Stories about Cuba from January, 2011
Cuba, Trinidad & Tobago: Looking at Egypt
Cuban bloggers speculate that the Egypt protests may set an example for Cubans, issue advice to the Egyptian people and blog about similarities and differences between the two countries, while from Trinidad and Tobago, Globewriter calls social networking “the new human rights weapon”.
Cuba: Arrest & Release #3
A third arrest and release for Guillermo Fariñas in three days: Uncommon Sense has the details.
Cuba, U.S.A.: New Travel Rules in Effect
Cuban diaspora bloggers note that the new Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) regulations, which contain the new Cuba-related travel policy, are out; from Havana, Iván García observes that “the new policies of flexibility in the U.S. embargo against Cuba have permitted an exhibit [by Dégas] to be displayed at...
Cuba: Second Arrest for Fariñas
On learning that Guillermo Fariñas was arrested for a second time in less than 24 hours, Uncommon Sense says: “Nothing is unusual about what is happening…what is unusual is for the police to move so aggressively against someone with Fariñas’ profile, someone whose arrest will get at least a few...
Jamaica, Cuba: Bye Bye, BBC
Cambios en Cuba [ES] and Jamaica Salt both note with sadness the BBC's decision to cut parts of its Caribbean service in a bid to save money: “The expertise and the daily news that will be lost will have consequences far beyond the loss of jobs and programmes.”
Cuba: Fariñas Arrested & Released
Uncommon Sense has been following the recent arrest of Cuban independent journalist Guillermo Fariñas and calls his detainment a “We told you so” moment. He has subsequently been released.
Cuba: Marta's Victory
Crossing the Barbed Wire blogs about the experience of Marta Diaz Rondon, who was reportedly imprisoned and beaten by “men who claim to be patriots and protectors of Cuba’s security.”
Cuba: Old Age in Cuba
“Hands shaking with Parkinson’s offer sugary snacks at bus stops, wrinkled faces offer razor blades for only five pesos”: Generation Y says that the system the elderly helped to build “cannot provide them with a dignified old age.”
Cuba: Obama Eases Several Embargo Restrictions
US President Barack Obama signed into law a series of small legislative reforms to the US embargo on Cuba. Many in the US-Cuba blogging community hailed this as a small but significant step in improving relations between the two countries, while others have criticized the reform.
Cuba: Gay Club in Havana
Paquito writes [es] about the first gay club in Havana. The restaurant El Sótano, in Old Havana, becomes a gay club during weekend nights when it hosts “La Fiesta de los Tuix.”
Cuba, U.S.A.: Effects of Lifting Travel Limits
“President Barack Obama's decision to loosen limits on travel and remittances from the United States to Cuba is a gift the Castro dictatorship has not earned”: Uncommon Sense links to an article which makes him surmise that “as a result, Cubans will have to wait even longer for freedom.”
Cuba: Where Do We Go From Here?
“In 2011, the sad thing isn’t that history is repeating itself, nor that they might recognize their mistakes after so much time in power…what is inconceivable is that they keep following the same policies that led them to failure”: Laritza's Laws wonders about Cuba's future.
Cuba: Forbidden Programs
Generation Y blogs about the upsurge in sales of pirated DVDs and music, commenting: “Absent from the public catalogs are the documentaries — so often watched in Cuban homes — that approach our national history through a different lens from the official.”
Cuba: Cubadebate's YouTube Channel Taken Down
The YouTube channel of Cubadebate was taken down on January 12th, due to copyright infringement claims on a video of Cuban terrorist suspect and former CIA operative Luis Posada Carriles, who is currently on trial in a US federal court in El Paso, Texas. Cubadebate, a state-run news site, has urged YouTube to reactivate the channel, which contains over four hundred videos.
Cuba: Decree 217/97
Laritza's Laws blogs about the fallout from Decree 217/97, “a rule that turns a Cuban into an illegal in his own country.”
Cuba: Dangerous Days
Laritza Diversent says that “a typical Cuban day is synonymous with a journey full of dangers…because one must resort to illegal activities in order to survive.”
Cuba: Layoffs Begin
“Her seventeen year professional life has been spent working for the government boss who, today, threw her out in the street”: Generation Y says that the government layoffs have begun.
Cuba: Three Kings Day
“In Cuba and possibly most Hispanic countries, the children would be getting up and opening gifts this morning. The gifts were delivered by the Three Kings”: My Big Fat Cuban Family blogs about The Day of the Three Kings.
Cuba: Eleven More
As 11 political prisoners remain in jail, The Cuban Triangle says: “In political terms, completion of the process would have several impacts…”
Bahamas, Cuba: Looking for Fidel
Bahama Pundit‘s Larry Smith goes to Cuba in search of Fidel Castro.
Cuba: Las Charangas de Bejucal
Repeating Islands links to an article on Las Charangas de Bejucal, a traditional new year's festival in a town not far from Havana, featuring illuminated floats, music, and dancing.
