakeNews and #FincaDeLosMonos, that “there are no deaths; investigations will be carried out and action will be taken, the authorities report.”

The Provincial Court of Havana considered as “aggravating factors” in the trial the place and circumstances of what happened: “a public activity with high attendance, including minors, where those involved acted with the intention of harming and imposing authority through violence.”

*The Monkey Farm was a former colonial mansion whose owners built a small refuge for exotic animals, including monkeys. It is now a recreational space for outside activities.

** A fusion of reggaeton, hip hop and dance music

Translated by Regina Anavy

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Cuban-American Enrique Tarrio Creates a Digital CDR to Report Illegal Migrants

The app rewards cryptocurrency to those who report criminal activity by undocumented immigrants.

Tarrio and other members of the Proud Boys* filed a lawsuit against the FBI after being sentenced to prison / EP

14ymedio, Havana, 14 June 2025 — The former leader of the Proud Boys of Miami, Enrique Tarrio, has not lost any time since Donald Trump pardoned him earlier this year from his sentence of 22 years in prison for the January 6, 2021 assault on the Capitol. Last Wednesday, in his eagerness to support the policy of the president – considered an unconditional one – he announced that he will be the head of Iceraid, an application to report undocumented migrants in the style of the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution (CDRs) from Cuba, where his parents were born.

“Enrique Tarrio, an American patriot and immigration activist, becomes the czar of Iceraid to lead the Web3 application for criminal control,” the platform’s website announced in a statement. It also says that the Cuban-American, although born in Miami, “brings a dynamic combination of entrepreneurial experience, activism and patriotic fervor to this fundamental role.”

Tarrio said he was honored to “lead a platform that empowers Americans to protect our nation’s values and security. I am committed to ensuring that Iceraid becomes a powerful tool for communities to uphold the rule of law and restore security in the United States.”

Iceraid rewards whistleblowers by giving them $RAID, a cryptocurrency that app users can obtain and redeem in exchange for “capturing, uploading and validating photographic evidence of eight categories of alleged criminal activity” by migrants. The more photos and locations they submit, adds the site description, the more rewards the platform offers.

As for the appointment of Tarrio, Iceraid states that it comes at a “crucial” moment due to the “insurrections” throughout the country

The system, although more lucrative than the Cuban CDRs, is based on the same idea: turn citizens into tools of surveillance in exchange for incentives. continue reading

As for the appointment of Tarrio, Iceraid says that it comes at a “crucial” moment because of the “insurrections” throughout the country, especially in Los Angeles, which require more than ever that “citizens collaborate with federal law enforcement. His extensive network of contacts and experience make him ideal to guide Iceraid’s mission to empower and reward communities,” it adds.

The platform offers a brief biography of Tarrio, whom it presents as an “outstanding community leader” raised in Miami’s Little Havana. His Florida leadership of Latinos for Trump, it adds, “highlighted his ability to unite diverse groups around a shared vision of patriotism and civic responsibility.”

The “first generation Cuban-American” is also the head of a coalition of former Proud Boys, who are currently suing the Department of Justice and the FBI for $100 million for allegedly violating their rights when they were tried and jailed in 2021, after they assaulted the US Capitol in Washington.

The launch of the application comes at a time of maximum stress for US immigration authorities

The launch of the application comes at a time of maximum stress for US immigration authorities, who have launched raids on illegal aliens throughout the country under the pretext that they are pursuing dangerous criminals and terrorists. They have also invited US citizens on more than one occasion to report undocumented immigrants.

According to El Nuevo Herald, several organizations that defend the rights of migrants have denounced these policies, which they believe only create more division among citizens and can be used to intimidate and extort migrants.

In order to present itself as a responsible organization, Iceraid enabled a method for undocumented immigrants to obtain rewards if they legalize their status in the US and self-declare themselves as irregular. That is, as long as they are “honest and hard-working migrants with no criminal record.”

Registration on the application, it warns, does not guarantee a favorable resolution of legal status, but Iceraid assures that “America values honesty and believes in second chances.”

Translated by Regina Anavy

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A Mother Managed To Get Her 10-Year-Old Daughter out of Cuba a Few Hours Before the Visa Suspension

Many other families living in the US were not so lucky and are experiencing the drama of separation.

Reunification visas are only being issued to immediate family members of US citizens / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Havana, 13 June 2025 — A week before the visa waiver for Cubans came into effect, Tania received a call that offered her an opportunity few had. Working in a clinic in Miami and residing in the US, the Cuban woman had long ago started the procedures for her daughter to reunite with her. With the ban about to begin, the US Embassy in Havana had to expedite as much of the backlog as possible, and her case was one of the first on the list.

Her daughter, she was told, had to come urgently to the Embassy with the proper papers. Tania had nothing prepared, but she couldn’t pass up the opportunity. On the Friday before the travel restrictions came into effect, her daughter left with her passport stamped and shortly thereafter arrived in Miami, she tells 14ymedio.

The Cuban woman knows that she was very lucky to be among those who were able to solve her case in record time. Others have not been so fortunate. Travel and visa restrictions that the Trump administration implemented in early June for Cuba and other countries have ended the hopes of many families on the Island to reunite soon. Those who also left their children behind to secure a future in the U.S. and avoid the hardships of illegal migration have suddenly been deprived of a direct way to reunite their families, given the suspension of visas for relatives of residents.

Tania knows she was very lucky that her case could be solved in record time

This Thursday, El Nuevo Herald published the testimonies of several Cuban families whose reunification procedures have been cut short by Trump’s proclamation. It authorizes only US citizens to apply for family reunification and only with immediate relatives – spouses, parents and minor children – justifying the decision by the need to protect the country from “foreign terrorists.” continue reading

Lia Llanes is one of the Cubans who, having been resident in the US for some years, had already begun the process to meet with her 10-year-old daughter. The request had been approved by the US Embassy in Havana last May, and only the interview and visa were needed. Washington’s new move, however, turned both their lives upside down.

“It’s very heartbreaking to know that your claim is approved and this happens,” said Llanes, who runs her own café. Her daughter, who posted a video on social media urging the president to “think it over,” spent several days without talking to anyone after learning that she could not join her mother as soon as she expected.

The case is similar to that of Clara Riera, who arrived in the US in 2019 and owns a cleaning business in Tampa. Riera had been preparing for the arrival of her children, aged 16, 17 and 19, who were also waiting for the interview. The teenagers live in Cuba with their grandmother, who was diagnosed with cancer, which made reunification more urgent. To top it off, her eldest son has heart problems which, according to Riera, are due to the stress of the separation.

“I hope that the people up there will bear in mind that we, the permanent residents, also have our children in a prison country”

After the ban announced by the White House, and with her children’s beds already bought and accommodated to receive them, Riera posted a video on social networks. “I hope that the people up there who sign and make the laws will keep in mind that we, the permanent residents, also have our children in a prison country, and we want them here with us,” she said, devastated.

Cubans are not the only ones affected by visa suspensions and travel restrictions for nationals of countries that do not comply with US immigration security measures. Venezuela and Cuba have partial restrictions, while Haiti is included on a list of 12 countries with total entry restrictions.

Another Cuban interviewed, 26-year-old Glaydys Sardá, left with her husband in 2022, determined to get to the US through the southern border. Then, fearing the dangers of travel, she left her three-year-old baby in the care of her grandparents. Now six, the child is constantly asking to live with his parents, who are also expecting their second child. “When we are there, the three of us are very happy, but since we left, I feel terrible. Now I am also expecting my second son, and it would break my heart to go to Cuba with one son, return with one and leave the other there,” she confesses.

Travel restrictions and entry permits are not the only immigration policy of Trump that has affected Cubans. On Thursday, the US Department of Homeland Security notified hundreds of thousands of immigrants from Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela and Haiti that temporary protections to live and work in the country granted by the previous government are no longer valid.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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A Cash Shortage Leads to More Long Lines Outside Havana’s Banks

“We need to withdraw more and more, and the banks are giving less and less,” lamented one client about inflation.

Branch 264 of the Metropolitan Bank of Havana, located on La Rampa (23rd Street) in Vedado, on Monday. / 14ymedio

Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, June 10, 2025 — Branch 264 of the Metropolitan Bank of Havana, located on La Rampa in the city’s Vedado district, was a swarm of activity on Monday as evidenced by the large crowd waiting for the ATMs to be activated. “Where’s the money I worked 38 years for? I can’t even take out what little I have in my checking account,” shouted a retiree who was waiting in line.

Though the machines were flush with cash by the time the bank opened at 8:30, there was not a peso to be had just two hours later. Withdrawals were limited to 5,000 pesos per person inside the sweltering premises, whose air-conditioning had been turned off in an effort to save energy. In other neighborhoods such as Luyanó, the limit was only 2,000 pesos.

ATMs at the Metropolitan Bank on Havana’s Obispo Street on Monday / 14ymedio

The scene was much the same at the city’s other banks, and not just yesterday and today. For several weeks now, people could be seen lying on sidewalks and camping out in nearby parks. “There’s no money for the people but it’s like the Gilded Age for the ’nouveau riche’ business owners and Central Committee members,” complained a teacher — his skin reddened by Havana’s summer sun — to the tellers at the Obispo Street branch. Havana residents’ frustrations over rampant inflation and widespread hardships have only been exacerbated by having to wait in the heat. continue reading

A uniformed officer waits his turn, along with other bank customers, in the shade of a nearby park. / 14ymedio

Meanwhile, at a branch bank in the Tenth of October district, an Interior Ministry policeman waited his turn, along with other customers, after parking his motorcycle under a shade tree. “They don’t have their own bank so they get to enjoy the ’ humane and socialist’ revolution,” said a woman to a family member in a low voice, referring to the uniformed officer.

The Metropolitan Bank’s Galiano Street branch in Central Havana on Monday. / 14ymedio

Ask random customers why they are waiting in line and they will tell you they need more cash because prices have gone up. “An avocado costs 500 pesos. A private taxi is 25o minimum. I can easily spend between 1,000 and 2,000 pesos just on transportation,” says a young man who works for a small business. “We need to withdraw more and more but banks are handing out less and less.” Inflation has even led to changes in the way vehicles carry cash.

A branch bank at 23rd and J streets, across from Don Quixote Park in Havana’s Vedado district on Monday. / 14ymedio

The National Office of Statistics and Information reported that inflation was 16.4% in May, the lowest rate since the COVID-19 pandemic. While still high, it is significantly lower than the 31.11% recorded in the same month last year. Though the government is pleased with the gradually declining inflation rate, Cubans — especially those who do not receive remittances from relatives overseas — do not notice it in their daily lives. And neither do the banks.

The Metropolitan Bank’s office on Toyo Street in Havana’s Tenth of October district on Monday. / 14ymedio

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Cuba’s Arts Students Criticize the ‘Aggressive’ Attitude of the State Communications Company Etecsa and State Security

They emphasize students’ willingness to engage in dialogue, but point out that the conditions for this “cannot be imposed from above.”

Headquarters of the Art Faculty of Audiovisual Media of the Instituto Superior de Arte / @famca_isa/Instagram

14ymedio, Havana, 15 June 2024 — Cuban academics continue to refuse to submit to the pressures of the Regime. This Saturday an official statement of the of the Audiovisual Media of the Higher Institute of Art (ISA) Faculty was added to individual complaints made by several students on social networks and in assemblies. The document refers to the “aggressive and indolent” attitude of Etecsa — the State telecommunications company — and State Security, and the harassment of students and the institution. It also disconnects the ISA from the multidisciplinary group created by the Federación Estudiantil Universitaria (FEU) to address the Etecsa rate hikes, dubbed el Tarifazo.

The faculty put forward three main reasons: the State-run communications department manages meetings on its premises and “on its own terms,” leaving teachers and other professionals out of the debate and establishing a “route” to follow where the solution has been to offer “perks that exclude large segments of the population.” Second, the students found it “unacceptable” to keep the new rates in place amid discussions about their unpopularity and called for their temporary cessation.

They also stated that they will only admit a commission for the debate if it has the participation of teachers, students and “specialists from civil society.” Finally, the fourth point focuses on denouncing the “pressure” exerted by State Security on several students who protested against the tarifazo, which “merely confirms the authorities’ vertical and aggressive attitude towards a horizontal and peaceful student movement.”

Students who have been “flagged by State Security” will sit out the activism to protect their physical integrity

The text emphasizes the students’ willingness to have a dialogue but notes that the conditions for this “cannot be imposed from above.” It also announces that students who have been “flagged by State Security” will sit out the activism to protect their physical integrity and that the Faculty will not promote independent activities “until a consensus among universities continue reading

has been consolidated.”

Raymar Aguado Hernández, one of the activists who openly supported the protests from Havana and who has also been intimidated by the authorities, published a complaint on social networks Saturday against the repression exercised by the political police against students. “The student strike in Cuban universities was not stopped organically by the majority will of the students, but because of the harassment and intimidation carried out by the repressive organs of the State against several students, members of their families and part of the teaching staff who supported it,” said the activist.

According to the 24-year-old, who dropped out of a career in psychology in 2022 because of the Regime’s harassment, “students’ demands were ignored by government authorities.” Instead of a dialogue, the State unleashed a “witch hunt,” he says.

“Denunciation of harassment and repression is the only form of protection that citizens have against abuses by the government and its law enforcement agencies”

“Allegations of harassment and intimidation against the students by State Security were made public from different faculties in the country,” said Aguado, who placed the focus of protests mainly on schools in the capital and in the provinces of Las Tunas, Villa Clara and Granma.

He also criticized the multidisciplinary group, which he described as “a handful of minions handpicked by different levels of political power. In short, it is only a well-orchestrated staging to give the false image of popular support, horizontality, democracy and consensus.”

Aguado stressed the need to make visible the “forms of repression” suffered by the students. “Denunciation of harassment and repression is the only form of protection for citizens against abuses by the government and its law enforcement agencies. It is the most effective way of gaining support and weaving networks of solidarity in the face of authoritarianism.”

Translated by Regina Anavy

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An Opulent Hardware Store Opens on One of the Most Impoverished Streets in Havana

Amidst ruined buildings, La Valía sells tools, appliances, furniture and even beauty products.

La Valía hardware store, on Calle Monte in Central Havana / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, 16 June 2025 — A new private business has been illuminating Calle Monte in Central Havana for just a few days. The verb is not exaggerated. On a street filled with ruined buildings, closed premises, rubbish at the corners, beggars asking for alms and a persistent smell of urine, there suddenly emerged a gigantic hardware store selling in pesos called La Valía.

Located on the stretch between Ángeles and Águila, the shop has everything and is perfectly clean and air conditioned. There are work tools, plumbing articles, household appliances (washing machines at 65,000 pesos), electronic devices (televisions, at 150,000 pesos), cookware such as pressure cookers (over 20,000), water pumps (up to 11,340) and even furniture (a set of table and chairs, 152,000 pesos). They also have a section of watches and another of beauty products, including creams and shampoos, some of Japanese (O’ujiashi) and Korean (Roushun) brands.

Located on the stretch between Ángeles and Águila, the shop has everything and is perfectly clean and air conditioned / 14ymedio

Prices, although high, are perceived to be somewhat lower than on sites like Revolico or among informal resellers. “This is awesome,” commented a young man who came out of curiosity this weekend. “They have things I’ve never seen, like electronic door locks and a giant fan – I guess for private businesses, because who’s going to put that in their house, and who’s going to be able to pay?” he said, pointing at the label, which was marked 550,000 pesos.

A woman looks at La Valía through the window / 14ymedio

For months, passers-by and neighbors in the area saw the renovation work going ahead at full speed. Last September, even with walls, doors and ceilings still under construction, an opulent space was expected. In those days of May, the one who seemed to be the owner or manager supervised the work, going back and forth to his car with a K number plate, which indicated that he was a foreigner.

Fan for sale in pesos in La Valía / 14ymedio]

In the WhatsApp group reporting the offers, it is specified that the trade is “retail sale”, although while it was under construction, a poster on the back wall saying “wholesale sale” could be seen. The workers shrugged their shoulders when asked about this change: “I don’t know”.

Water pumps for sale in La Valía / 14ymedio

There is little information about the shop. La Valía, like similar businesses, does not appear on the list of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) of the Ministry of Economy and Planning. Nor does it have a website, which is normal for new private businesses, and it has only one Facebook page apart from the WhatsApp group.

They also have a watch and beauty products section / 14ymedio

In that sense, it resembles the A&M Bazaar, which, with several branches located in buildings and on unsafe streets, also draws attention for its opulence. Asked if La Valía has anything to do with A&M, an employee categorically denies it.

Last September, even with walls, doors and ceilings under construction, an opulent space was expected / 14ymedio

“Here if you do not buy, at least it serves to get away from the rubbish and lines,” said another woman with a dazed gesture of her hand embracing the panorama on Monte street. “It’s like an oasis in the desert.”

Translated by Regina Anavy

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Ballplayer Ediel Ponce Left Cuba To Escape Military Service and Will Now Play in the Major Leagues

Two more players, Ronald Lázaro Mena and Yermin Neyra, have settled in the Dominican Republic.

Ediel Ponce says that Cuba never gave him the ’Rookie of the Year’ trophy in 2024 / Francys Romero

14ymedio, Havana, 15 June 2025 — Ediel Ponce reached an agreement with the Los Angeles Angels this Saturday. The ballplayer left Cuba in 2024, resentful because, after representing the island at the pre-World Baseball Championship in the under-18 category in Panama, he received an order to enlist for military service. That was his award for being the top pitcher of the team at the event.

Ponce told the platform Tigres Avileños that, despite their good level of play, he could not avoid the compulsory military service, and no manager did anything to release him from the call. “It hurt a lot. I never thought that would happen to me in Ciego de Ávila,” said the player.

The athlete revealed that he experienced constant neglect by the Provincial Baseball Commission in his native Ciego de Ávila. “When I was in the National Series they told me that I was their ’child’ and that they liked me very much, but all that changed. Nor did I ever receive the ’Rookie of the Year’ trophy in 2024. All that bothered me quite a bit,” he recounted last September.

The young man settled in the Dominican Republic, where his initial goal was to perfect his technique so he could compete for a US Major League contract. He was embraced by the academy continue reading

of Fausto Chiqui Mejías, who is a reference among Major League pitchers.

Ballplayers Ronald Lázaro Mena and Yermin Neyra left the island and settled in the Dominican Republic / Francys Romero

Ponce appeared before the scouts and, according to journalist Francys Romero, “several of them highlighted an innate ability to throw strikes as his strongest asset.” In addition, “his best pitch is the change-up, and he also masters the curve and sinker. He is able to throw a straight between 89 and 91 miles per hour.” With these qualities, he is assured of a rapid advancement in the Minor Leagues.

While the Ponce agreement was being announced, the departure of two other prospects for Cuban baseball to the Dominican Republic was confirmed. These are Ronald Lázaro Mena and Yermin Neyra.

Mena, said Romero, “was one of the best pitchers in the youth category in 2025.” In this stage he recorded 37 strikeouts, four wins and reached a 2.12% ERA. His straight has come close to 92 mph. The athlete was closely followed by teams from the Professional League of Japan.

For his part, Neyra is a central outfielder, with outstanding power and speed in the bases.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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Susely Morfa Continues To Rise in the Cuban Communist Party

The “millionaire psychologist” has been named the first secretary of the PCC in Villa Clara.

From left to right: Osnay Miguel Colina, Roberto Morales Ojeda, and Susely Morfa. / PCC/Facebook

14ymedio, Havana, 12 June 2025 — Just over a year after stepping down as First Secretary of the Communist Party in Matanzas to serve on the Party’s Central Committee, Susely Morfa has been reappointed as the highest authority in a province: Villa Clara. The psychologist will replace Osnay Miguel Colina Rodríguez, who “will be assigned other responsibilities.”

Roberto Morales Ojeda, who had been in charge of orchestrating the dismissals and promotions within the Central Committee in recent years, presided over the plenary session in which Colina was removed from office “at the request of the Political Bureau.” The meeting participants, the PCC said in a statement, applauded the work of the official, who was in charge of Villa Clara for three years, and his “fulfillment of the priorities defined by the Party during this period.”

The official note briefly outlines Morfa’s career: a graduate in Psychology, 42 years of age of which 21 years—exactly half—have been dedicated to “political leadership activities”; former secretary of the National Committee of the University Student Federation; former first secretary of the PCC in Matanzas; member of the Party’s Executive Bureau; deputy to the National Assembly; and, in her last position, head of the Department of Attention to the Social Sector.

The brief resume does not summarize Morfa’s combative career, having tried by all means to demonstrate that she is a “reliable figure.”

This brief resume doesn’t summarize Morfa’s combative career. She has tried by all means to demonstrate that she is a “reliable figure” for the Party, and her meteoric rise over the last decade proves that her efforts have paid off.

In 2015, the psychologist burst onto the Cuban political scene after her performance at the Summit of the Americas in Panama, where she led several protests and called the Cuban activists and exiles who participated in a parallel event with civil society “lackeys, mercenaries, self-financed, and underpaid by imperialism.” continue reading

During that performance, after being questioned by a journalist from a Florida media outlet, she claimed she had spontaneously traveled to Panama to protest, paying for her stay and travel with her salary as a psychologist. Following that response, people on social media began calling her “the millionaire psychologist.”

Barely a year after the Summit, Morfa was elected to the National Assembly of People’s Power and a member of the Council of State. She was also immediately appointed leader of the Union of Young Communists (UJC), after having held various positions in the youth organization, first in her hometown of Rodas (Cienfuegos) and later as a provincial leader.

After leaving Matanzas, Morfa was hailed as a “great leader” when she received a barrage of praise from representatives of official organizations.

After leaving Matanzas, Morfa was hailed as a “great leader” after receiving a barrage of praise from representatives of official organizations in the province. Osmar Ramírez Ramírez, secretary general of the Cuban Workers’ Union, even noted that the psychologist was “proof that the future of the Revolution is guaranteed.” “During highly complex events such as the fire at the Supertanker Base, the floods in Carlos Rojas, or during the events of 11 July 2021, she has always been on the front lines, something that undoubtedly makes her a great leader,” he added.

Morfa has steadily climbed the political ladder in the country, and some, like journalist Reinaldo Escobar, even believe she could become a presidential candidate when Miguel Díaz-Canel leaves the government in 2028. Furthermore, she has been one of the few high-ranking Party officials to survive the recent waves of dismissals. The latest of these changes occurred last May, when the Party dismissed Yuniasky Crespo, its representative in Mayabeque.

Crespo’s departure, after three years in office and a long career associated primarily with student institutions, follows those carried out in the provinces of Las Tunas and Camagüey in 2025, which were preceded by at least a dozen “cadre movements” – as the regime calls them – the previous year, which the Party has attributed to a routine “renewal” of its members.

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Mother of Two Small Children Stabbed in the Street in Niquero, Granma Province, Cuba

The woman was stabbed three times in public.

Gretel Matos was 33 years old when she died /La Hora de Cuba / Facebook

14ymedio, Havana, 15 June 2025 — The murder of Gretel Matos, mother of two small children, last Friday in Granma province brings the total of femicides to 15 so far this year in Cuba, according to 14ymedio records. The 33-year-old woman was stabbed three times in the street in the Niquero municipality, where she lived.

Matos’ assailant was named as Didier Almagro, father of her second child, “who fled after committing the crime, near La Plaza del Pueblo,” according to the independent media La Hora de Cuba.

The man was hiding from the law up to this Saturday said a media source, who added that “he said several times he was going to kill her (Matos), after he had tried unsuccessfully to revive their relationship.” continue reading

La Hora de Cuba reported that she was with her present partner when it happened.

Almagro “had said on various occasions that he was going to kill her, after he had tried unsuccessfully to revive their relationship

At the start of the month, the official press, which rarely mentions this type of crime, reported the femicide of Rosa María Santana Álvarez, aged 29, following lots of rumours of her death in social media.

Escambray reported that the aggressor, Santana’s ex-partner, had been caught and confessed to the killing of the woman who was mother of two young children. The main was arrested “less than two hours after he did it,” a Ministry of the Interior committee was pleased to report to the paper. It added that the arrest was “thanks to public support” and the speedy action of the police.

A few weeks before that, at the end of April, Yiliannys Reyes, a girl from Camagüey, hardly 17-years-old, was assaulted, also at the hands of her ex-partner. And before that, 40-year-old Yunisleidy López Milián, had been killed by her partner, who attacked her in her home in Guayos in Cabaiguán municipality.

To date this year, there have been 15 femicides in Cuba according to our records. The feminist associations noted the killing of Odalys Bataille as an instance of this type of violence. She was a 53-year-old nurse in Habana del Este. But up to now it is not known what the link is between the victim and the perpetrator, a presumed ex-convict, and 14ymedio has it registered as a homicide.

Translated by GH

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“The People Are an Enemy That Must Be Controlled in the Defense of Power in Cuba”

Priest Alberto Reyes calls on the Security Forces to reflect on their role in defending the Cuban dictatorship.

Reyes is the parish priest of Esmeralda, a municipality in Camagüey. / Courtesy

14ymedio, Havana, 14 June 2025 — “How can you lend yourself to harassing and intimidating young people who perhaps have the same thoughts and ideals as your own children?” This is how Father Alberto Reyes addresses those charged with “taking care of the country, protecting its citizens: police, State Security agents, members of elite forces, whether they be red berets, black berets, black wasps…” in a post on his social media on Friday.

The students’ voices aren’t the only ones that have resonated in recent weeks calling for social and political change. From other sectors of society, including the religious community, reflections on the island’s turmoil have reached social media and independent media. Under the title ’He estado pensando’ [I’ve been thinking], the Camagüey priest called on the military forces to reflect on “what you’re doing right and what you’re doing wrong.”

This isn’t a speech from the top of the ecclesiastical hierarchy. The priests and nuns closest to the people—the same ones who came out to defend the protesters on 11 July 2021—have supported the students in a context of harassment of university students who have protested against Etecsa’s tariffs, the ‘tarifazo‘. While State Security agents knock on doors and warn against posting “counterrevolutionary” content on social media, Reyes urges people to listen to their own conscience.

“The social model in which we live, being dictatorial, is based on the conception that the priority of these forces is not serving the people but rather the unquestionable defense of power. Since it is a power against the people, the vision it presents to its military forces is that the people are an enemy to be controlled,” the priest said. continue reading

“These forces’ priority is not serving the people but rather defending power without question.”

According to the parish priest of the municipality of Esmeralda, “being a police officer, a State Security agent, a member of elite forces (…) is fulfilling a beautiful vocation: caring for the country, protecting its citizens, guaranteeing the safety of individuals.” When “you are not an instrument that enables society to feel safe and at peace, then the meaning of your vocation has been corrupted.”

Reyes, whose stances against the regime have earned him several reprimands from State Security and within the Church itself, did not hesitate to question the repression of citizens who already live in “slavery” and “need.”

A few days earlier, Father Lester Zayas also reported the attack on his vehicle due to his statements against the government. “It’s true that coincidences happen, but do they always happen the same way? This is how our car looked this morning after a long night of blackouts throughout El Vedado, right in front of our convent,” he wrote on June 3.

The priest was referring to a lengthy post he published the day after President Miguel Díaz-Canel appeared on a new episode of his podcast to explain the blackouts. Zayas expressed his astonishment at the lack of a “good advisor” at the island’s leader’s side. As a result, and according to the photo accompanying his complaint, the vehicle’s windows were smashed and part of the radio destroyed.

This Friday, in an interview with Martí Noticias, Father Castor José Álvarez—known for his arrest during the 11 June 2021 protests in Camagüey—stated that “the Cuban people are trapped in a political system that not only doesn’t provide them with opportunities, but also denies them the right to live with dignity.” The priest called on the authorities to reflect, explaining that on the island “there can be no peace without freedom.”

This week, 14ymedio also reviewed a Facebook post by Nadieska Almeida, the Mother Superior of the Daughters of Charity in Cuba, in which she denounced that authorities had used a photo of her to simulate an environment of understanding and collaboration between the Church and the government.

During a routine visit at the nursing home run by the religious community, the authorities asked for a photo and the nun agreed.

During a routine visit to the nursing home run by the religious community, the authorities asked for a photo, and the nun agreed. However, days later, she received “the surprise that, without permission, they had posted it on social media with the following message: ’Together for a revolutionary ideal.’” Almeida said she felt “very upset, as is to be expected,” and that was the reason that prompted her to write her text and attack the Revolution.

“I don’t believe, I don’t hope, I don’t see anything valuable in the revolution. So many lies, so many ways to crush my people, so many deceptive promises,” she declared in her post. “How can I believe in a project that continues to claim the lives of young people forced into military service? How can I believe them when they want to silence the cries of hunger of our children and the elderly? How can I believe them when they plunge us once again into isolation and disconnection, when they shamelessly lie to us and once again insult the intelligence of an entire people with [internet and phone] rates unattainable for many?” she said, referring to the Etecsa tarifazo (rate hike).

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Lobito, the Star of Matanzas’ Narváez Promenade, Has Died

“Life is difficult for humans, what can we expect for stray animals?”

Lobito, like other stray dogs, was art of the environment of the Matanzas boulevard.

14ymedio, Pablo Padilla Cruz, Matanzas, 15 June 2025 — Lobito was a mixed-breed dog, a sato, without a pedigree. Even so, his death last week, when a door fell and struck him, dismayed the workers on Narváez Avenue in the city of Matanzas, who were accustomed to feeding him and watching him frolic with bar patrons.

Lobito arrived on Narváez Avenue after passing through several homes. The Animal Welfare (BAC) staff in Matanzas had taken him in as a puppy, covered in sores. They treated him, bathed him, and tried to put him up for adoption, but Lobito never adapted. “What he liked most was running around the streets and playing with the bar patrons, who gave him food and sometimes held his paw. Little by little, along with other street dogs, he became part of the Matanzas boulevard scene,” says Yordani, a bartender at one of the street cafes.

“A worker at the Artys bar, where the accident happened, told me about it. When I started working here, he was already here. Every day, we brought him his lunch and his dinner along with ours. He was part of the team, not just at this bar but at most of the bars in the area,” explains the young man from Matanzas.

Lobito, he recalls, had “free access” to a few establishments, where he took refuge from the heat and entertained diners. “Surprisingly, he didn’t bother the customers; on the contrary, they were the ones who most often called him over and even asked to take pictures with him,” he says. Tourists also photographed him, or he was seen playing with some children, trying to steal a ball from them. continue reading

The stray dog wasn’t the only one with a reputation on the boulevard either. “There was Firulais, who went viral when a quinceañera took some studio photos with him, and the story was reported in a Spanish magazine. We also had El Rubio and his girlfriend, who we weren’t sure if they were dating or not, but they always lay down together to take a nap in some shaded area along the promenade,” says Yordani. Little by little, some due to illness and others due to accidents, Narváez’s community pets began to disappear.

The city’s animal rights activists never stopped caring for Lobito. According to Yordani, “they always kept him clean and took care of his health” despite the lack of resources and institutional support they’ve suffered since the association’s founding a few years ago.

BAC members, mostly young people, not only make their own resources and pockets available to stray or abandoned animals, but were also the ones who pushed – with a demonstration in front of the Ministry of Agriculture in Havana – for the creation of an Animal Welfare law that was finally approved in 2021. However, interviewed by 14ymedio , some of the young people are not satisfied with the law.

“It’s already outdated and no longer serves the purpose for which it was created,” says one BAC activist. “It’s as if it was created to silence the demands of animal lovers,” adds another.

El Rubio and his girlfriend were also on the promenade.

The young people lament that the crisis the island is mired in, which leaves little room for anything but daily survival, has worsened the situation for domestic animals. “Life is difficult for humans, what can we expect for stray animals? Many of us activists take part of our wages to buy medicine, pay for surgeries, and transport not only our own but also these other animals in critical condition,” the animal rights activist explains. “An operation for a cat can cost over 20,000 pesos and is generally only performed in the capital.”

While acknowledging that many have become aware of the precarious conditions faced by stray animals, he also admits that Cuba is “in its infancy” compared to many countries around the world and on the continent. Lobito is proof of that.

The youth lament that the crisis the island is experiencing has worsened the situation of domestic animals.

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A Group of 20 Cuban ‘Balseros’, Including Several Children, Await Deportation in the Bahamas

The migrants join 37 others who were rescued last January by the U.S. Coast Guard.

Cuban balseros boarding the ship ’Margaret Norvell’ / X @USCGSoutheast

14ymedio, Havana, June 13, 2025 — Since last Tuesday, a group of 20 Cuban balseros [rafters] have been in custody in the Bahamas and are awaiting deportation. The migrants, in their attempt to reach the United States, were stranded on the uninhabited island of Cayo Anguilla and rescued by the crew of the US Coast Guard ship Margaret Norvell.

According to a statement, agents of the National Security Investigations in Miami were informed of the situation and sent a US HC-144 Ocean Sentry turboprop aircraft, which “dropped food, water and a radio for communications.”

According to Univision journalist Javier Díaz, “several women and children” are among the Cubans. The deportation process in the Bahamas, he said, can take months. “Previously other migrants have been imprisoned in the country for more than six months,” so he recommended that family members “be patient with this return.”

The most recent case is that of 37 Cubans who were rescued last January after being stranded on the islands of Cal Sal Bank and Cayo Anguila. The deportation process for these persons has not yet been finalized. continue reading

US Coast Guard Lieutenant Fernando Pla warned the balseros with a now-familiar statement that “anyone who attempts to enter the United States illegally by sea will be intercepted and repatriated to their country of origin.”

Pla emphasized that they constantly patrol the maritime approaches to the Florida Strait, Windward Passage, Mona Pass and the Caribbean Sea in support of Operation Watchman Sentry.

According to official figures, since the beginning of fiscal year 2025 on October 1, Coast Guard crews have returned 103 migrants to Cuba.

The route of emigration by sea is one of the most dangerous for Cubans. The Missing Migrants Program of the International Organization for Migration reported in August last year that at least 291 people disappeared during their crossing. Of that number, 142 were from the Island.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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A Cuban Is Accused of Human Trafficking and Could Spend 50 Years in Prison

Moment of arrest of Yasel Vinent in Cancun, Quintana Roo

14ymedio, Ángel Salinas, Mexico City, 13 June 2025 — Cuban Yassel D. Angelo has been in prison since last Tuesday for the crimes of human trafficking and prostitution in Cancun. Authorities found a US resident document with the name Yasel Vinent on it. Officer Ezequiel Marrufo told 14ymedio that if found guilty “he could serve 50 years in prison plus be fined by the judge.”

The Cuban was reported last May by his victim, a 22-year-old woman. She told the authorities that he forced her to prostitute herself. “He charged 2,500 pesos ($132) for having sexual relations in his home.” If the service was in hotels, she had to dress as the client requested. “He charged them 3,000 pesos ($158) for 40 minutes, and the money increased for some services.” According to investigations by the authorities, Vinent obtained up to 25,000 pesos (more than $1,300) in one day.

“The woman was punished for any complaints from customers.” According to the official, “the possible relationship with a trafficking network in the United States is being investigated, but this is not confirmed.” The Cuban was found with a US resident card issued in 2017. “All the evidence is part of the process, as well as the verification of his name, because in the document it appears as Yasel Vincent, and at the time of his capture he said he was named Yassel D. Angelo.” continue reading

Document found on Yasel Vinent at the time of his arrest / Noticias Q. Roo

The Mexican women and Vinent were dating for several months until she agreed last February to move in with him. According to her statement to the authorities, Vinent went from being nice to “beatings and insults.” However, after the aggressive episodes, he always apologized.

On one occasion, she tried to leave him, but he threatened to “kill me and do the same to my family.” On advice from some close friends, the woman “took courage and returned home.” Officer Marrufo says that “such was the control this Cuban had over the girl, that he went to her parents’ house and convinced her to return with the promise that everything would change.”

Upon returning, “I experienced hell,” the woman said. Vinent let her know that she would do whatever he wanted or “my family would pay for it.” He took her cell phone and “when he could, he checked my messages and put my phone on speaker to listen to my conversations.”

The prosecutor’s Office for Combating Human Trafficking took up the case and, following the complaint by the young woman, requested and obtained from a judge an arrest warrant against Yassel D. Angelo.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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The Owner of the ‘Cuban Costco’ Has Been on a Hunger Strike for Two Weeks With Deteriorating Health

Cuspinera’s case has caused deep concern in the private business sector / Collage

14ymedio, Havana, June 14, 2025 — Frank Cuspinera, owner of Diplomarket, the “Cuban Costco,” imprisoned in the Combinado del Este, completes two weeks without eating this Saturday. The Cuban-American businessman began his fast on June 1, and his health is deteriorating rapidly, according to a family member who spoke to 14ymedio. ” He remains determined to continue until justice is done in his case,” confirms the source.

“It’s bad,” says Luis, close to the inner circle of Cuspinera, 48 years old, but with his name changed for fear of reprisals. The entrepreneur, who is being investigated for tax evasion, currency trafficking and money laundering, has been in solitary confinement since refusing to eat. The strike also began with a refusal to drink, but last Tuesday the Cuban-American drank “some water”.

The prison authorities have allowed Cuspinera to make phone calls to his family in an attempt to have relatives convince him to stop the hunger strike, but so far they have not managed to get him to eat anything. The first week of fasting, he received a visit from his wife, Camila Castro, who was free but also being investigated for the same crimes, to perform “family dynamics,” says Luis. This is what they call it, “when the relatives of a plantado are brought in to convince him to stop the strike.”

The strategy didn’t work either: “They wanted to appeal to the family dynamic without even knowing Frank’s emotional profile, without even having found out why he is carrying out the strike,” Luis said. “Obviously they were only complying with an institutional protocol, so it will be recorded in some file that they complied with their part, that they met with the family.” continue reading

Cuspinera’s wife did not accept the “dynamic”, and although she traveled to the prison, she was not allowed to see her husband

Cuspinera’s wife did not accept the “dynamic,” and although she traveled to the prison, she was not allowed to see her husband. The relatives fear, says Luis, that the Cuban-American will end up in the hospital, and his body will suffer permanent damage from not eating because he suffers from diabetes and high blood pressure.

Cuspinera announced his hunger strike in a handwritten letter signed on May 21 and sent from the Combinado del Este prison, almost a year after his arrest and with absolutely nothing known about his whereabouts. In the letter, he made “an appeal to the international community and international and human rights organizations,” as well as to the United States Department of State, “to intervene with the Cuban institutions for the constant violations of my rights and the denial of legal guarantees for my defense by the Cuban State institutions and their representatives.”

The businessman attacked State Security and the Cuban judicial apparatus “that are viciously activated against me” and that managed, with “multiple falsehoods,” to start an investigation against him “without the right of defense.”

The case of Cuspinera has caused deep concern in the private business sector on the Island. The lack of procedural guarantees and the ferocity that he denounces from prison have increased the suspicion of entrepreneurs about investing in Cuba. While some accuse the Cuban-American of being naive for putting his money into a local business, others see his arrest as a revenge of the government.

“They had a complaint for tax evasion, without ever having done a prior audit,” says Luis

“They had a complaint for tax evasion, without ever having done a prior audit,” says Luis. These officials “reviewed everything,” and then the Technical Directorate of Investigations was introduced. The entrepreneurs were arrested and their business licenses taken away “immediately” from both Cuspinera SURL, the firm under which the supermarket operated, and Kmila-mart (his wife’s company), leaving them “inoperable.”

For the couple it was, says Luis, a shock: “They thought it would be a misunderstanding, that they would let them reopen the companies after solving it, that they would allow them to return the goods to some suppliers or even that Frank could respond to the process on bail, but they have not agreed to any of this.” The authorities were, he says, “more severe and arbitrary as time went on.”

At the time of the arrest, officials claimed “that the money from the sales was not deposited in the bank and caused damage to the State and discontent among the population,” says Luis. “Here everyone knows that all the MSMEs do currency trafficking, because when they made the private business law, it was done knowing that there would never be availability in the bank to obtain the currency legally. It is known that the largest percentage of everything sold in Cuba are imported products obtained with transactions in currency, because here nothing is produced, so you have to import to produce later,” says the source.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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Waking Up From the American Dream and Returning to the Cuban Nightmare

“My mother received an email this morning saying her permit was revoked.”

Before, waiting a year without applying for asylum used to seem like the logical option. Today, it’s become a trap. / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Havana, 13 June 2025 — The call came early. “You have to come back at 3:00 pm because we’re short two employees,” she was told. The woman, who had just finished a night shift, didn’t even have time to sleep. When she arrived, she learned that her colleagues hadn’t just been fired, but had lost their US work permits. And they weren’t the only ones.

Many Cubans are waiting in the hope of being able to benefit from the Adjustment Act, since they did not apply for political asylum. Others fear they won’t have time and are preparing psychologically and materially to bid farewell to the American dream and return to the Cuban nightmare.

“I already bought a power generator for my house in Cuba, in case I get deported.”

María Laura has already started packing her bags, both physically and mentally: “I already bought a power generator for my house in Cuba, in case I get deported,” she told 14ymedio. “I also sent an electric motorcycle, a washing machine, and other appliances by courier.” She isn’t interested in starting over in another Latin American country, nor does she have any way to go to Europe. Miami was the closest thing she had to escape the misery on the island without dying of homesickness.

“My mother received an email this morning saying her permit was revoked,” another Cuban resident in the US told 14ymedio. “She officially lost her job and now she’ll have to wait quietly for the Adjustment Act to expire,” he says, with a mixture of resignation and anger. continue reading

But the wait, in this case, is anything but peaceful. “All of this wouldn’t be happening if I had applied for political asylum in time, like the Haitians, Venezuelans, and Nicaraguans did, who don’t have a law that benefits them. But since my mother wanted to visit Cuba, she refused to do so,” he explains. His fear has several facets: “On the one hand, if she applied for asylum, she wouldn’t be able to visit her family on the island. But she also feared that, at any moment, the regime would place her on the list of those ‘regulated’, those who are prohibited from returning.” Being able to hug her family on both shores from time to time outweighed any legal calculations. And that desire, now, may cost her dearly.

Many migrants have been left in a kind of migratory limbo.

With parole suspended and a tense political climate since January 2025, many migrants have been left in a kind of immigration limbo. The Cuban Adjustment Act—that lifeline that has allowed thousands of Cubans to regularize their status after 365 days in the US—remains in place, but new regulations are closing the gap. Previously, waiting that year without requesting asylum seemed like the logical option. Today, it has become a trap. An expert consulted by this newspaper says: “People grew complacent, believing nothing would change. But it did.”

Cubans, at least for now, still have a legal option: the Adjustment Act. But that window isn’t automatic. “If you don’t have legal entry or haven’t managed to complete the year without conflict, the situation becomes more complicated. And even if there’s no immediate deportation, the fear of being expelled becomes a constant looming shadow,” warns the expert. Venezuelans, Haitians, and Nicaraguans, on the other hand, have political asylum as an escape route, because for them, there is no “Adjustment.”

The atmosphere in Cuban communities like Hialeah, Union City, and parts of Houston is one of anxiety. Some lawyers speak of “dozens of panicked clients,” others of “overwhelmed waiting lists.” Law offices are unable to cope. Fear now has a postal address: that letter that arrives and changes everything. “First they tell you they’re taking away your work permit. Then comes the silence. And you start to fear that the next thing you’ll get is a deportation order,” says another migrant who does not want to be identified.

The dilemma: ask for asylum and risk not being able to return to Cuba, or hope that the Adjustment will arrive before the collapse

But many Cubans remain trapped in the dilemma: seek asylum and risk being unable to return to Cuba, or hope that the Adjustment Agreement will arrive before the collapse. Meanwhile, the country they left behind remains impoverished, militarized, and more authoritarian than ever.

And in this limbo, time is running out. Every day without permission is a day without income. Every letter from the government is a threat. Every conversation with a lawyer ends with a list of urgent documents. Some have already started selling their things. Others have taken refuge in friends’ houses. No one knows what will happen in July, August, or December. But everyone knows that Cuba, for now, is not an option.

“I didn’t want to apply for asylum because I was thinking of returning to Cuba,” the unemployed woman’s son repeats. And his voice no longer sounds reproachful. It sounds like pain. That mixture of guilt and sadness that marks the story of so many families divided by the sea, by politics, and by waiting.

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