Cuban Colada

Morning Roundup: Fights, Firings, Free Elections

 

Cuba travel activists—for and against—duked it out on Saturday in Mario Díaz-Balart’s office, police records show. El Nuevo Herald reports that Joel Rodríguez Riverón, a protester supporting Díaz-Balart’s attempt to restrict Cuba travel, was the only one hit in the scuffle. He filed a police complaint on Monday, after refusing to do so on Saturday. A local blogger put up photos that he says are from the incident, fondly referring to Rodríguez as “Rocky.”

Ten Havana bureaucrats have been axed for “inefficiency,” according to CubaEncuentro. A Granma report on the Havana Communist Party Assembly—where the decision was made—chastised the group for “superficiality in their approach, lack of control of resources and energy to mobilize workers.” CubaEncuentro characterizes the firings as part of the effort to revamp Cuba’s lethargic state apparatus. At the assembly, Vice President José Ramon Machado Ventura called on delegates to “promote discipline and order” with “all our strength and will.”

A bunch of Cuban dissidents have signed “El camino del pueblo,” an outline of their vision for a post-Castro Cuba. Their demands: increased civil liberties, freedom of travel, the creation of a “national dialogue,” free elections to a constituent assembly, and citizen participation “without exclusion, hatred, or vengeance.” The document is signed by many big-name dissidents like Oswaldo Payá and Laura Pollán. It’s a significant show of unity for the often-fragmented group. Diario de Cuba has the rundown.

In Other News

• European Union legislators have written Barack Obama, asking him to pardon the Cuban Five (Diario de Cuba, Juventud Rebelde)
• Self-employed Cubans—both farmers and urban workers—are taking home the biggest salaries, according to the National Statistics Office. Campesinos and urban cuentapropistas have monthly incomes well above the national average, but it’s not clear whether the numbers account for the costs of running one’s own business (El Nuevo Herald)
• Reina Luisa Tamayo testified Tuesday before U.S. Congress and, in a move Cubans on the island may not appreciate, calling for the tightening of the U.S. embargo on Cuba (El Nuevo Herald)
• Ricardo Alarcon, president of Cuba’s National Assembly, reiterated Cuba’s support for Puerto Rican independence on Monday (Cuba Headlines)
• University of Alabama students talk about studying abroad in Havana (The Crimson White)
• Parents of a deceased Cuban student are looking to the United States for political asylum (Diario de Cuba)

In Cuban State Media

• About 60 percent of the graduates of the Universidad Central de Las Villas are women (Juventud Rebelde) 
• “Adiós al silencio”—over 200 Cubans have received cochlear implants. I had to look up what that is (Juventud Rebelde)
• The Communist Party is done with its provincial assemblies (Granma)

In the Blogosphere

• A detailed analysis of the purported “thousands” of deaths blamed on the Cuban Revolutionary government (La Joven Cuba)
• Noam Chomsky may not have intended it, but Dariela Aquique argues that his theories are relevant to Cuban society (Havana Times)
• Things are pretty rough in Honduras. Imagine what they would say if journalists were getting murdered in Cuba (Cambios en Cuba)
• Havana airport security is a gauntlet, at least for Cuban-Americans (WBEZ)

-Compiled by Chris Lewis

Morning Roundup: Sun, Sand, and HIV Screening

It’s a slow news day, folks. Here’s what we’ve got for you:

Cuban health authorities are running a summer anti-AIDS campaign, Diario de Cuba reports. The Center for Prevention and Control of Sexually Transmitted Infections will be offering on-site tests at Cuban beaches and other recreation areas. The program will put an emphasis on Havana, home to 53 percent of Cubans with HIV; there are 11,200 people on the island with the virus, which has progressed to AIDS for about 4,000.

The Che Guevara memorial museum has picked up some new donations, according to El Nuevo Herald. Among the highlights: spurs Guevara wore in the Battle of Santa Clara in 1958, and a microscope that he used as a medical student in Argentina. The donations come from other Cuban museums, as well as the wife of a fellow guerrilla who fought with Che in Bolivia.

Cuba’s baseball team clobbered the Beijing Tigers in the Challenge Cup, winning 10-0, writes CubaEncuentro. It’s the team’s third win, maintaining a perfect record after beating Taipei and Japan. Cuba faces tournament host Canada today. Meanwhile, visa issues may prevent Cuba from participating in a regional athletics competition held in Puerto Rico.

In Other News

• A doozy of a profile on Carlos Varela (CubaEncuentro)
• A Cuban dissident in Spain is threatening a hunger strike to protest his treatment (El Nuevo Herald)
• Cuban performers will be attending the Latino Cultural Festival in New York later this month (CubaEncuentro)
• Anthony Bourdain talks about his visit to Havana for his show “No Reservations,” which aired last night. His verdict: “It’s just so damn beautiful” (MSNBC)
• If you’re in Washington, D.C., the Institute for Policy Studies is screening some Cuba documentaries on the 26^th of July (CubaNews)
• Cuban guitarist Manuel Galbán has died (New York Times)

In Cuban State Media

• Mark your calendar: the Cuban National Assembly will be meeting on August 1^st (Granma)
• María Elena Álvarez Ponce has some thoughts on how to fight population decline (Granma)
• The First International Workshop on Deaf-Blindness is meeting in Havana. There are 150 people with the disability in Cuba (Juventud Rebelde)
• “One Hour in Artemisa,” a photo essay (Cubadebate)

In the Blogosphere

• World Learning, a USAID grantee, is hiring someone to carry out their Cuba program as a permanent resident. Um, is that really a good idea? (The Cuban Triangle)
• You should support the Federation of University Students, and not just at concerts (La Joven Cuba)
• Wendy, a transgender activist working at CENESEX, wasn’t fired, as a Miami Herald title originally said. Rather, she resigned (CubaNews)
• Yusimi Rodriguez asks: is there a tangible characteristic that makes some leaders likely to become dictators? (Havana Times)

-Compiled by Chris Lewis

 

Morning Roundup: Communist Party to Consider Allowing Civil Unions

Is marriage equality on the docket for Cuba’s Communists? That’s the word according to Mariela Castro of Cuba’s National Center for Sexual Education. In an interview with a Spanish radio station, Castro said that the Cuban Communist Party intends to discuss the issue next January at their Party Conference, a follow-up to April’s Party Congress. The strongest opposition to gay marriage is coming from the Cuban Catholic Church; to placate them, Castro said the term “marriage” likely wouldn’t be used to describe gay unions, but rather some variant like “legal union.” Diario de Cuba has the write-up.

Loans have been given out to 13,000 Cuban farmers, according to banker Ileana Estévez. A growing program is giving out loans to farmers working in usufruct on state land, CubaEncuentro reports. Estévez, speaking with Cuban paper Juventud Rebelde, didn’t give a specific number but said the loans totaled millions of pesos, with interest rates starting between three and seven percent. For non-Spanish-speaking readers, the Washington Post has a shorter Associated Press piece on the subject.

Also from CubaEncuentro: EFE writes that Cubans have their doubts about the coming legalization of home sales. The article describes how Cubans have bent the housing rules in the past in order to make transactions. Many expect to do the same even after the law is changed. The new law will only allow permanent residents of Cuba to buy and sell homes, but: “There are Cubans abroad who are awaiting the law to find a home in Cuba,” one Cuban told EFE. “No matter that it’s prohibited, they will find a way of getting things done.”

Other News

• It’s true: Esteban Morales has been reinstated by the Communist Party (CBS)
• A caravan of 120 vehicles arrived at the Florida office of Mario Díaz-Balart to protest his plan to restrict Cuba travel (CubaEncuentro)
• Newly-legal American travelers to Cuba share their stories (New York Times)
• Cuba’s baseball team edged out Japan in the Challenge Cup Friday (CubaEncuentro)
• Here’s a trailer for upcoming Cuban zombie flick “Juan of the Dead” (Worst Previews)

In Cuban State Media

• Juventud Rebelde’s column “Acuse de Recibo” has some choice words for state enterprises that don’t respond to public complaints, calling them “autocratic” and “verticalista” (El Nuevo Herald)
• A television tower, destroyed by Hurricane Dennis in 2005, is being repaired in Granma province (Granma)
• Cuba is still shaken by the murder on Saturday of Argentine singer Facundo Cabral; one Cubadebate piece reports that Cabral may have been mistakenly killed by Mexican cartels. Another re-posts the tribute paid by Silvio Rodríguez
• The provincial Party assemblies continue, most recently in Mayabeque (Granma)

In the Blogosphere

• Ines María Martiatu Terry gives a rundown—a mini literature review of sorts—of black female Cuban literature (Negra Cubana Tenía Que Ser)
• The Center for Democracy in the Americas denounces Congressman Díaz-Balart’s travel restrictions as outdated and hurtful (Cuba Central)
• The prospect of good jobs and better social services make Havana an alluring emigration destination for some Cubans (Havana Times) 
• Haroldo Dilla proposes to fight population decline through immigration policy (CubaEncuentro)
• Authorities have confiscated an illegally-rented property in Las Tunas (Laritza’s Laws)
• The United States shouldn’t encourage medical professionals to defect, if it knows they won’t be able to practice in the U.S. (Cambios en Cuba)

-Compiled by Chris Lewis

 

Morning Roundup: (Cuban) Tourists in Cuba

Cuban cell phone use has skyrocketed, Reuters reports. There were 330,000 mobile phones on the island in 2008, when their use was first legalized by Raúl Castro. Now the figure has hit one million. Marc Frank writes: “Cuba has a similar number of fixed telephone lines. In a country of 11.2 million inhabitants, the country has a total telephone density of just under 20 percent, the lowest in Latin America, according to the United Nations International Telecommunications Union.” Internet use has also increased, though less dramatically.

Alan Gross is on his last stand, at least legally. The imprisoned American contactor has an appeal in Cuban court set for July 22^nd. “The appeal is Gross' final legal recourse, and after that it would be left to the Cuban government to consider whether to free him for humanitarian or political reasons,” according to the Associated Press. Gross’ daughter and mother both have cancer. Working through USAID to distribute communications equipment in Cuba, Gross was convicted of foreign-financed subversion; he claimed to be working with the Cuban Jewish community, but Jewish leaders denied meeting with him. Cubadebate also has a short piece on the appeal.

Canadians are the single largest bloc of tourists in Cuba, with almost a million visitors in 2010. The second largest? Well, Cubans. If you combine Cubans living abroad with domestic Cuban tourists, then Cubans are the next most frequent patrons of the island’s tourist industry. Economist Ariel Terrero so explained on Cuban TV, according to AFP via Cambios en Cuba. Of course, the typical tourist package—which AFP values at 35 dollars a day—is prohibitively expensive for most Cubans. IPS has a nice write-up of the “popular camping programs” available to Cubans with less cash on their hands. Over 700,000 participated last year.

Other News

• Pablo Milanés is ready to play for the first time in Miami, he says in an interview with Spanish paper Público (CubaEncuentro)
• Reina Luisa Tamayo will testify next week before Congress (El Nuevo Herald)
• Cuban dissidents in Spain are getting more attention, and potentially, political asylum status (El Nuevo Herald)
• The Economist is the latest publication to speculate what would happen “If Hugo Goes.” Their conclusion: “things would not be quite as bad as in 1991” (The Economist)
• Some sources say Chávez has colon cancer (Wall Street Journal)

In Cuban State Media

• Granma slams bureaucrats for interfering with the public’s right-to-know (CubaEncuentro)
• The Pastors for Peace caravan bringing humanitarian aid to Cuba was detained by customs officials when crossing from Canada into the United States (Escambray. Also: Workers World pays tribute to late PFP head Reverend Lucius Walker)
• At one Havana factory, economic reform plans seem to be having some success (Granma)
• Vice-president Esteban Lazo is in Ethiopia, and will travel to Southern Sudan on Saturday to celebrate the new country’s independence (Granma)
• The Literacy Museum in Havana has over 100,000 documents from the 1961 Great Campaign against illiteracy (Juventud Rebelde)

In the Blogosphere

• Fernando Ravsberg got his hands on the agreement signed by Cuban high schoolers studying to become teachers. The expectations on the teens are really high, he says (Cartas desde Cuba)
• Two brothers—and political prisoners—are hunger striking to be transferred to the same jail (Uncommon Sense)
• Dmitri Prieto discusses colonialism and “transdomination”—“the emergence of a new dominating system after a revolutionary triumph” (Havana Times)

-Compiled by Chris Lewis

 

Morning Roundup: Renewed Risk of Dengue in Cuba

Aedes aegypti mosquitoes have returned to eastern Cuba, and with them, the risk of contracting dengue. A Cubadebate piece blames the comeback on heat, heavy rains, and “above all human negligence.” Maritza Rodríguez, head of Cuba’s Aedes aegypti program said inspectors have found the mosquito in 271 homes in Guantánamo province. Families and sanitation workers need to do a better job applying the treatment for the pest, Rodríguez said. The mosquitoes seemed to be eradicated in 2009, but showed signs of reappearance shortly after.

The Committee to Protect Journalists is not happy with Cuba, reports the Latin American Herald Tribune. The watchdog group claims that the government has launched a new wave of repression against dissidents, some of whom consider themselves to be independent journalists. Cuba “persists in aggressively persecuting critical journalists with methods that include arbitrary arrests, short-term detentions, beatings, smear campaigns, surveillance, and social sanctions,” according to the report.

For Madrid and Washington, Cuba isn’t what it used to be. So says Juan Antonio Yáñez-Barnuevo, the Spanish government’s secretary for Ibero-American affairs. On Thursday, he told students at a Spanish university that the island has “increasingly less influence” on Spain’s relationship with the U.S., and said that the two governments are working together, even if their policies towards Cuba may differ. Yáñez-Barnuevo also called for the U.S. to lift its embargo on Cuba. See Diario de Cuba for more.

Other News

• Cuba will be paying big bucks to cope with climate change, according to experts at the University of Southerton (CubaEncuentro)
• A Singapore-based company will administer the revamped Port of Mariel when it opens in 2014 (CubaEncuentro)
• Anti-Castro lobbies gave candidates over $3 million during the 2010 election cycle, mostly to Democrats. Robert Menendez of New Jersey was one of four candidates who received over $100,000 (Open Secrets)
• Dissident Oscar Elías Biscet now has to report to the police once a month (El Nuevo Herald)
• Some dissidents want Cuban-Americans to resist efforts in Congress to scale back Cuba travel (El Nuevo Herald)
• Another piece on the small business boom, this time from NPR (WBUR)

In Cuban State Media

• 115 Haitians have graduated from the Caribbean Medical School, located in Santiago de Cuba. The school has turned out 731 Haitian doctors since 1999 (Granma)
• Meanwhile, the Latin American School of Medicine is turning out members of a new profession: the social justice doctor (Cubadebate)
• Top Cyprus communist Andros Kyprianou is visiting Cuba (Granma)
• Cuba’s Pionero execs are working to better the teaching of local history, political ideology, and the case of the Cuban Five in the island’s elementary schools (Juventud Rebelde)

In the Blogosphere

• Elías Amor laments an absence of statistical information accompanying Cuba’s economic reforms (Diario de Cuba)
• A bunch of dissidents apparently celebrated the Fourth of July at the house of Interests Section chief Jonathan Farrar; the foreign journalists in attendance haven’t reported on it (Cambios en Cuba)
• CNN en Español has hired anti-Castro luminaries Carlos Alberto Montaner and Jorge Castañeda as talking heads (Kaos en la Red)
• Oft-censored singer Pedro Luis Ferrer played on Sunday in Havana’s Mella Theater. “It’s very nice to sing these songs without censorship, without having to discuss them with any official,” he told the audience (Havana Times)

-Compiled by Chris Lewis

 

Morning Roundup: Obama, DNC Chair Differ on Cuba

More Brits coming to Cuba? Maybe—yesterday Cuba and the United Kingdom signed an agreement to increase commercial ties, particularly in tourism. The accord is designed to reward the Cuban Communist Party’s recently initiated economic reform process. El Nuevo Herald notes that the UK has traditionally been a stickler on Cuba, often resisting European Union efforts to improve relations. The new cooperation comes from within the framework of the EU “Common Position,” according to Ambassador Dianne Melrose. The agreement also covers politics, science, and culture.

The Hill, an inside-the-Beltway political pub, has an interesting Cuba piece today. The situation: President Barack Obama has made some overtures towards the Castro government, but Democratic National Committee Debbie Wasserman Schultz is a staunch anti-Castro Floridian. In the words of article author Mike Lillis: “the chairwoman of the organization intent on reelecting the president disagrees with Obama on a foreign policy issue that is electorally sensitive in a swing state.” Some politicos argue that Wasserman Schultz will avoid associating herself too closely with Obama in Florida, for fear that it could hurt her image in the Cuban-American community. It’s a worthy read. I wonder, though, if the piece slightly exaggerates the differences between the president and his new DNC chair (whom he appointed). After all, Obama has maintained both the U.S. embargo and regime change efforts, limiting the differences to smaller issues like travel and remittance policies.

Cuban prosecutors are looking to levy a hefty sentence on another foreign empresario accused of corruption, according to the Associated Press. Expect a verdict soon in the trial of Jean-Louis Autret, a French businessman charged with laundering drug money. Cuba is hoping to sentence him to 15 years, and slap eight Cubans with lesser sentences—from three to seven years—for bribery and falsification of documents. Another take in Cubadebate.

Other News

• Aggression against dissidents is up from last year (Miami Herald)
• Espacio Laical, journal of the Cuban Catholic Church, is an increasingly popular publishing option for Cuban scholars, according to Nick Miroff (Global Post)
• At Cuba’s climate conference, experts argue that drought has intensified over the past five decades (Diario de Cuba)
• Cuba is planning a major investment in its citrus industry, to the tune of $200 million (Bernama)
• Here’s an English translation of Russia Today’s extended interview with Mariela Castro (CubaNews)

In Cuban State Media

• Coverage and video of Venezuela’s bicentennial. Dignitaries came from far and wide, including presidents Evo Morales of Bolivia, Fernando Lugo of Paraguay, and José Mujica of Uruguay (Juventud Rebelde)
• The “Fiesta del Fuego” is underway in Santiago de Cuba, honoring Caribbean culture and, this year, the nation of Trinidad and Tobago (Granma)
• It must be nature day over at Cubadebate. Zookeepers in Ciego de Avila have bred a “cebrasno”—a cross between zebra and donkey. And check out this self-portrait taken by a monkey! Too cool.

In the Blogosphere

• This is not 1989; Cuba can survive without Chávez (The Guardian) (The opposite take as the one taken in this Herald piece last week: Cuba would hurt
• Similarly, the Cuban economy isn’t dependent on U.S. remittances, argues “Eduardo” (La Joven Cuba)
• News from 1961 apparently still serves, for Cuba (Penúltimos Días)
• For Daisy Valera, rage over wimpy salaries and steep sick day penalties (Havana Times)

-Compiled by Chris Lewis

 

 

The Long-awaited Return of … the Morning Roundup

Greetings, Colada readers. We triumphantly return to bringing you Cuba news after an extended absence:

Cuban music legend Pablo Milanés has made some outspoken comments to Spanish radio, including a bit of rhetorical support for dissident blogger Yoani Sánchez. According to CubaEncuentro, he said that “Much remains to be remade in Cuba. In reality, a lot of opportunities have been lost. Historically a lot of mistakes have been made, and I think they have to be rectified once and for all.” Milanés went on to agree with Sánchez’s claim that recent reforms in Cuba aren’t due to the will of political leaders, but rather the boldness of Cubans demanding change.

Bolivia wants to amp up its military ties with Cuba, says Admiral Armando Pacheco. The chief of the Bolivian armed forces is visiting Havana, where he said that “Bolivia and Cuba, united by a long history, should have a more sustained exchange between their armed forces,” El Nuevo Herald reports. Pacheco will be meeting with Cuban military officials, and checking out various military projects.

Yesterday, Hugo Chávez made a surprise return to Venezuela for the nation’s bicentennial independence celebration. Chávez, of course, had been in Cuba for several weeks, and recently admitted that he had been treated for cancer. Speaking from the Venezuelan presidential palace, he proclaimed: "We will win this battle for life, for the fatherland and for the revolution.” You can find a write-up in The Guardian, and Granma also has detailed coverage. See here for detailed coverage from the Herald's Frances Robles, and here for her look at why Chavez doesn't get cancer treatment at home.

Other News

• Economic minister Marino Murillo Jorge is Cuba’s most prominent young politician (Associated Press via Washington Post)
• Fidel Castro was too busy with Chávez to see George McGovern during the former senator’s visit to Cuba (CubaEncuentro)
• Two Cuban-American tourists were robbed and killed Sunday night in the Dominican Republic (CubaEncuentro)
• The U.S. Coast Guard sent home 15 Cubans, along with 82 Haitians, on Monday. This year, 541 Cubans and 856 Haitians have been caught at sea and returned home (South Florida Sun-Sentinel)

In Cuban State Media

• A conference on biodiversity is underway in Havana, with over 900 participants from Cuba and others from 35 countries (Juventud Rebelde)
• Charanga Habanera has a new album out (Juventud Rebelde)
• Worldwide, 67 million children don’t have access to education, according to a United Nations report (Granma)

In the Blogosphere

• Corruption critic and committed revolutionary Esteban Morales appears to have had his Communist Party membership reinstated. I can’t find any other confirmation of this. Anyone have any info? (Negra Cubana Tenía que Ser)
• Internet use is up in Cuba (Kaos en la Red)
• Tracey Eaton interviews Cuban journalist Reinaldo Taladrid (Along the Malecón)
• Is Reuters using appropriate disclosure in its Cuba articles? (Capitol Hill Cubans)
• Babalú Blog is apparently calling Hugo Chávez the “Monkey of the Andes.” Does that strike anyone as inappropriate? (Babalú Blog)
• Cuba’s gamer community is becoming more organized (IPS via Havana Times)

-Compiled by Chris Lewis