System
US, Cuba still cooperating on stopping drug smugglers
US, Cuba still cooperating on stopping drug smugglers
By Andrea Rodriguez and Michael Weissenstein | AP June 22
HAVANA — The U.S. and Cuba are still cooperating to intercept drug
smugglers even through the Trump administration has halted high-level
meetings on stopping the flow of narcotics through the Caribbean, a top
Cuban anti-drug official said Thursday.
The amount… Continue reading
New Trump Rules on Cuba Travel Leaves Winners and Losers
New Trump Rules on Cuba Travel Leaves Winners and Losers
The Trump administration’s new policy on travel by Americans to Cuba is
creating winners and losers.
June 27, 2017, at 11:01 a.m.
By ANDREA RODRIGUEZ and BETH J. HARPAZ, Associated Press
President Donald Trump’s new policy on travel to Cuba has winners and
losers: Group tour operators could sell more… Continue reading
We Exist Between Illusions And Fears
“We Exist Between Illusions And Fears”
14ymedio, Mario Penton, David (Panama), 23 June 2017 — The green seems
to fill everything in Chiriquí, in the western Panamanian province where
the government hosts 126 undocumented Cubans in a camp in the region of
Gualaca. The stillness of the morning in the middle of the huge pines
that grow in the foothills… Continue reading
The Lethargy Of A Coastal Town In Camagüey
The Lethargy Of A Coastal Town In Camagüey
14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar, Florida, Cuba, 26 June 2017 — “The sea water
cleans everything,” Agustin reflects as he calls out his
merchandise. This 74-year-old forensic assistant now works renting
inflatable boats for the fishermen of Playa Florida, in Camagüey, a
coastal strip where tourists rarely come and the economic crisis is
strongly… Continue reading
From Joystick to Canon
From Joystick to Canon / Regina Coyula
From Regina Coyula’s blog, 9 June 2017 (Ed. note: These interview
fragments are being translated out of order by TranslatingCuba.com
volunteers. When they are all done we will assemble them in order into
one post.)
The country was falling to pieces, there were people drowning in the sea
and on land, there was… Continue reading
The Hijacking Of Social Networks
The Hijacking Of Social Networks
14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez, Havana, 25 June 2017 – More than five years ago
social networks were roiled by the Arab Spring, while the screens of
their mobile phones lit up the faces of the young protesters. In those
years Twitter was seen as a road to freedom, but shortly afterwards the
repressors also learned how… Continue reading
No one signs the ‘Cuban Youth’s Statement’
No one signs the ‘Cuban Youth’s Statement’
PEDRO CAMPOS | La Habana | 26 de Junio de 2017 – 11:43 CEST.
The official newspapers Granma and Juventud Rebelde recently published
the Cuban Youth’s Statement in response to the recent speech by US
president Donald Trump and his announcement of a change in his country’s
policy towards Cuba.
I shall not… Continue reading
Sweating Is Not For Cuba’s New Rich
Sweating Is Not For Cuba’s New Rich
14ymedio, Zunilda Mata, Havana, 20 June 2017 — The passenger complains
of the heat while frantically moving the fan. “In a few days I will
install an air conditioning,” justifies the taxi driver and adds that he
will charge “higher fares.” In summer everyone dreams of
air-conditioning their rooms or vehicles, but whether… Continue reading
A Bad Bet
A Bad Bet / Fernando Damaso
Fernando Dámaso, 13 June 2017 — Of the real and supposed problems that
the Cuban Revolution proposed to solve, as the basis of its historical
necessity, after more than half a century of exercising absolute power,
many have not been solved, the majority have been aggravated, and others
have emerged that did not exist… Continue reading
The Cuban Republic: Buried by Official Decree
The Cuban Republic: Buried by Official Decree / Iván García
Iván García, 24 May 2017 — May 20 of this year with mark the 115th
anniversary of the birth of the Republic of Cuba. In the Throne Room of
the Palace of the Captains General, a building which now serves as the
City Museum, Tomás Estrada Palma — born in… Continue reading
Could 1 million more Cubans be deemed ineligible for remittances?
Could 1 million more Cubans be deemed ineligible for remittances?
BY MIMI WHITEFIELD
mwhitefield@miamiherald.com
William LeoGrande, an American University professor who specializes in
U.S.-Cuba relations, says it appears there might be a “poison pill” in
President Donald Trump’s new Cuba policy that potentially could cut off
remittances to more than 1 million Cubans.
The memorandum on strengthening Cuba policy that… Continue reading
The true face of GAESA in Havana’s Historic Quarter
The true face of GAESA in Havana’s Historic Quarter
ROLANDO MARTÍNEZ | La Habana | 22 de Junio de 2017 – 11:27 CEST.
“What has the change from Habaguanex to GAESA been like?”
“Disastrous.”
“Why?”
“Because the military management is inept. They demand too much and want
to intimidate us. Imagine: if you refuse to work with them, or ask… Continue reading
Vancouver skateboarder helps spread sport in Cuba
Vancouver skateboarder helps spread sport in Cuba
Norma Ibarra is on her 2nd trip to Cuba to donate boards from Vancouver
CBC News Posted: Jun 20, 2017 7:55 AM PT Last Updated: Jun 20, 2017 7:55
AM PT
For a country with no skate shops, Cuba’s skateboarding scene is
incredibly vibrant.
That’s what Vancouver skateboarder and photographer Norma Ibarra says.… Continue reading
Being Rich Is Banned in Cuba
Being Rich Is Banned in Cuba / Iván García
Ivan Garcia, 8 June 2017 — The die is cast. At the special session of
the National Assembly of People’s Power held on May 31 and June 1 at the
Palace of Conventions, delegates have, as expected, approved the
economic plan for 2016 to 2021 and a national plan for economic… Continue reading
Russia compares Trump’s Cuba plan to Cold War-era ‘rhetoric’
Russia compares Trump’s Cuba plan to Cold War-era ‘rhetoric’
By Mark Moore June 18, 2017 | 12:50pm
Russia slammed President Trump’s plan to reverse US policies on Cuba
as a return to Cold War-era “rhetoric.”
“The new line towards Cuba announced by US President Donald Trump takes
us back to already half-forgotten rhetoric in the style of the Cold
War,”… Continue reading
Citizen Kastro-Citizen Alcides
Citizen Kastro-Citizen Alcides / Regina Coyula
Regina Coyula, 14 June 2017– Jorge Enrique Lage interviews Miguel Coyula
(excerpts) 4
… at many times during the interview, Alcides interrupted himself and
began to speak to Fidel as if he were right in front of him. It’s
something one saw a lot in our parents’ generation: bothered by
something Fidel was saying… Continue reading
Where is Socialism in Cuba?
Where is Socialism in Cuba? / Iván García
Ivan Garcia, 20 May 2107 — A downpour in May hits the corrugated metal
roof hard. Water filters in through several holes into the house of
Mireya, a blind, half-deaf seventy-one-year-old woman. She relies on
pieces of black rubber to cover and protect her most precious
possessions: an obsolete Chinese television with… Continue reading
Cuba’s Castro sets elections timetable
Cuba’s Castro sets elections timetable
Cuba is set to hold municipal elections on October 22, a precursor to
the handover of power from President Raul Castro in 2018. Accession in
one-party systems is never easy, and Cuba is no exception.
President Castro has said he will step down next February at the end of
his second five-year term, but has… Continue reading
Private Carriers in Santiago de Cuba Complain About Inspections
Private Carriers in Santiago de Cuba Complain About Inspections
14ymedio, Havana, 12 June 2017 –Authorities have taken a firm stand with
private transportation in Santiago de Cuba and have begun to demand
exhaustive proof of fuel purchases from the state gas stations to verify
that they are not from the black market.
“Last Friday there was a massive operation, and… Continue reading
The Cuban Government, Complicit in Corruption and Peddling Favours
The Cuban Government, Complicit in Corruption and Peddling Favours /
Iván García
Iván García, 26 MAY 2017 — Ideology is no longer the most important
consideration if you want to get an administrative position in Cuba’s
chaotic business and commercial network. They only ask you to do two
things: fake support for the autocracy and show loyalty to government
business.… Continue reading
Between the Official Utopia and Generational Realism
Between the Official Utopia and Generational Realism / Cubanet, Miriam
Celaya
Cubanet, Miriam Celaya, Havana, 1 June 2017. – A characteristic feature
of ineffective and outdated political regimes is the constant appeal to
the historical past as a mechanism for legitimizing the present, and as
a resource for survival. In the case of Cuba, this principle has been
the rector… Continue reading
Found in Moscow’s Flea Markets: Car Parts, Jeans and Bargain-Hunting Cubans
Found in Moscow’s Flea Markets: Car Parts, Jeans and Bargain-Hunting Cubans
They fly 13 hours seeking items to sell in a Communist island still
starved of consumer goods
MOSCOW—Sometimes the wheels of history turn slowly. The hottest shopping
destination for Cubans is not across the water in Miami. It’s Moscow,
6,000 miles away.
Tougher U.S. border control and rising remittance… Continue reading
