Global Voices » Cuba

Cuba: Fifth Cuban Congress against Homophobia

Firuzeh Shokooh Valle — Mon, 21 May 2012 16:28:10 +0000

Blogger, journalist and LGBT activist Francisco Rodríguez Cruz (Paquito el de Cuba) discusses Mariela Castro Espín's [es] message on occasion of the 5th Cuban Congress against Homophobia recently celebrated on the Island. Castro Espín is the daughter of President Raúl Castro and head of the state-run agency on sex education.

Cuba: Questioning Digital Expression within the Revolution

Ellery Roberts Biddle — Fri, 18 May 2012 14:57:56 +0000

The recent Encuentro de Blogueros Cubanos en Revolución [Meeting of Cuban Bloggers in Revolution] [es] brought together a group of “official” bloggers—chiefly journalists and communications professionals who are employed by the state and maintain their blogs as part of their work. These bloggers acknowledge explicitly that they write “within,” or in support of, the Cuban revolution. In contrast, many better-known Cuban bloggers, such as Yoani Sánchez and Laritza Diversent, make no such claim, calling for free speech and broader Internet access but seeking to avoid being categorized as dissidents or counterrevolutionaries.

At the conclusion of the event, the group of bloggers drafted a set of principles [es] outlining their goals and commitments as Cuban bloggers. The third principle read:

Respetamos y promovemos el pensamiento crítico, necesario y útil para preservar nuestra condición de revolucionarios, con la premisa de que no es posible ser revolucionario fuera de la Revolución.

We respect and promote critical thinking, which is necessary and useful in preserving our revolutionary condition, based on the premise that it is not possible to be revolutionary outside of the Revolution. Here is a video from the Encuentro:

While the principles acknowledged a need to increase ICT access on the island, they chiefly emphasized the role of bloggers in supporting the Cuban revolutionary project: they pledged to improve collaboration among bloggers “in Revolution” and to blog in the spirit of Cuban leaders of the past, such as Che Guevara. Invoking Fidel Castro’s famous 1961 address “Words to the Intellectuals,” they asserted that innovative or critical thinking should not exist “outside” of the revolution. In other words, any critique that is not formed with the goal of strengthening the revolution falls on the outside and thus necessarily becomes “counterrevolutionary.”

This prompted Cuban blogger Yasmín Silvia Portales [es], who was not formally invited to the event, to ask:

¿y quién hace el examen de «revolucionario» para poder acceder a internet desde Cuba?

And who conducts the “revolutionary” exam in order to access the Internet in Cuba?

Since the meeting, bitter controversy has unfolded around this new iteration of a decades-old question: does the expression of criticism automatically put one “outside” the revolution, especially when the criticism is happening online?

Global Voices author and blogger Elaine Díaz [es], also a communications professor at the University of Havana, criticized the meeting, noting the limited value in convening a group of bloggers who “basically think the same way.” She pointed out that bloggers from Observatorio Crítico [es] and Havana Times, both sites whose authors favor the socialist model, were not invited at all.

El espacio plural, diverso, irreverente, altamente participativo, generoso y polémico…ha sido cruelmente caricaturizado [con este encuentro]. Queda, en su lugar, una blogosfera obediente y disciplinada.

The heterogenous, diverse, irreverent, highly participatory, generous and controversial space…has been cruelly caricatured [by this meeting]. In its place is now an obedient and disciplined blogosphere.

Diáz argued that, by excluding nearly all bloggers who are not “official” bloggers, the meeting had little value—the attendees did not represent the reality of the Cuban blogosphere. She also pointed to the unequal treatment of social media users on the island:

Parece que muchos de los presentes parecen haber olvidado que mientras 60 representantes de la blogosfera nacional son recibidos con bombos y platillos en Matanzas, muchos más, estudiantes de universidades [por ejemplo] son condenados a 6 meses sin acceso a Internet por osar asomarse a Facebook, Twitter o cualquier variante 2.0.

It seems that many of those present have forgotten that while 60 representatives of the national blogosphere are being received with drums and cymbals in Matanzas, many more, students at universities [for example] are condemned to 6 months without Internet access for using Facebook, Twitter, or any other iteration of 2.0.

In response to her post, [es] Harold Cárdenas, a co-author of the blog La Joven Cuba and organizer of the event, lamented the fact that Díaz declined to attend the meeting.

La habíamos invitado insistentemente…porque así podría defender sus posiciones y dar su opinión… Quizás si hubiera confiado un poco más en nosotros vería…que en el encuentro no todos pensaban “básicamente igual”
[…]
Si alguien me pregunta le diría que hemos ganado mucho…que cuando alguien quiso que se le exigiera al Estado una Internet solo para “defender la Revolución”…dejamos claro que Internet es para mucho más que eso, para hablar de cocina, deporte, sexo o lo que quiera el bloguero de turno.

We repeatedly invited her… because that way she could have defended her positions and given her opinion … Maybe if she trusted us more, she would have seen…that everyone at the meeting was not “basically the same.”
[…]
If someone were to ask me, I’d say that we gained a lot…when someone wanted the State to require that the Internet be used only to “defend the Revolution”…we made it clear that the Internet is for much more than that, it’s for talking about cooking, sports, sex or whatever the blogger wants to say in the moment.

Other responses were more aggressive. In a searing open letter [es], Eduardo, a University of Matanzas professor and blogger who helped organize the event, suggested that Díaz might be falling into the “counterrevolutionary” camp, espousing the idea that only “revolutionary” sentiment should be tolerated in the Cuban blogosphere and that nothing could exist in between this and counterrevolutionary ideas.

[Es cobardía] jugar a bloguear nadando en las aguas embravecidas de un río, que en Cuba aunque usted no lo quiera reconocer, solo tiene “dos orillas”; los que defendemos el proyecto político social que nos independizó…de España, pero también de los Estados Unidos, y los que desean que Cuba sea la neocolonia que dejó de ser el Primero de Enero de 1959.

It is cowardly to blog as if swimming in the raging waters of a river that in Cuba, even if you don’t want to recognize it, has only two sides; those who defend the socio-political project that brought us independence from Spain, but from the United States as well, and those who want Cuba to be the neocolony that it ceased to be on the First of January of 1959.

A diverse range of other bloggers at sites including La Joven Cuba, Blogazoxcuba (official blog of the meeting), and Observatorio Crítico have commented on the event. An apt concluding thought appeared in a post by an anonymous author at Observatorio Crítico [es]. While just pre-dating the meeting, the author offered a constructive viewpoint on the question of criticism in Cuba, envisioning a world “where public space is the patrimony of all people, not a minority in power, as is true today throughout the world, including in Cuba.”

No se teme la participación de una persona en un evento por el hecho de que piense distinto…Precisamente, la estimulación de la diversidad y las alternativas de enfoque y acción sobre los problemas es lo que conduce a posibilidades de enriquecimiento creativo de la realidad.
[…]
Bloquear el acceso de determinadas opiniones a escenarios que presuntamente exploran la noción de lo público –como ha sucedido recientemente en más de un foro–, no tiene otro resultado que el de fundamentar las imputaciones de totalitarismo que se acostumbra realizar contra el orden social imperante en Cuba…

One must not fear the participation of a person who thinks differently…Indeed, the stimulation of diversity and alternative approaches to the problems and action is what leads to opportunities for the creative enrichment of reality.
[…]
Blocking access to certain opinions that allegedly explore the notion of that which is public—as happened recently in more than one forum—has no result other than to substantiate the charges of totalitarianism that are usually wielded against the social order in Cuba…

Caribbean: Supporting Our Mothers

Janine Mendes-Franco — Tue, 15 May 2012 20:18:40 +0000

Mother's Day, celebrated this past weekend all across the Caribbean, was a hot topic of discussion with regional bloggers - or rather, mothers were. From posts of admiration and thanks to accounts of how women regularly defy oppression, it was a mixed bag, but one that mothers everywhere would have been happy to sample from…

To mark the occasion, TALLAWAH “rang up a few Jamaican celeb moms to get responses to the day’s most pressing query: Is having a child the best thing you’ve ever done?” The responses are worth a read.

Compatriot Nadine, Unscripted referred to her mother as “the epitome of self-sacrifice”:

We’ve had our share of ups and downs, and butted heads on some occasions. Yet, at the forefront of my mind, despite all that we’ve been through, I always remember everything she has given to us, simply because she cares.

She also took time to acknowledge “all the mothers, mothers-to-be, grandmothers and greats, the fathers who have a double role as mothers, and the mothers whose children grew in their hearts instead of their wombs”:

Wherever you are on this planet, I give thanks for you and your bright legacy. Know that you are blessed, honoured, loved.

Guyanese-born Tastes Like Home echoed her sentiments:

Thank you for loving me.
Thank you for caring about me.
Thank you for listening to my rants.
Thank you for supporting me.
Thank you for encouraging me.

Parenting is such a huge responsibility and I admire the grace with which you balance your life, work and everything else in-between. I join in the chorus of applause and salute you on this your very special day.

Over at My big, fat, Cuban family, the blogger's kids apparently logged in and shared some of the most meaningful things their mom has taught them over the years - from “[having] great adventures” to “[being] fearless.” Cuban bloggers were by far the most vocal about the sacrifices mothers - and women on the whole - have to make. Havana Times published an account of “a Cuban mother's drive”…

When you have a child who looks up at you in desperation and says: ‘Mommy, I’m hungry,' and you know full well that two salaries aren’t enough to satisfy that basic request…then you’ll know where my strength comes from.

…but balanced the perspective in another post that explains why motherhood is so rewarding:

Most of all there are the kisses, the kisses and hearing ‘I love you, mommy.' Those are the things that make me remember that being a mother is no sacrifice. Motherhood is simply a blessing.

So why aren't Cubans having more babies? This post offered some insight. Pedazos de la Isla uploaded a video tribute to Cuban women, explaining:

On Mother’s Day 2012, a number of Cuban mothers- most of them members of the Ladies in White- have been arrested and beaten by the Cuban political police, and yet they continue carrying out their activities and RESISTING against the repression.

These face harassment, acts of repudiation, beatings, and arrests for demanding the rights of an entire nation. Regardless, they still find time to protect and educate their children and families. They are examples of courage and inspiration.

Notes from the Cuban Exile Quarter reported on a march in honour of the memory of Laura Pollan:

Despite threats, harassment, and scores of women detained by State Security 68 Ladies in White following mass walked through Fifth Avenue in the west of Havana. They marched and chanted ‘Viva Laura Pollán!' and ‘Freedom for the political prisoners!'

The blogger (along with others) went on to describe several cases of women being detained and threatened, adding:

It is also important to remember that Cuban mothers are spending Mothers Day in prison for defending the human rights of the Cuban people.

Haiti Chery, meanwhile, spared a thought for Trayvon Martin's mom, explaining:

Sybrina Fulton, mother of Trayvon Matin, released a public service announcement…timed for Mother’s Day this [past] weekend, asking viewers to ‘call the governor of your state' and encourage them to reconsider ‘Stand Your Ground' laws like the one cited by the man who killed her son.

Trinidadian diaspora bloggers also marked the occasion, albeit in different ways. Fashion blogger Afrobella gave a few suggestions for the best Mother's Day gifts (hint: stay away from the irons!) and wished “anyone who's motherly” a wonderful day:

Whether you’re a mother with your own kids, or you’ve adopted a family, or if you’re a loving sister or aunt or grandma who really plays a motherly role in the lives of little ones, I wish you a very happy Mother’s Day. Thank you for all you have done to shape a child’s life! It ALL counts. Thank you for being part of someone’s village. You’re more appreciated than you may know.

Photoblogger chookooloonks meanwhile, confessed that:

I always feel just a tiny bit strange accepting gifts on Mother's Day…I don't ‘mother' so that I can get gifts once a year for my efforts. I mother for a lot of selfish reasons: because I wanted to be a mom. Because I get a hell of a lot out of my relationship with my kid. Because that's what I'm wired to do.

But you know what would be nice?

If we moms could use Mother's Day as a day of focus to help support each other. It seems to me so strange that an experience that is so universal — raising a child — can also at times feel so solitary. And, frankly, so guilt-ridden: we get messages daily, from the media, from corporate culture, from our communities and even from other mothers saying you're doing it wrong. Judgments on issues like how you should become a parent — ‘natural' or C-section or adoption or surrogacy. Whether you should work outside of your home. Or not. Or breastfeed. Or Not. Or how long you should breastfeed. Or what to feed you kid. Or how to dress your kid. Or what organizations you should get your kid involved in. Or when you should send your kid to school. Or where. Or homeschool. Or … or … or ….

AAAAUUUUGGH.

So this year, here's an idea: in addition to the moms in our families, let's take a moment out of our day to send a message to peers — moms who are neither our mothers nor our partners — and just say, ‘good job.' Send an email to someone (even someone you only know online) just to say, ‘You have great kids,' or ‘you're an inspiring parent,' or ‘your children are lucky to have you.' An unexpected note of encouragement letting a mother know to keep on keeping on.

The thumbnail image used in this post, “Mother, daughter”, is by Bread for the World, used under an Attribution-NonCommercial 2.0 Generic (CC BY-NC 2.0) Creative Commons license. Visit Bread for the World's flickr photostream.

Cuba: Dissident Ferrer Garcia Re-Released

Janine Mendes-Franco — Tue, 15 May 2012 18:33:04 +0000

Havana Times reports that dissident Jose Daniel Ferrer Garcia was released by authorities late last week “after being held for more than 24 hours without his whereabouts being made known.”

Cuba: Remembering the Dissidents

Janine Mendes-Franco — Fri, 11 May 2012 08:00:05 +0000

This week, members of the Cuban diaspora have been blogging about two main things: the one-year anniversary of the death of dissident Juan Wilfredo Soto, and the re-arrest of human rights activist Jose Daniel Ferrer Garcia.

Of the former, babalu places blame for Soto's death squarely on the shoulders of the Cuban government:

Mercilessly beaten in a park by agents of Cuba's political police, Soto died three days later from the injuries he received. His murder at the hands of the Castro dictatorship, like that of Cuban prisoner of conscience Orlando Zapata Tamayo, caused an uproar in the international community and forced the regime and its defenders here in the U.S. to mount a campaign seeking to blame his death on natural causes and diminish the role Castro police had in his murder.

One year after the murder of Juan Wilfredo Soto, things have have changed Cuba, but for the worse. The rate of arrests of human rights activists on the island has skyrocketed…One year later, the Castro regime is as repressive and violent as ever, if not more so…

Pedazos de la Isla corroborates his account of increased numbers of arrests in this post, quoting a “Lady in White and independent journalist” who claims that:

The Cuban police, as well as State Security and other watchdog branches of the regime, prefer to unleash this kind of repression against peaceful activists who demand freedom and democratic changes in Cuba instead of pursuing and detaining those who rob, rape, and even kill other citizens.

The recent re-arrest of Jose Daniel Ferrer Garcia, as Uncommon Sense reports, also appears to support this claim:

Cuban dissident Jose Daniel Ferrer Garcia was arrested in Havana on Wednesday.

Ferrer, who had been released April 29 after almost a month in jail, was on his way to the Czech embassy to access the Internet, when the Castro police swept in and arrested him.

Details of his whereabouts were not known, but human rights activist Elizardo Sanchez, with whom Ferrer was staying while visiting the capital said he thought Ferrer would be returned to his hometown of Santiago de Cuba.

Finally, Notes from the Cuban Exile Quarter, which gives a detailed history of the case, says that Soto Garcia, who died on Mother's Day last year, should never be forgotten:

Juan Wilfredo Soto García, 46, belonged to the Central Opposition Coalition (Coalición Central Opositora) and the previously unrecognized opposition organization Foro Antitotalitario Unido, (United Anti-totalitarian Forum) and according to Amnesty International Juan Wilfredo ‘had previously been imprisoned for 12 years for his political activities.'

Amnesty International called for an investigation into his death which over a year later has not been conducted. The Cuban dictatorship has sought to deny Juan Wilfredo Soto García's status as a former political prisoner and human rights defender in order to portray him as a common criminal.

In addition to Amnesty International, 12 former Cuban prisoners of conscience from the 2003 Black Cuban Spring met on Saturday, June 4, 2011 and petitioned the Cuban regime for an independent investigation into the May 8, 2011 death of Juan Wilfredo Soto García in a document called The Declaration of El Roque. Others continue to [be] badly beaten and denied adequate medical care in Cuba and their lives remain at risk. It is for that reason and the continuing demand of justice for Juan Wilfredo Soto García that we must never forget.

The thumbnail image used in this post, “Fragile”, is by fabbio, used under an Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons license. Visit fabbio's flickr photostream.

Cuba: Radio Marti Editorial Controversy

Janine Mendes-Franco — Wed, 09 May 2012 17:03:45 +0000

“Radio Marti last week published and broadcast an editorial, ‘The Cardinal’s limits,' that asserted that Cardinal Ortega is involved in ‘political collusion' (contubernio) with the Cuban government…”: The Cuban Triangle suggests that Radio Marti also has its limits.

Cuba: Lady in White Faces “Disobedience” Charges

Janine Mendes-Franco — Wed, 09 May 2012 16:52:36 +0000

A member of the Ladies in White has been charged with “disobedience” and could face prison time for marching with the dissident group; bloggers hope to raise awareness of the case.

May Day Videos: Marches, Demonstrations and Protests Around The World

Juliana Rincón Parra — Tue, 08 May 2012 05:08:19 +0000

Through cities around the globe, people took to the streets to march and commemorate the International Workers' Day. Videos by The Real News take us on a tour of how the day was observed throughout the world.

May Day March in Venezuela

While some places saw peaceful marches, others had violent encounters between armed forces and the protesters. On the first part of the video, an overview of workers in Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Europe. For example, Malaysian activists protested against the growing inequality. In the Philippines were for job security and higher wages. Indonesians protested low wages and rough conditions. Cambodians asked for higher wages. People in Bahrein asked for workers to be reinstated to their positions of which they were removed by the government crackdowns. In Egypt protests were on behalf of including workers rights in the constitution that is being drafted. In Europe, workers protested austerity measures that seem to target them. In Russia, both the ruling party and the opposition had their own rallies. The French left marched against the past of fiscal austerity. And in the London, where May Day is not a holiday, workers went on strike.

On the second part, protests in North and South America. Demonstrations throughout Canada protesting budget cuts and rises in college tuition. In the USA, banks were targeted in many major cities including clashes with riot police, calls to strikes, and blockades. In Mexico workers marched to ask the government to do a better job in the face of violence. Honduras saw protests against the privatization of public services as well as corruption. In Cuba, massive parades commemorated the Cuban Revolution and in Venezuela both the government supporters and opposition marched, either for or against the recent reforms. In Colombia there were arrests during the protests and the Chilean student movement also marched.

Cuba: National Meeting of Bloggers Ends in Controversy

Eleanor Staniforth — Sat, 05 May 2012 00:09:19 +0000

Several months ago the administrators of La Joven Cuba [es], one of the blogs with the highest number of followers on the island, declared their intention [es] to organize an event to bring together representatives of the national blogosphere to discuss various subjects. The silence surrounding the installation of fibre optic cables [es] which were supposed to come into use in 2010, the impact of blogs on the national public sphere, and the regulations which limit Cuban citizens' access or participation in Web 2.0 spaces are some of the main concerns shared by all members of the national blogging community.

Poster for the Meeting of Cuban Bloggers.

The event was programmed for the 27th and 28th April 2012. More than 60 bloggers from all the provinces in the country spent two days sharing their experiences at the University of Matanzas “Camilo Cienfuegos,” east of the Cuban capital, in an event which tried to create “horizontal mechanisms for coordinating different blogging projects around the country.”

In the event's final statement [es], which has sparked controversy [es] amongst various members [es] of the national blogosphere, the participants note:

Conseguimos así un marco de socialización que nos permitió salir de la ambigüedad y el anonimato que propicia Internet y coordinar estrategias de trabajo que articulen nuestros proyectos ante los desafíos que tenemos los blogueros cubanos.

Through this event we have established a framework of socialisation which allows us to emerge from the ambiguity and the anonymity which the Internet provides and to coordinate working strategies within which to develop our projects in light of the challenges we face as Cuban bloggers.

The event was broadcast in real time by Justin.tv, Twitter and the event's official blog “Blogazo x Cuba” [es]. The final declaration contains 12 points and confirms participants' support for the Cuban political system while calling for “respect for difference and for open debate.”

The document also demands the release of the five Cubans held prisoner in the United States and the end of the economic and financial sanctions which the United States have held in place against Cuba for over half a century. The participants also requested that the “State's Central Administration Bodies reformulate the regulations which limit connectivity and access to the web by state institutions, in the interest of establishing a greater presence of Cuban citizens in cyberspace.”

The main regulation existing in the country on this issue was passed in 2007 and is known as Resolution 127 of the Ministry of Informatics and Communications (MIC). It bans the publication of information on foreign servers, forcing the majority of national bloggers who blog from their places of work or study into illegality.

Another of the issues currently provoking significant debate on the island is related to the discursive nuances of the reality presented in these spaces: the different critical levels, as well as ambiguity regarding which topics may be dealt with and how the questioning attitude adopted by some bloggers may be considered as “outside the Revolution” or contrary to the current political system. On this note, one of the participants in the event, Carlos Alberto Pérez, author of La Chiringa de Cuba [es] poses the question [es] “how can one be critical in Cuba without being considered a dissident?”

Although the committee organizing the event, composed of five bloggers living in Cuba, stated that “our dream was to organise a meeting which would be national in scale and as inclusive as possible,” members of collectives such as Critical Observatory [es] and Havana Times [es] , two of the main blogging communities on the island and supporters of the Cuban political system, were not invited.

The selection critiera took into account the regular updating of blogs, the diversity of topics dealt with, and representation of each province.

However, the authors of La Joven Cuba said:

Estamos conscientes que dejamos fuera otros blogueros y quedamos con la insatisfacción de no ser lo suficientemente justos pero un evento de tal magnitud llevaba muchos recursos y esta fue nuestra principal limitación y preocupación. Era un riesgo que tuvimos que asumir y asumiremos todas las críticas que se nos hagan al respecto.

We are aware that we excluded other bloggers and we regret having been unfair, but an event of this scale requires significant resources and this was our main limitation and concern. It was a risk which we had to take and we will accept all criticisms which are made of us in this respect.

On this topic, the author of the blog “In 2310 and 8225” Yasmín Silvia Portales pointed out later in her post “I failed”:

¿Acaso no es siempre parcial y sesgada la manera en que se decide quiénes son “los protagonistas de la blogosfera del país”, no importa si lo dice El País o… alguien más?

Isn't the way in which we decide who “the protagonists of the country's blogosphere” are always partial and biased? Does it matter if it is El País [one of Spain's main newspapers] which says it or…someone else?

According to the article by the Inter Press Service (IPS) agency:

En el país, se han realizado encuentros de activistas en blogs y en redes sociales en Internet. El 27 de septiembre de 2008, Roger Trabas organizó junto al empresario y bloguero francés David Chapet, el primer Encuentro “Bloggers por Cuenta Propia”, convocado desde el sitio llamado Bloggers Cuba, que se celebró en el gubernamental Palacio de Computación y Electrónica de la capital cubana.

Meetings of activists involved in blogging and social networks have been held in the country. On 27th September 2008, Roger Trabas alongside the French businessman and blogger David Chapet, organised the first meeting “Independent Bloggers,” convened from the site called Bloggers Cuba, which was held in the governmental Centre for Computing and Electronics in the Cuban capital.

Cuba: Where's the (Press) Freedom?

Janine Mendes-Franco — Thu, 03 May 2012 22:29:47 +0000

Today is World Press Freedom Day - but in the Caribbean blogosphere, a handful of Cuban diaspora bloggers are the only ones talking about it.

Notes from the Cuban Exile Quarter provides some background on the day itself, explaining:

The United Nations declared May 3 World Press Freedom Day on December 20, 1993 to raise awareness on the importance of a free press and to remind governments of their obligation to respect and uphold the right of freedom of expression recognized under Article 19 of the Universal Declarationof Human Rights. The date of May 3 was selected to mark the anniversary of the Declaration of Windhoek, a statement of free press principles agreed on by African journalists at a UNESCO seminar, “Promoting an Independent and Pluralistic African Press,” held in Windhoek, Namibia, from April 29 to May 3, 1991; it was later endorsed by the UNESCO General Conference.

The Coalition of Cuban-American Women posted a link on its blog to this report by the Committee to Protect Journalists, which lists Cuba as one of the most censored countries. In a later post, it draws attention to Cuban blogger and independent journalist, Luis Felipe Rojas, who is featured in an Amnesty International article.

Notes from the Cuban Exile Quarter also takes note of the report by the Committee to Protect Journalists, saying:

The dictatorship in Cuba came in ninth place, but also at least three out of the four worse (sic) are close allies of the Castro brothers.

babalu, meanwhile, notes that:

340 politically motivated arrests in Cuba were documented by the Cuban independent news agency CIHPRESS during the month of April. This brings the total number of political arrests on the island documented by the agency this year to 1,915. At this current pace, the Castro dictatorship is set to carry out almost 6,000 arrests by the end of year, almost double the number of the arrests that took place in 2011.

And in a “toast to freedom on World Press Freedom Day”, Notes from the Exile Quarter posts a video in honour of all imprisoned journalists, and blogs about some of Cuba's prisoners of conscience:

Fifty years ago, on May 28, 1961 Amnesty International was formed because two Portuguese students were imprisoned for seven years for raising a toast to freedom. Today, in Cuba men and women are locked away for speaking up for freedom and marching for it. Journalists are harassed, detained and imprisoned for attempting to exercise their fundamental right to free speech, one of them is Luis Felipe Rojas. Others are found in the ‘Hablemos Press’ Information Centre. In honor of them, on World Press Freedom Day this…is dedicated to them: A Toast to Freedom.

The thumbnail image used in this post, “Press freedom abandoned”, is by BlackburnMike_1, used under an Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0) Creative Commons license. Visit BlackburnMike_1's flickr photostream.

Cuba: Bloggers Offended by Archbishop's Statements

Janine Mendes-Franco — Wed, 02 May 2012 17:02:46 +0000

As if the Archbishop of Havana hadn't sufficiently ruffled bloggers' feathers over the recent papal visit to Cuba - specifically his request to have protesters removed from a church and his lack of cooperation in facilitating a meeting between the pontiff and dissident groups - in a recent address at a Harvard University conference, Cardinal Ortega referred to those church protesters as criminals, once again raising the ire of Cuban netizens.

babalu called the comments “derisive” and “nothing less than reprehensible”:

This latest sin against God and His flock is only another example of what a truly despicable man Ortega is. Fortunately, the Good Lord has provided the objects of Ortega's sinful ridicule and scorn the opportunity to respond.

The blog then linked to a mainstream media article in which some of the protesters were interviewed and denied that they had criminal records. In a subsequent post, the blog got hold of a petition for Cardinal Ortega's retirement and encouraged readers to sign:

According to the rules established by Pope John Paul II, all bishops are required to retire when they reach the age of 75. Cardinal Ortega was born in October 1936. This means he is overdue for forced retirement, yet, he clings to his post, and the Holy Father allows him to do so.

Finally, at Translating Cuba, Wendy Iriepa and Ignacio Estrada confessed that they had “no words to describe the recent statements made by his Eminence Cardinal and Archbishop of Havana Jaime Lucas Ortega Alamino during his stay last week in the United States of America”:

Despite the fact that he has spoken in a deliberate tone, the language used by the Cuban cardinal places at disadvantage the credibility of the good function of the Catholic hierarchy in the island. He has repeated in his discourse the same phrases used by the ruling class.

All of us who follow the evolution of the Catholic Church in Cuba, have denounced on many occasions the so badly called relationship between Church and State, and the complicity of the Church with the silence of the true existing situation in the island related to the lack of a state of rights and also the lack of places for free religious worship.

They went on to say that the Cardinal's speech “was similar to one of the many speeches dictated by the office of the Department of Ideology of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba”:

Today’s comment does not attempt to criticize the role of the Church in Cuba, but it tries to put in its right place he who uses the Catholic Church for his own benefit and in defense of those who are sinking the nation into an increasing poverty.

We would have to ask such a Cuban Cardinal, “How could he have access to the police records of each person who occupied the Caridad Church in Havana?” We would also ask, “How could he obtain the information that such acts of civil disobedience were organized from Miami?” I understand this time, like many other times, that the Cardinal spoke more than he should, and now he has to withstand all the critics coming from different latitudes.

I never imagined to hear, from the lips of the highest pastor of the Cuban Church, so much malice for those who try to promote full respect to the basic freedom of each man. To call those who serve unfair sentences under the most terrible conditions not described by people like him “common delinquents,” at some international meeting, makes him an accomplice of a corrupt and inert government.

The thumbnail image used in this post, Catedral de San Cristóbal de La Habana, is by RC_Fotos, used under an Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0) Creative Commons license. Visit RC_Fotos' flickr photostream.

Cuba: Interview with Ferrer Garcia

Janine Mendes-Franco — Tue, 01 May 2012 21:50:40 +0000

Pedazos de la Isla posts an interview with recently-released political prisoner Jose Daniel Ferrer Garcia.

Cuba: Nothing Changes on May Day

Janine Mendes-Franco — Tue, 01 May 2012 21:42:39 +0000

Today, Cuba marks May Day, in acknowledgement of the Cuban Revolution. It is an occasion that is strongly linked to the concept of labour empowerment, as workers from various towns march with their colleagues to Plaza de la Revolución to hear speeches - the most substantial of which have historically been delivered by the Castros - at the foot of the statue of José Martí.

There are also many cultural and musical events in honour of the occasion. National public service announcements about this year's parade state that it “will serve to demonstrate the people’s commitment to complying with the Communist Party’s economic and social reform guidelines.”

But some bloggers are wondering whether anything has really changed in Cuba, despite the fact that self-employed workers will be taking part in the march for the first time.

At Translating Cuba, Anddy Sierra Alvarez writes:

The propaganda has begun for participation on May Day, no one is forced to go, they’ve said for a lifetime, but this is not the reality. For not only are those belonging to the Cuban Communist Party forced to participate, but they are told so in the bureaucratic meetings they have every month.

The point of the march is to show the worlds that Cubans feel fine, there’s no desperation, no dissatisfaction with the government, no hunger, and that all we Cubans here who are trying to get the government to change the form of the government — or to bring it down — are painted as liars, defamers, or mercenaries supporting the interests of the government of Barack Obama.

Generation Y draws a parallel to “the last time the Plaza of the Revolution was full, crammed with people”, which happened in March, when Cubans attended a papal mass:

The television broadcasters repeated, with a strange insistence, that attending this Mass were ‘believers and non-believers.' It was…a clarification — and not subtle in the least — that…Cubans were there because of ‘discipline,' out of ‘respect,' or because they are an ‘equable' people, but not, in fact, because of faith.

I wonder whether this May Day they will also throw out such contrasting adjectives. They could, for example, say that on this Workers’ Day both ‘Revolutionaries and Non-revolutionaries' are marching, which would not be absurd on a day that should have a labor and union tone, not a political one. Can you imagine the grave voice of the announcer affirming that in the flag-waving crowd there are both ‘employed and unemployed'? Of these, the latter would undoubtedly have to be the most energetic block, because the number of unemployed workers in 2012 has grown to 170 million throughout the Island. In front of the microphones they should make the distinction that in the mass of people facing the statue of Jose Marti are found 'sympathizers and non-sympathizers' with Raul’s government. Because after all, who would believe that a million individuals are all in agreement with the administration of a president?

She continues:

There will be no surprises nor nuances, but rather attempts to lump together hundreds of thousands of participants and present them as a unanimous chorus supporting the system. And May Day once again will be hijacked, like so many times before. From the podium those who salute will be precisely those who should be called out and criticized on the banners, not those who should be leading a workers‘ commemoration. The day will end without demands being made of this boss named “the State” to raise salaries, lower the cost of living, or improve working conditions. Instead, every little head seen from the Plaza’s tower will be counted as a round of applause.

Without Evasion notes that “the official press has been announcing the parade this May 1st with a newly added component to the ‘army' of workers that will march in support of the revolution and socialism: the self-employed”:

I cannot quite understand the issue. Aren’t the self-employed a sector that represents private enterprise? Haven’t we been taught in school that private property is one of the ‘evils of capitalism,' a source of exploitation for the proletariat? Has the Cuban system created a new species, the owner-laborer?

What concerns her most, though, is that:

…when convening ‘independents' to this parade, the government has the intention to continue to monitor the supply of slaves, even the sector of freedmen, i.e., those who are in the first phase of buying their freedom through their economic activity, independent of the Master. Official control mechanisms deem important that those individuals who turn autonomous do not become independent or associate freely, and, at the same time, the government needs to offer the world the impression that private businessmen and manufacturers are aligned with the revolution, thus legitimizing the ‘renewal.'

Worst of all is that there is a representative sample of the self-employed who will lend themselves to the new farce. So then, the self-employed will march this May 1st under the banners of socialism, and maybe soon a ‘union of revolutionary self-employed' will be established. This won’t, even remotely, be a march on anyone’s own account.

Bad Handwriting finds the whole thing “surreal”:

In Cuba, where workers are being subjected to ‘downsizing', where the uncertainty about their place of employment, and the uncertainty of non-living wage are fundamental concerns, the first of May is celebrated with massive parades in all provinces. Signs abound in support of the Revolution (read Government) but there will not be a single sign demanding wage increases, the disappearance of the double currency, or transparency in the layoffs.

This country is so surreal, that the newly unionized self-employed workers, will parade in massive numbers. A group whose main concern should be the demand for non-discriminatory treatment, easing of red tape to access a work permit, extending the range of permitted activities and less severe taxes.

Finally, Through the Eye of the Needle calls this year's anniversary “an odd May Day”:

For the first time in more than fifty years self-employed workers and owners of small businesses will take part. They are already unionized.

So, will these new people be pressing for labor concessions – something prohibited under socialism – or will they simply be supporting the Revolution and the Party?

Will this be merely a display of cowardice? If they are attending this gathering out of a sense of conviction, they should be applauded. But I fear that even in the private sector a double standard is becoming evident. It is an indication that they by no means consider themselves to be free men and women. I respect the decision they have made. But what they are aspiring towards is to be treated with respect by the State itself, which not only manipulates them at whim, but also burdens them with excessive taxes, sells them wholesale supplies at already inflated retail prices without any special consideration, while unleashing on them a herd of ravenous inspectors. And, though no one will say so publicly, they are considered to be cowards by society itself. Is this the way we pretend that change is taking place in the country?

The changes will only be successful after a resurgence of civil society. But for that to happen, it is necessary to discard the heavy ballast of our induced fears and double standards. If you do not violate the country’s laws, no matter how unjust you feel they are, behave like a respectable citizen, and neither defame nor cause harm to others, then what is there to fear?

The thumbnail image used in this post, “Cuban flag”, is by Phil Guest, used under an Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons license. Visit Phil Guest's flickr photostream.

Cuba: Diaspora Reacts to Ferrer García's Release

Janine Mendes-Franco — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 14:52:50 +0000

Cuban prisoner of conscience Jose Daniel Ferrer Garcia was released over the weekend. Diaspora bloggers comment on this most recent development.

On Friday, the situation appeared as if nothing would change. The former “Group of 75″ prisoner had already been imprisoned for close to a month and had gone on a hunger strike to protest his incarceration. Notes from the Cuban Exile Quarter wrote a post about “the courageous Ferrer García family”, which gives some valuable background to his case:

The Castro regime wanted to execute José Daniel Ferrer García in 2003 requesting the death penalty in a show trial but the international outcry caused them to back down and sentence him to a 25 year prison sentence instead. After the untimely and sinister death of Cuban Lady in White founder, Laura Inés Pollán Toledo on October 14, 2011 the threat to José Daniel's life cannot be underestimated. Like Laura Pollán, José Daniel has a nonviolent strategic vision and an ability to mobilize and organize people combined with great courage.

Since the latest detention of José Daniel Ferrer García on April 2, 2012, his brother Luis Enrique has organized a campaign for his release and is tweeting both from his own account and his brother’s twitter account to raise awareness and solidarity.

Please be vigilant with regards to the plight of José Daniel Ferrer García and speak up for him because his life may very well depend on it. After 24 days in detention, Cuban officials have yesterday finally made known that they plan to accuse José Daniel of ‘public disturbances.'

Soon, news broke that Ferrer García had decided to suspend his hunger strike and activity aimed at expediting his release was increased: Pedazos de la Isla posted a detailed account of “some of the many Cubans who reside behind bars in a prison cell for defending human rights and freedom in Cuba”, adding:

Let us demand their immediate release!

Ferrer García's release appeared to happen soon afterward: Uncommon Sense reported yesterday that:

Cuban opposition leader Jose Daniel Ferrer Garcia was released from jail on Sunday, almost a month after his most recent arrest.

But, the blogger, not wanting to appear overly optimistic, added:

Ferrer, one of Cuba's most active opposition leaders still faces charges of ‘instigating, directing and financing public disorder' in eastern Cuba. No trial date has been set.

The thumbnail image used in this post, “jail”, is by the_kid_cl, used under an Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0) Creative Commons license. Visit the_kid_cl's flickr photostream.

Cuba: Bloggers Summit in Matanzas

Firuzeh Shokooh Valle — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 17:10:07 +0000

The bloggers from La Joven Cuba [es] have organized a Summit of Cuban Bloggers [es] that will take place April 27th and 28th in Matanzas. Follow the conversation on Twitter under #BlogazoxCuba (@BlogazoxCuba).