DECLARATION OF SANTIAGO
DECLARATION OF SANTIAGO03-03-2011.Concilio Cubano
(www.miscelaneasdecuba.net).- The Cuban people live in very difficult times. However, this is not news. For more than fifty years we have witnessed increasing poverty and the ongoing violation of our human rights.
We have watched with sadness and outrage as our cities have become a heap of dust, destitute people, and discrimination. Instead of confronting these crises with meaningful change, the Castros blame others and make promises which are never fulfilled, and the Cuban people have no mechanism to hold them accountable for these failures. The regime treats Cuban citizens like children, attempting to control all aspects of Cuban life. They tell us how to do business, how to think, how to act. They have created a system that spreads doubt and division among us, weakening our unity, pitting Cuban against Cuban, benefiting some at the expense of others. The socialist economic model has stifled generations of Cuban creativity and productivity, resulting in decay and destitution. We deserve and demand better.
Concilio Cubano is a forum that proposes to bring together all of the opposition groups that peacefully oppose the current regime. We intend to give the people of Santiago de Cuba, and eventually all of Cuba, a comprehensive program with viable proposals on political, economic, and social issues. These proposals will help us to exit the crisis to which the current regime has brought us; a regime that, despite fifty years in power now asks us for more sacrifices and more budget cuts, and intends to lay off hundreds of thousands of workers.
We have gained consciousness of our current situation. We will not continue to remain silent. We want solutions, and we say enough to the speeches and empty formalities.
We need a government that represents the whole population of Cuba in its diversity: political, ethnic, religious, sexual preferences, and other. We want the creation of institutions and laws consistent with that cultural diversity.
We need a government whose primary interest is to respect freedom and equality, including] the free expression of thought, freedom of association, and economic freedom.We deserve a government that is accountable to the people of Cuba.
Economic
In the economic realm, the industries and commerce are in ruins. The economic system has been dominated by state control, stifled by bureaucracy, and crippled by a lack of competition. To address our economic crisis], the current regime proposes the "actualization of the socialist economic model." However, what this really means is the continuation of economic failure. In the new economic reform guidelines, one can recognize once again that the economic policy of the communist regime will be the same in its essence: foreigners will be the only people who will be allowed to open big businesses in conjunction with the regime. The Cuban people only get the crumb of self-employment activities. We will not have the right to increase or better our participation in the economy of our country.
The regime also proposes taxes that are excessive and absurd. Previous experiences indicate that increasing taxes dispirits the consumer and inhibits productive activity. For this reason, the solution is not in creating new taxes; it is in reducing existing taxes to promote the creativity and productivity of the Cuban people.
The regime has failed to meet the needs of working people. The workers who were recently laid off do not have the necessary resources to stay afloat in self-employment. It is truthfully inhumane to lay off a worker after decades of having paid him/her a miserable salary that does not add up to enough savings, without first ensuring that the person has access to bank loans. We are ashamed to see that the Center for Cuban Workers (CTC) and its top representative, Mr. Salvador Valdes Mesa, has supported the directives of Raul Castro and left the workers in a total state of helplessness.
We are weary of public works projects that never yield any benefit to the people. Our streets have been destroyed again and again in the name of supposed infrastructure programs that are never completed, due to official indecisiveness and negligence. The so-called "work of the century," will not be called that for its quality but because it will last a hundred years before its completion.
To promote greater economic freedom and opportunity, Concilio Cubano proposes the following:
1. Grant full legal recognition to the Cuban people's rights to private property. These rights include: the right of homeowners to sell their homes; [the right to buy or rent housing freely; the right to freely make a will; and the right to inherit.]
2. [Reform the tax code to promote productivity by reducing overall tax rates and creating tax incentives for workers and business owners.]
3. Provide increasing economic opportunity for citizens under 35 and employment opportunities for the disabled. Provide skills education for workers of all ages who need to adjust to a new economy.
4. Permit all citizens born in Cuba to be investors in medium and large companies whether or not they reside in the country or outside it. In other words, enable the decentralization of the economic activity of the country, which is currently in the hands of the totalitarian state. It is necessary to put this activity into the hands of Cuban citizens.
5. Facilitate the granting of credit to all those who need it to start private businesses.
6. Make possible the mixed association of foreign citizens and Cuban citizens within companies.
7. Create a transparent and accountable government agency to oversee public works projects.
Political and Legal
In the political realm, one sees an increase in human rights violations including: the persecution and harassment of those who think differently than the regime; the dispossession of goods without any judicial order; arbitrary detentions; denial of rights of free speech and association, freedom of the press and media, and freedom of access to information; refusal to allow Cuban citizens to travel freely within Cuba and to and from foreign destinations; and interference with freedom of religion.
These abuses are made possible by the lack of government accountability to the people of Cuba. There are no free and fair elections in which citizens can hold their officials accountable for their behavior. Political parties are denied the freedom to challenge abuses by the PCC. The lack of such accountability mechanisms leads to widespread government corruption. The court system is unable to provide a check against government abuses because it lacks the necessary independence. As a result, the Cuban people suffer from arbitrary tyranny and a failure of the rule of law.
[To promote a transparent and accountable government that respects the rights of citizens, Concilio Cubano proposes the following:]
1. [Recognize and enforce the human rights of all Cuban citizens, including the rights to freedom of speech, expression, and association; the right to private property; the right to freedom of religion; the right to a free press and access to information; and the right to free movement.]
2. Eliminate all restrictions that prevent Cuban citizens from freely entering or leaving the country. Repeal Decree No. 217 from April 22, 1997, which prevents the free movement of citizens, mainly into the city of Havana.
3. Repeal Law 88, which criminalizes basic rights of association and access to information, and eliminate the law of social dangerousness. No one should be punished for exercising basic political and personal rights.
4. Modify the Criminal Procedure Code to guarantee the rights of the accused person and the fairness of the criminal justice process.
5. Make these rights meaningful by: joining the American Convention on Human Rights and accepting the jurisdiction of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights to hear cases of human rights violations in Cuba; creating an independent human rights commission with the power to investigate and address human rights abuses; and making the structural changes in #6 below that will enable citizens to effectively enforce their rights within the Cuban legal system.
6. Restructure the government to provide transparency, accountability, and the rule of law. In particular: allow a wide range of political parties to organize, speak, campaign, and contest elections; hold free and fair elections; create an independent anti-corruption mechanism with open and transparent procedures; provide by law for the independence of the judiciary; provide by law for the independence of the parliament from the executive branch, and give the parliament sufficient power to act as a check on the executive.
Social and Cultural
The fabric of Cuban society has been frayed by more than fifty years of dictatorship. Cuban people have lived under a system in which they must often break the rules to survive. This experience has undermined respect for law and encouraged dependence. The regime coerces citizens into spying on each other and reporting on each other. It uses networks of informants to generate a massive system of surveillance which undermines social trust.
Under the Castros, Cuban society has experienced the breakdown of basic social institutions, including regression in education, culture, health care and technology. In all these areas, the regime expects professionals to act as arms of the state, and refuses to allow them the independence necessary to establish relationships of trust with those they serve. Education has suffered. The system is designed to indoctrinate, not to educate. Maestros emergentes, or fast-track teacher syoung and inexperienced teachers who have been trained in a speedy process to cope with the loss of educated teachers leaving for better paying jobs], are failing our students and parents.
The service in hospitals is poor; young doctors often receive inadequate training; there is insufficient confidentiality in the doctor-patient relationship; on many occasions medicines are not found; and our physicians are sent to complete international missions to the detriment of the inhabitants of the provinces who need medical attention. People with HIV are incarcerated in quarantine centers as though they were criminals instead of respecting their human rights.In our streets, we see the consequences of such social deterioration. Violence in our streets has considerably increased and we see with sadness how continuous assaults are produced, adding to the insecurity to our citizens.
The widespread use of alcohol contributes to the increase in violence. Citizens who are struggling to survive and have little hope for their futures turn to violence against each other. This situation contributes further to the breakdown of social ties.
Our cultural life has been stifled by the Castros. The regime dominates all creative and artistic expression. Artists are forced to represent the regime's point of view. The Castro regime has restricted peoples' access to technology in order to isolate them from the world, and it has selectively blocked websites representing dissident points of view.
To rebuild the social and cultural realms, Concilio Cubano proposes the following:
1. Disband all watchdog systems of surveillance.
2. Reform the educational system to provide well-trained teachers, a focus on critical-thinking skills, and] the autonomy of educational institutions, particularly colleges and universities.
3. Reform the health care system to provide well-trained health professionals; increase access to medicines and supplies in general; increase access to health care in the provinces in particular; and protect the independence of medical professionals.
4. Eliminate the quarantine system for people with HIV.
5. Create public health intervention programs to address the needs of the homeless, and those suffering from alcohol and drug addiction.
*6. Allow the development, and support the flourishing, of independent artistic and creative enterprises.
7. Increase the Cuban people's free access to technology and internet communication.
8. Protect the equal rights of all Cuban citizens – regardless of race, religion, national origin, gender, or sexual orientation – to marry, to have or adopt children, and to enjoy the benefits of family and private life.
With the support of our people, the strength of our political program and our method of peaceful struggle, the time has arrived to demand change. Concilio Cubano forms part of the peaceful opposition that presents a viable alternative program. We represent the just demands of the people of Santiago de Cuba and eventually the Cuban people. We speak for this noble endeavor to all Cubans, not only to our friends, but also to those who colluded with injustice in the past but now hope for a future of freedom and prosperity.
We believe that all Cubans, regardless of their past allegiances, should now come together to build a better future for our country. Because of our activities and our ongoing claim for our rights, we have been the victims of the biggest campaign of slander and repression that has ever been received by an opposition movement in contemporary history. This experience of repression has taught us that] the most important resource we have with which to speak is the truth. We aim to give a message of hope to our people: to the young who have lost their hopes, to the parents who have cried for the death of a son who attempted to find a future in another country, to the seniors who after many years of work receive a pension that does not afford them enough to eat, to the divided families who have missed their loved ones for years. To all those who have lost their faith: we present our Declaration, promising to continue our struggle for you.
Santiago de Cuba, January 14, 2011.
If you wish to contact us to discuss this Declaration or to report any denunciation that has to do with the violation of your rights, you may do so below by the following signatures:
1 – Ernesto Vera Rodríguez. Lawyer Manager of the Eastern Provinces for Concilio Cubano. Vecino de José Antonio Saco # 1255 entre 6 y 7 Reparto Santa Bárbara, Santiago de Cuba. Teléfono 646333.
2 – Raudel Ávila Lozada. Confederation of Workers of National Independent of Cuba (CONIC) and member of the Political Commission of Concilio Cubano. Vecino de Callamo # 618 entre Céspedes y Primero de Mayo, Palma Soriano.
3 – Tania Montoya Vázquez. Municpals of Opposition of Palma Soriano. Vecina de carretera de San Luis # 13 Reparto La Concepción, Palma Soriano.4 – Rodis Mustelier Caignet. President of the National Board of Democratic Transition. Vecino de Carretera de Siboney km 12, Las Guásimas.
5 – Pedro Antonio Alonso. Promoter of the Municpals of opposition and President of the Political Commission and Human Rights of Concilio Cubano. Teléfono 631487.
6 – Lázaro Rosales Rojas. Coordinator of the Liberal Unity of Santiago de Cuba. Vecino de Paco Cabrera # 6B e/ Edel Mora Y Final, Reparto Timbales, municipio Contramaestre.
7 – Idalmis Núñez Reynosa. Delegate of the FLAMUR and President of the Economic Commission of Concilio Cubano in Santiago de Cuba. Teléfono 674510.
8 – Eunice Madaula Fernández. Executive Director of the CEEDPA "José Ignacio García Hamilton". Teléfono: 653115 y vecina de Pedro Alvarado # 19 entre 8 y 10 Reparto Terrazas.
9 – Francisco Herodes Díaz Echemendía. Political former prisoner. Vecino de Calle E # 74 entre B y D. Reparto Chicharrones, Santiago de Cuba.
10 – Carlos Alberto Reyes Casanova. Municpals of Opposition of Palma Soriano and activist of Political Party of CID. Vecino de Villuendas # 258 entre Avenida de la Libertad y Remus, Palma Soriano.
http://www.miscelaneasdecuba.net/web/article.asp?artID=31464
Generation Y ‘sighted from inside Cuba’
Generation Y 'sighted from inside Cuba'
p2pnet view P2P | Freedom:- A little while back, "What if Generation Y is a government sponsored initiative (that will really have no impact to change things) just so that the government [of Cuba] can give the illusion of freedom of speech to the smarter part of the population … false hope basically?" – asked Another Perspective in a Reader's Write to a p2pnet re-post of Yoani Sánchez (right) then current Generation Y blog
"If the regime was so ruthless why is she still blogging?" – asked the comment.
Here's a new Generation Y post >>>
Seated in the armchair of a hotel with my laptop open, I note the slow blinking of the WiFi transmitter and watch the stern faces of the custodians. This could be one more day trying to enter my own blog with an anonymous proxy, jumping over the censorship with a few tricks that let me look at the forbidden. On the bottom of the screen a banner announces that I'm navigating at 41 kilobytes a second.
Joking with a friend I warn her we'd better hold onto our hair so it won't get messed up from "speeding." But the narrow band doesn't matter much this February afternoon. I'm here to cheer myself up, not to get depressed all over again by the damned situation of an Internet undermined by filters. I have come to see if the long night of censorship no longer hangs over Generation Y. With just a click I manage to enter the site that, since March of 2008, has not been visible from a public place.
I'm so surprised I shout and the camera watching from the ceiling records the fillings in my teeth as I laugh uncontrollably.
After three years, my virtual space is again sighted from inside Cuba.
I don't know the reasons for the end to this blockade, although I can speculate that the celebration of the 2011 Havana International Computer Science Fair has brought many foreign guests and it is better to show them an image of tolerance, of supposed openings in the realm of citizen expression.
It is also possible that after having proved that blocking a website only makes it more attractive to internauts, the cyberpolice have chosen to exhibit the forbidden fruit they so demonized in recent months.
If it's because of a technical glitch that will soon be corrected, once again throwing shadows over my virtual diary, then there will be plenty of time to loudly denounce it. But for the moment, I make plans for the platforms www.vocescubanas.com and www.desdecuba.com to enjoy a long stay with us.
"This is a citizen victory over the demons of control", says Yoanni on Generation Y, adding:
"We have taken back what belongs to us. These virtual places are ours, and they will have to learn to live with what they can no longer deny."
Pitts: Cuba needs to learn how freedom of expression works
Pitts: Cuba needs to learn how freedom of expression worksLeonard Pitts Jr., THE MIAMI HERALDLETTERS TO THE EDITOR »Published: 7:25 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 13, 2010
Dear Cuba:
Maybe you've got a point.
I refer to your outrage over a new video game, the object of which is to assassinate Fidel Castro. In "Call of Duty: Black Ops," the player is transported to Havana during the Cold War with a mission to kill the young communist revolutionary.
As an article on your state-run news website put it, "What the United States couldn't accomplish in more than 50 years, they are now trying to do virtually." It says the game will turn American kids into sociopaths.
That's a dubious claim, at least according to Christopher J. Ferguson, a psychology professor at Texas A&M International University and expert in video-game violence, who was quoted in an Associated Press account. "At this point," he said, "there is no evidence that video games, violent or otherwise, cause harm to minors."
Youth violence in the U.S., said Ferguson, is at its lowest ebb in 40 years, even though research indicates that virtually all young men — up to 95 percent — have at some point played violent video games. So, Cuba, your suggestion that "Call of Duty" will produce kill-crazy psychos seems naive, at best. Hysterical at worst.
All that said, it's not hard to empathize with your feeling of pique. How would we like it if you produced a game where players had to shoot their way through Washington with a goal of killing President Barack Obama? The U.S. government would likely have a thing or two to say about that.
Not to equate our duly elected president with your former dictator for life, but only to say, I understand where you're coming from. Castro is a murderous thug, but he's your murderous thug and it really knots your knickers when people try to video-game assassinate him. Message received. But the question is, what do you think we can do about it?
We have this thing in this country, maybe you've heard about it, called the First Amendment. Among the things it guarantees is freedom of expression. That's a right enjoyed by everybody — even video game makers. Every American is free to say pretty much anything she or he pleases, and the government is legally proscribed from stopping them.
That sounds crazy to you, right? How can the government be proscribed from doing anything it wants?
In your country it's different. Say something the government doesn't like and they whisk you off to the ol' gulag. You throw journalists in jail. You throw dissidents in jail. You throw poets in jail. Don't do the rhyme if you can't do the time, right?
And we're not talking some country club jail with conjugal visits and a TV room, are we? No, we're talking jails with moldy, maggoty food, roaches, rats, reek, rampant physical, mental and sexual abuse, and cells so narrow you barely have room to sit.
Yes, we have some pretty draconian policies in this country, but I'm afraid ours pale next to yours. Heck, we haven't a gulag to our name. And no law to send video game makers there if we did.
But don't despair. Maybe your statement will get people talking about the propriety of assassinating other nation's leaders in video games. Maybe they'll debate whether that's in the best of taste. Of course, maybe Activision Blizzard will tell them to take a flying leap.
That's kind of how freedom of speech works. Everybody gets their say. It's messy and unpredictable. But we like it. We think it works.
Anyway, thanks for listening. And tell Elian we said hi.
Cuban dissident Farinas wins Sakharov rights prize
Cuban dissident Farinas wins Sakharov rights prizeBy Arnaud Bouvier (AFP)
STRASBOURG — The European parliament awarded Thursday its prestigious Sakharov human rights prize to Cuban dissident Guillermo Farinas, as Europe debates whether to normalise ties with the Communist regime.
"Guillermo Farinas is an independent journalist and political dissident who was ready to sacrifice and risk his own health and life as a means of pressure to achieve change in Cuba," said parliament president Jerzy Buzek.
The 48-year-old journalist and psychologist has often used hunger strikes to press for greater freedoms in the island led by the Castro brothers since the 1959 revolution.
"He used hunger strikes to protest and to challenge the lack of freedom of speech in Cuba, carrying the hopes for all of those who care for freedom, human rights and democracy," Buzek said as he announced this year's winner.
Ethiopian opposition leader Birtukan Mideksa and Israeli rights group Breaking the Silence had also been on the shortlist for this year's Sakharov award. The winner is chosen behind closed doors by the heads of the European parliament's political groups.
Farinas is the third Cuban to receive the prize, after Oswaldo Paya in 2002 and the "Ladies in White" group of women whose husbands are jailed in Cuba, which received the award in 2005.
But the Communist government has never allowed the Ladies in White to travel to Strasbourg to pick up their prize at the parliament.
"I sincerely hope that together with Guillermo Farinas another Cuban laureate from 2005, the Ladies in White, will also be able to collect the Sakharov prize in person," Buzek said. The ceremony is scheduled for December 15.
The 22nd Sakharov Prize, named after late Soviet dissident Andrei Sakharov, comes with a cash award of 50,000 euros (70,000 dollars).
The decision to give this year's award to Farinas came four days before European Union foreign ministers meet in Luxembourg to discuss the 27-nation bloc's relations with Cuba.
Spain's Socialist government wants the EU to normalise relations with Cuba, arguing that a shift away from a hardline stance would accelerate change on the island.
The Czech Republic and Slovakia, former communist bloc countries, oppose any change in the EU's current position, diplomats said.
The EU's "common position" at present is to insist that Cuba make progress on human rights and democracy before ties are normalised.
Europeans remain divided on how to proceed with Cuba ahead of Monday's meeting of foreign ministers, diplomats said.
Farinas held a 135-day hunger strike earlier this year that left him near death but compelled the Cuban government to release 52 political prisoners.
Another fast between 1995 and 1997 brought attention to his allegations of corruption at the hospital where he worked.
He also carried out a six-month hunger strike in 2006, but that time he failed to force the government to allow freer access to the Internet.
This is open-minded detente?
Posted on Saturday, 09.18.10This is open-minded detente?BY JOE CARDONAjccigar@aol.com
The Obama administration has embarked on a path of cultural exchanges and lax immigration policies toward Cuba reminiscent of Jimmy Carter's administration and the brief detente that existed with the island's regime.
This year alone, we have seen the likes of artists such as Silvio Rodriguez, Los Van Van, La Orquesta Aragon, Omara Portuondo and Adalberto Alvarez perform in various cities in the United States, including Miami.
The latter was unimaginable during the Indian summer of good relations Cuban and American diplomats enjoyed in the late 1970s under President Carter.
Along with the performers, our city has seen an increase of former Castro security agents, assistants and ex daughters-in-law who have added a circus-like, paparazzi feel to local television talk shows on Spanish language stations that deal with the Cuban polemic on a nightly basis.
For the most part, I support the cultural exchanges if for nothing else than to demonstrate that freedom of speech is alive and well in Miami, where Cuban exile leadership has been so maligned by the media (and sometimes rightfully so) for being narrow-minded and obtuse.
Albeit, the exchange seems to be “one way.'' I have yet to see Albita play the Karl Marx Theater in Havana or Willy Chirino play an open air show in the very spot that Colombian singer Juanes serenaded a million Cubans several months ago.
I have come to believe that human contact goes a very long way in dispelling the wall of mythology and propaganda promulgated on both sides of the Florida Straits.
These cultural exchanges have brought Cubans in Miami closer to the present-day sights and sounds of the island, which undeniably helps bridge the gap that politicians in Miami and dictators in Cuba cannot negotiate.
Given this new era of openness with Cuba, I was surprised when a friend brought her father's hopeless status to my attention.
Timoteo Gonzalez, a 77-year-old native of the Cuban town of Bolondron, would like to come to the United States to live out the rest of his days with his children who are hard-working contributors of our society.
The snag? In 1964, Mr. Gonzalez burned a cane field in protest of and out of frustration with the Cuban regime, which was at the height of one of its most rigid periods of intolerance. For this, he was arrested and tried in Cuba.
He served seven of his 30-year sentence and was eventually released to live the rest of his life as a political leper in a country that does not celebrate divergence.
What is puzzling about Gonzalez' case is that, considering this new immigration philosophy adopted by the administration toward Cuba, it is the American government that is not permitting him entry into this country, likening him to “a terrorist threat.''
I contacted Congresswoman Ileana Ros Lehitnen's office for help on this matter, and she regrettably informed me of the government's posture. “I find the fact that this government can give Mr. Gonzalez such a hard time on his petition to enter the U.S. and has no problem granting declared enemies of this country the right to travel, perform, and in the case of some of the former Castro aides, the right to reside in the U.S. truly hypocritical,'' Ros-Lehtinen commented.
I concur with the congresswoman. The decision is hypocritical indeed, along with shameful and shortsighted.
Unfortunately Gonzalez is the victim of selective historic revision and partisan politics.
The fact that he doesn't play the guitar and rail against the United States every opportunity he gets seems to work against him. So much for open-mindedness and detente.
http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/09/18/1830429/this-is-open-minded-detente.html
Cuban blogger joints the list of World Press Freedom Heroes
Monday, September 6th 2010 – 04:33 UTCCuban blogger joints the list of World Press Freedom Heroes
Cuban blogger Yoani Sanchez said this weekend that she feels "very responsible" following the International Press Institute's decision to choose her as one of its 60 World Press Freedom Heroes.
"The word that sums up how I feel now is responsibility. Very responsible for what this means, being on a list with people who are risking their lives and their reputations as well in many parts of the world," Sanchez, who received a text message telling her the news about the award announced in Vienna on Friday, said.
The blogger, who turned 35 on Saturday, joins the list of 60 journalists awarded prizes since 2000 by the Vienna-based IPI, which has described her as a "harsh critic of the reality in Cuba," while highlighting her work to remind "the world about the Caribbean island's restrictions on free speech."
Sanchez, author of the "Generacion Y" blog since 2007, said the IPI honour included an invitation and "in theory I should be in Vienna on Sept. 13 to take part in the ceremony."
"There's not much time but I'm going to apply to see if I can go," said the blogger, whom the Cuban government on several occasions has denied permission to leave the island when invited to receive prizes and take part in international events.
Yoani Sanchez, who also expressed her gratitude for the prize with an audio message on her Twitter account, won Spain's 2008 Ortega y Gasset Prize for Digital Journalism and in 2009 received an honourable mention for the Maria Moors Cabot Prize from Columbia University in New York.
In its announcement IPI said that Sanchez's blog, Generation Y, "is an acerbic critique of life in Cuba, and a telling reminder to the world of the restraints on free speech and expression on the Caribbean island".
Sanchez, a graduate of Havana University, left Cuba for Switzerland in 2002, but returned two years later. On her return, she set up, along with a group of other Cubans, the magazine "Consenso" as a forum for reflection and debate.
In 2007, spurred by what she saw as a growing repressive climate in her homeland, she launched her blog, Generation Y. Composed of reflections on daily life, politics and culture in Castro's Cuba, the blog today boasts a readership of more than a million.
In early 2008, Sanchez reported that the site may have been targeted by government censors. In April 2008, the site became unavailable in Cuba.
Since then, Sanchez has resorted to extreme and creative measures to keep her blog alive. In a country where internet access is severely restricted and prohibitively expensive, Sanchez often poses as a tourist to access the internet, emailing her entries to friends outside the country who then publish them online.
Sanchez has been refused permission to travel outside of Cuba at least six times in the past two years alone, despite international acclaim for her blog. In 2008, "TIME Magazine" named her one of the world's 100 most influential people, noting her "feisty dedication to the truth," and pointing out that "under the nose of a regime that has never tolerated dissent, Sánchez has practiced what paper-bound journalists in her country cannot: freedom of speech." She has also received the Ortega y Gasset Prize, Spain's highest award for digital journalism; the Maria Moors Cabot Prize from Columbia University; and in 2009, TIME Magazine named her blog among the 25 Best Blogs of 2009.
In her own country, however, Sanchez has repeatedly faced harassment by authorities. In November 2009, the Daily Telegraph reported that she was beaten by a group of unidentified men while on her way to a peaceful protest. According to the article, after the attack, she was dumped "again in the middle of the street, (…) leaving her bruised, scared and sobbing."
Sanchez says she has not been able to see her own blog since 2007. She reports on her blog that she is under continuous surveillance by state security agents. On 24 May, Sanchez's blog reported that her name had been announced on Cuba's state-run Roundtable program, "mixed with concepts such as "cyber-terrorism," "cyber-commandos" and "media war."
"To be mentioned in a negative way in the most official program on television is, for any Cuban, the confirmation of her social death," says Sanchez in her blog.However, Sanchez refuses to be silenced. "If you are insulted by the mediocre, the opportunists, if you are slandered by the employees of the powerful but dying machinery, take it as a compliment," she says on her blog.
http://en.mercopress.com/2010/09/06/cuban-blogger-joints-the-list-of-world-press-freedom-heroes
Cuban Blogger Yoani Sanchez is Named IPI’s 60th and Final World Press Freedom Hero
Thursday, 02 September 2010Cuban Blogger Yoani Sanchez is Named IPI's 60th and Final World Press Freedom HeroBlogger "provides a glimpse into what is otherwise a closed world": IPI Interim Director
Nayana Jayarajan, Press Freedom Adviser
The International Press Institute today declared Cuban blogger Yoani Maria Sanchez Cordero its 60th World Press Freedom Hero.
Sanchez's blog, Generation Y, is an acerbic critique of life in Cuba, and a telling reminder to the world of the restraints on free speech and expression on the Caribbean island.
Sanchez, a graduate of Havana University, left Cuba for Switzerland in 2002, but returned two years later. On her return, she set up, along with a group of other Cubans, the magazine "Consenso" as a forum for reflection and debate.
In 2007, spurred by what she saw as a growing repressive climate in her homeland, she launched her blog, Generation Y. Composed of reflections on daily life, politics and culture in Castro's Cuba, the blog today boasts a readership of more than a million.
In early 2008, Sanchez reported that the site may have been targeted by government censors. In April 2008, the site became unavailable in Cuba.
Since then, Sanchez has resorted to extreme and creative measures to keep her blog alive. In a country where internet access is severely restricted and prohibitively expensive, Sanchez often poses as a tourist to access the internet, emailing her entries to friends outside the country who then publish them online.
Sanchez has been refused permission to travel outside of Cuba at least six times in the past two years alone, despite international acclaim for her blog. In 2008, "TIME Magazine" named her one of the world's 100 most influential people, noting her "feisty dedication to the truth," and pointing out that "under the nose of a regime that has never tolerated dissent, Sánchez has practiced what paper-bound journalists in her country cannot: freedom of speech." She has also received the Ortega y Gasset Prize, Spain's highest award for digital journalism; the Maria Moors Cabot Prize from Columbia University; and in 2009, TIME Magazine named her blog among the 25 Best Blogs of 2009.
In her own country, however, Sanchez has repeatedly faced harassment by authorities. In November 2009, the Daily Telegraph reported that she was beaten by a group of unidentified men while on her way to a peaceful protest. According to the article, after the attack, she was dumped "again in the middle of the street, (…) leaving her bruised, scared and sobbing."
Sanchez says she has not been able to see her own blog since 2007. She reports on her blog that she is under continuous surveillance by state security agents. On 24 May, Sanchez's blog reported that her name had been announced on Cuba's state-run Roundtable program, "mixed with concepts such as "cyber-terrorism," "cyber-commandos" and "media war."
"To be mentioned in a negative way in the most official program on television is, for any Cuban, the confirmation of her social death," says Sanchez in her blog.
However, Sanchez refuses to be silenced. "If you are insulted by the mediocre, the opportunists, if you are slandered by the employees of the powerful but dying machinery, take it as a compliment," she says on her blog.
"Sanchez's tremendously important work provides a glimpse into what is otherwise a closed world," said IPI Interim Director Alison Bethel McKenzie. "It is perhaps fitting that our 60th and final World Press Freedom Hero represents a future where the power of the internet can be harnessed to promote free speech. We are proud to know Yoani and to award this prestigious prize to her."
"Yoani's work has contributed tremendously toward a more wholesome understanding of the reality of life in Cuba. Her clear insights, beautiful use of language and tenacity have distinguished Yoani as an outstanding Caribbean journalist, blogger and citizen. We all look forward to the day conditions in her homeland change so that free expression can be more fully and abundantly facilitated, encouraged and exercised. Our congratulations on her achievement of this prestigious award," said Wesley Gibbings, President of the Association of Caribbean Media Workers, reacting to the announcement of the award.
CUBAN GOVERNMENT DENIES WORKERS THEIR TRADE UNIONS RIGHTS
CUBAN GOVERNMENT DENIES WORKERS THEIR TRADE UNIONS RIGHTS
Despite Increased Repression Independent Unions Continue to Emerge Inside CubaBy Jack Otero
During the Clinton Administration Mr. Otero served as Deputy Undersecretary of Labor for International Affairs, Assistant Secretary of Labor-Designate and was the U.S. Government Representative on the Governing Body of the International Labor Organization (ILO) 1993-1997.
Mr. Otero is a former Vice President of the U.S. National Labor Center AFL-CIO. He was also International Vice President of the National Federation of Railway and Airline Clerks, TCU; Vice President of the National Democratic Party; President of the 1.7 million member Hispanic labor organization, the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement. His international experience includes a combined 27 years of service as Member of the World Executive Board and Regional Director for Latin American Affairs of the International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF).
In recent weeks several new independent unions have emerged, despite increased repression by the Communist dictatorship – carpenters, seamstress, teachers and other groups of workers have taken steps to create new local unions identified with the major independent labor centers, such as CONIC, CTDC, CITC, CUTC. These are acts of courageous defiance since the Castro government explicitly prohibits independent unions and has taken extraordinary repressive measures to quash any such efforts. These developments point to the fact that opposition and resistance to the regime is gaining momentum.
There is mounting evidence that the overwhelming majority of Cuban citizens are crying out for a change in the system that will bring an improvement in their daily lives. It is in fact, an absolute but tired majority. Almost all Cubans are convinced that the status quo is non-reforming and useless. Nobody believes any longer the propaganda and false promises of the regime. Nor do they believe the many plans often unveiled by the government, all of which are never implemented.There is a general lack of everything, most particularly basic necessities such as food– unless you have foreign currency to buy it in special government stores. And most Cubans are desperate for work, and vast amounts of arable land lie fallow. If allowed to plant food and sell it freely, people in the island could once again feed themselves. The regime, however, realizes that this would be a profound capitulation to history. Better to let a nation stay hunger, undernourished and laid waste than to compromise the Communist principle that the state must control everything.Nothing functions well in the island and everybody knows it. Although resistance to the regime is growing every day, the social anonymity and anemic willpower of the people generally are notable. This is still the style of normal life in Cuba. There is prevalent paralysis at all levels of society in the country. Only a few persons and a few groups have remained steady in the pursuit of securing a more promising future for the people. Those individuals and groups of individuals who advocate free and independent labor unions represent one of the prominent forces in the resistance. But they are paying a huge price for their aspirations to a better life.
On January 12th, 2010 the independent trade unionist Osvaldo Alvarez, from Perico, Matanzas province, was ambushed and severely beaten up by state security forces when he was walking to the railroad station to catch a train to travel to Havana.
The attack was conducted in the dead of night. Alvarez who lay wounded and unconscious until taken to the hospital, ended up with two broken ribs, contusions and lacerations but was unable to identify his assailants. Mr. Alvarez is also a reporter for the independent agency Trade Union Press based in Matanzas.
Another independent trade unionist, Isidro Manuel Pérez Cruz, resident of Las Tunas and General Secretary of the independent union "Vicente García" reported that on January 6th he was detained by agents of the State Security police who roughed him up and confiscated his video JVC camera. Next day he was summoned to the police station where he was interrogated, booked and placed under probation under threat of a future court trial. Pérez Cruz who is also a delegate to the independent central labor federation CONIC, reported that he was warned at the police station that he would be summarily arrested and sent to prison if he continued involved in independent labor activities.
On December 28th teacher Rafael Leyva Leyva, member of the Collegiate Independent Teachers of Cuba (CPIC) was also assaulted, beaten up and arrested by a group of members of the so-called Rapid Response Brigades headed by Rubinelsa Santana, along with the DSE official better known as "el polaco." The brutal beating has resulted in a tear of his rectum, causing him frequent hemorrhaging and the loss of sight from one of his eyes.
Under the Castro-Communist regime only one union is allowed to operate – the CTC – Confederation of Cuban Workers – which is an instrument of the dictatorship to control and subjugate workers. The CTC leadership is appointed by the government and they all must be members of the Communist Central Committee. The Cuban government thumbs its nose at international opinion and to the ILO, which has insisted that Cuba respect and apply the various ILO Conventions and Recommendations adopted and ratified by previous Cuban governments. Castro contents the government is undertaking a complete review of its Labor Code, except that it has been doing such review for the past 12 years. The Castro regime contends that workers' freedom of association rights protected by ILO Convention 87 was imposed by the imperialist power of capitalism and does not apply in Cuba.
The Cuban government controls the market of labor and sets wages and working conditions within the state sector, but such starvation wages have only resulted in abject poverty for state Cuban workers and the populace in general. The government also controls employment in the private sector. No foreign corporation in Cuba can directly employ Cuban workers – it must do so through employment agencies set up by the government for such purposes. But only those workers whom the Communist Party trusts are allowed to be hired by foreign corporations.And, shamefully, the Cuban government retains between 95% and 98% of what it receives in hard currency from the corporations for contracting out this labor force.
This dictatorial repression does not permit labor strikes or any other form of workers' peaceful protests. Any independent labor activity is nearly impossible and extremely risky, as the government does not hesitate to employ tactics of harassment, intimidation, arrests and long term prison terms against those who dare defy the ban on the creation of independent unions. There are several trade union prisoners still languishing in jail, some of them still service 25-year terms imposed on them during the massive trade union reprisals and arrests of 2003.
But those who ardently spouse the cause of free and democratic trade unionism in Cuba have not given up the fight, risking their freedom, their lives and the security of their own families. Despite the repression, there are several labor organizations in Cuba – conducting underground activities and with representation throughout the island. Existing labor groups such as CONIC, CUTC, CTDC, CITC, among others, advocate the principles of free trade unionism but are unable or capable of representing effectively the interests of the workers, as they are not recognized as legitimate entities by the government. Therefore, they lack the basic rights to form unions of their own choosing, rights to collective bargaining, right to strike or have freedom of speech. In addition, the government forbids peaceful marches or their demonstrations to display publicly their labor demands.
The independent unions in existence were established by dissidents who oppose the Castro dictatorship, though they are often the victims of brutal repressions, physical attacks, banning of their children from school, banning of their relatives for any employment – either with the state or the private sector. And in many cases such independent leaders are arrested, brutally beaten and sentenced to long prison terms. There have been a few who had been lucky to get out of jail and/or leave the country for exile. But, not everyone is that fortunate.
There are several independent trade unionists languishing in prison. In 2004 nine members of the CUTC were condemned to long prison terms, many of them as long as 25-year sentences. Among them was Pedro Pablo Alvarez Ramos, General Secretary of CUTC who was freed after serving nearly five years in prison but forced into exile in Spain. Two others were also freed due to their dismal medical conditions, including Carmelo Diaz who has stubbornly remained in the island leading the CITC. Several others convicted in 2004 are still behind bars. See the CFTU webpage for more information on the trade union prisoners visit our website: www.freetradeunionism.org
The single union concept remains the angular stone of the Castro regime's labor policy. I do not foresee any significant changes in the near future that will permit Cuban workers to secure freedom of association and collective bargaining rights, so long as this Communist regime remains in power. We at the CFTU are determined to continue pressuring the ILO and the international community to take action to force the Cuban government to respect and apply the human and trade union rights conventions adopted by the ILO and ratified by the Cuban government.
But it is also our objective to hold responsible those foreign corporations and governments that have lent a blind eye and a deaf ear to the brutal repression of freedom and enslavement of the Cuban people by the Castro regime. Those foreign corporations and governments are in open complicity with the slave labor practices, imprisonment, torture and other human indignities levied by the Castro regime upon the Cuban people and Cuban workers for the past 50 years. When the time comes those corporations and governments that are now profiting at the expense, suffering and pain of the Cuban people will pay the price for their dastardly conspiracy with the Castro regime. They will not be exempt of punishment for the exploitation and abuses inflicted upon the Cuban people. For sure, they will have their comeuppance for their greedy and inhumane sins.
3.22.2010
Cuba’s freed dissidents vow to fight on
16 July 2010 Last updated at 12:19 GMTCuba's freed dissidents vow to fight onBy Sarah Rainsford BBC News, Madrid
They began by making the "L" sign for liberty and the "V" sign for victory with their fingers.
The six independent journalists from Cuba gathered at a news conference in Madrid were among the first to arrive in Spain this week after being freed by the Havana authorities.
In total, the Cuban government has agreed to release 52 dissidents from prison, in a deal brokered by the Roman Catholic Church.
Cuba might have hoped its move would improve its image abroad after the international outrage when political activist Orlando Zapata died on hunger strike in February.
But here in Spain, the former prisoners have been giving disturbing details of their years behind bars.
"I spent 18 months in solitary confinement," Lester Gonzalez told the BBC, showing a court paper which detailed his 20-year prison sentence.
"[I was] in the dark, with my hands tied; with rats and cockroaches and excrement everywhere. That was all I could smell."
The men were among 75 arrested in a 2003 round-up of Cuban dissidents, known as the Black Spring.
Now in Spain, which offered to receive them after their release, they've described crowded and filthy prison cells where they were denied drinking water for days; often, the only food was "giraffe soup" – so watery, the prisoner stretched his neck searching for some kind of nutritional content.
"I went into prison weighing 86kg, now I'm 48kg," said Jose Luis Garcia Paneque, one of several men now suffering serious medical complaints.
"That's the effect of my prison time: chronic illness for rest of my life," explained Mr Garcia Paneque, now a shrunken figure with hollow cheeks.
Cuba has always denied that it has political prisoners, describing them as criminals paid by the US to destabilise the country.
The men, who were held with ordinary Cuban criminals, recounted how prisoners routinely inflicted serious injuries upon themselves to get even basic medical attention from prison staff.
In one case, they said a man jabbed needles in his eyes but was left unattended for two days.Confinement
News that Church officials had secured dozens of political prisoners' release came on 7 July.Cuban dissidents Normando Hernandez, right and Omar Rodriguez hug on arrival at a hostel in Madrid, on 14 July 2010 It has been an emotional few days for the freed dissidents
The first men chosen were instructed to make a list of family members. Days later, they were whisked from their cells straight on to a plane and into exile.
The men were issued new Cuban passports at the airport; here in Spain, they have been given residency, with the right to live and work where they choose. But to the formers prisoners it still feels like a form of confinement.
"The Cuban government has been categorical: we have to get permission to return to the place we were born in," said Julio Cesar Galvez, who describes his arrival in Spain as deportation.
"We are not free. We are not immigrants here. Quite simply, we are refugees."
Cuban Church officials say 20 prisoners have agreed to come to Spain. As their criminal convictions have not been overturned, they say exile was the only option.
"If I leave prison, but I can't work to support my family, that's not freedom," explained Mr Galvez, who was sentenced to 15 years for his work as an independent journalist.
"If I'm still harassed, if they follow us, listen to our phone calls and want to know where we're going and what we're doing – we're not free," he said.
'Smoke-screen'
Spain hailed the decision to release the men as the start of a new era in Cuba.
Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos, who was in Cuba at the time, called on the EU to soften its stance and "normalise" relations with Cuba in response.
He made the same appeal when Spain held the EU presidency in the first half of 2010, but Orlando Zapata's death was a powerful counter-argument.
Now, the former prisoners say it would be "unacceptable" to see their release as proof that the Cuban government's approach to human rights has improved.
"Real improvement would mean new laws, no more repression or arrests of human rights activists," one said, adding that included his own right to return home without fear of prison again.
Another mentioned freedom of speech, and a third called the government's move a "smoke-screen" ahead of an EU review of its common position on Cuba this autumn.
That will make uncomfortable listening for the Spanish government.
The Spanish Red Cross and refugee agency (CEAR) are helping the men with accommodation, legal aid and finding work.
They will move to refugee centres outside Madrid soon, where they can start planning for the future.
For some, there has already been an emotional reunion with relatives. One man had not seen his mother in seven years; all say their imprisonment was as harsh a punishment for their families, as for them.
So as they adjust to life outside prison – and together again – the men have vowed to go on fighting for the freedom of all political prisoners in Cuba, from here in exile.
Cuban dissident: “Raul Castro can become the man who changes Cuba”
Cuban dissident: "Raul Castro can become the man who changes Cuba"15/07 07:17 CET
Among the first to have arrived in Spain with their families is the Cuban dissident journalist Pablo Pacheco. He was one of those jailed for 20 years in the 2003 crackdown.
Always maintaining his right to freedom of speech, the Castro regime eventually accused him of working for the US.
Pablo Pacheco has been talking to euronews:
"The proof of my guilt according to the Cuban Government was me owning a 1950s typewriter, a tape recorder, pens, denunciations, a fax, white sheets of paper, books – the majority of them about journalism – a short-wave radio. And all this I had and they thought there's the proof," he said.
Enrique Barrueco, euronews : "Do you give any particular importance to the change in presidency from Fidel to Raul Castro?"
"I think yes, if Fidel Castro had been in power at this moment, this interview would not have been possible," said Pacheco.
He continued: "I think Raul can become the man who changes things in Cuba, and takes steps to come out from under his brother's influence, because I think Raul has been living his entire life in Fidel Castro's shadow."
Brief biographies on 7 Cubans released to Spain
Posted on Tuesday, 07.13.10Brief biographies on 7 Cubans released to SpainThe Associated Press
A brief biography on the seven Cuban political prisoners released and then sent to Spain:
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LESTER GONZALEZ – Independent journalist from Santa Clara, youngest of the 75 opposition members arrested in Cuba in March 2003. Member of Reason, Truth and Freedom Human Rights Movement. Sentenced to 20 years in prison. He reportedly has a number of health problems, including a hernia operation he underwent in 2008 and anxiety from being separated from his daughter.
Source: English Pen and Amnesty International.
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OMAR RUIZ – Independent journalist from Santa Clara working for a group not recognized by Cuba's government. Over 60 years old. Sentenced to 18 years in prison. Reportedly has prostate problem and high blood pressure. Opposition websites say he is son of evangelical pastor.
Source: Amnesty International.
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ANTONIO VILLARREAL – Signature collector from Santa Clara for the Varela Project democracy drive. Sentenced to 15 years in prison. He reportedly started a hunger strike along with five other inmates at Boniato prison. The Varela Project collected thousands of signatures from Cuban voters seeking a referendum on civil rights such as freedom of speech, assembly, press and business ownership. The signatures were delivered to Cuba's parliament, which shelved the proposal.
Source: Amnesty International.
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JULIO CESAR GALVEZ RODRIGUEZ – Journalist from Havana. Sentenced to 15 years in prison. He was allegedly fired in 2001 from two official radio stations for collaborating with Cuba Free Press.
Source: Amnesty International.
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JOSE LUIS GARCIA PANEQUE – Plastic surgeon from Las Tunas who received a 24-year sentence. He was a member of the unofficial Cuban Independent Medical Association. He was also involved in independent journalism.
Source: Amnesty International.
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PABLO PACHECO AVILA – Independent journalist from Ciego de Avila, sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Source: Amnesty International.
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RICARDO GONZALEZ ALFONSO – Independent journalist from Havana who did work for Reporters Without Borders. Sentenced to 20 years in prison. Maintained a private library at his home. Family members concerned about his health.
Source: Amnesty International.
http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/07/13/1728104/brief-biographies-on-7-cubans.html
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