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ASCE Newsclippings
This ASCE service has been established as an additional benefit exclusively
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Every week we select news related to Cuba’s economy that usually
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This will spare you the need to pursue the information in the various media
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RELEASE CLIPPINGS LISTING #600
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Carlos Alberto Montaner, Obama, Raúl Castro and South Africa
Miami Herald, Cuban dissident Antunez calls for push against Castro
regime
El Diario Exterior, Carlos Alberto Montaner, Los dinosaurios y las gacelas
Juan Triana Cordoví es un economista, profesor del Centro de Estudios de
la Economía Cubana de la Universidad de la Habana. Parece una persona
franca y llana.
World Affairs, Michael J. Totten, The Once Great City of Havana
CUBA/IVÁN GARCÍA/ESPECIALsáb ene, ECONOMÍA EN CRISIS;
Los nuevos ricos en Cuba. Se pueden dar el lujo de cenar tres veces a la
semana en una paladar y pagar 150 cuc por un cubierto en la Plaza de la
Catedral para comer exquisiteces
Miami Herald, Cuban children treated to scaled-down celebration in
Havana following toy raid
The Guardian Cuba's classic cars are icons of oppression that deserve
scrapping. It's deeply distasteful that we prefer to admire an Oldsmobile
than consider the communist dictatorship that led to its survival
Miami Herald, Cuba charter business consolidates in Florida
Miami Herald, US-Cuba migration talks to be held Wednesday in Havana
Mexidata Info, Jerry Brewer, The Rogue Political Regime in Cuba is
Unlikely to Change
Democracy Digest, National Endowment for Democracy, Fabio Rafael
Fiallo, Once Again, the Castro Regime Lies
Foreign Policy.com, Javier Corrales, The Cuban Paradox: Why is Havana
so cautious about reform? Perhaps because its reformer-in-chief is also a
stalwart of the revolution.
Fierce Telecom, Cuba's ETECSA increases business telephony rates
Miami Herald, Carlos Alberto Montaner, Stubborn or cowardly? Only
Raúl Castro knows
El Universal de Caracas, CUBA : El turismo mantuvo a flote la economía
cubana en 2013. Cuba cuenta con más de 60.000 habitaciones hoteleras,
distribuidas en 335 hoteles ubicados a lo largo del archipiélago, el 71 % de
ellas dedicadas al turismo de sol y playas, mientras el 23 % al de ciudad y
2 % se destinan al de naturaleza.
Marti Noticias, Cuba 2013: números rojos, reformas y represión
Con un raquítico crecimiento de 2,7%, Cuba se ubica en el lugar 15 entre
20 naciones del continente.. donde sí no ha habido apertura es en el tema
político.
Cubaeconomía, Elías Amor Bravo, A pagar impuestos y cuanto más mejor
Eastday, Cuba to partially privatize taxi service
AFP, Cuba privatizes taxi service in latest economic reform
Boston.com/ AP, US, Cuba to hold migration talks in Havana
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Centro de Información Hablemos Press. Más de 850 detenciones
arbitrarias cometieron el régimen militar de Raúl Castro en diciembre del
2013
Cubaeconomía, Elías Amor Bravo, La reforma del servicio de taxi no
podrá funcionar
Cubanet, Colomé Ibarra, alias Furry, el general enriquecido
En la manzana comprendida entre las calles B, C, 29 y Zapata, el general
de cuerpo ejército Abelardo Colomé Ibarra, conocido popularmente como
Furry, exhibe parte de su patrimonio familiar que marcha viento en popa.
Marti Noticias, Cuba: Aumenta compraventa de viviendas
Aniuska Puente, funcionaria del Ministerio de Justicia (MINJUS), declaró
a la prensa que la compraventa de viviendas en Cuba aumentó en 2013
con respecto al año precedente, al tiempo que decrecieron las permutas.
Miami Herald, Promueven en Miami la beatificación de monseñor
Eduardo Boza Masvidal. Una de las figuras emblemáticas del exilio
cubano y de la iglesia católica en los inicios de la revolución, monseñor
Eduardo Boza Masvidal, está en el lento proceso de subir a los altares.
Miami Herald, Cubanos que piden refugio en Colombia rechazan pasajes
de regreso a La Habana. Los seis cubanos que desde el 1 de enero están en
el aeropuerto Eldorado de Bogotá a la espera de que se les conceda refugio
o asilo en el país rechazaron hoy unos billetes de la aerolínea Avianca para
regresar a la isla y dijeron que harán una huelga de hambre.
UPI, Spanish airline suspends use of Venezuelan currency
Red Cubana de Comunicadores Comunitarios, Continúa el cólera en
Camagüey
Cuba Libre Digital, Transporte público en La Habana, de mal a peor
Naples News, Former U.S. Sen., Fla. Gov. Bob Graham part of Cuba oil
drilling mission
Council of Foreign Relations, CFR Marine Disaster Prevention and
Preparedness Study Group
Marti Noticias, Damas de Blanco marchan en Cuba a pesar de represión
En Cárdenas las mujeres fueron rodeadas, acosadas y ofendidas por turbas
paramilitares compuestas por unas 150 personas al servicio del régimen.
Diario de Cuba, Política: Díaz-Canel pide más 'críticas' a los medios
oficiales, pero con 'equilibrio'
Trabajadores, El control: cuestión de todos
SF Gate/ AP, Cuban students open rare study program to Miami
Cuba Standard/ Cuba Contemporanea, José Luis Rodríguez, Analysis:
How the Cuban economy performed in 2013
Cuba Standard, 2014 may bring more austerity, import cuts
Brookings Institution, Alain Ize and Augusto de la Torre, Exchange Rate
Unification: The Cuban Case
Cuba Standard, Survey predicts record year for U.S. remittances and travel
to Cuba
Cuba Standard, Portugal says it will extend Cuban healthcare program
Christian Today, 2013 a bad year for religious freedom in Cuba
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CNN Travel, Gallery: New law threatens Cuba's classic, beautiful cars
Granma, Miguel Febles Hernández, El pesado lastre de las pérdidas
económicas
Cubaeconomia, Elias Amor Bravo, Algunos apuntes sobre un artículo en
GRANMA
Trabajadores, Reiniciará operaciones esta semana refinería de petróleo de
Cienfuegos
ICCAS/ CTP, Cuba Facts, Issue 61, Cuba’s Military Power Elite
Marta Beatriz Roque Cabello, Otra bravuconería más
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Obama, Raúl Castro and South Africa
By Carlos Alberto Montaner*
13 December 2013
Granma did not print Barack Obama's speech in South Africa. It was humiliating for Raúl
Castro. After the formal handshake, Obama explained that Mandela's name should not be
invoked in vain. It wasn't acceptable to celebrate the life and work of the late leader while
persecuting those who hold ideas different from the official views. That's called
hypocrisy.
While reading his speech, Raúl unwittingly proved Obama right. Without a blush, he
celebrated diversity as if he presided over the Helvetic Federation. While he spoke,
repression hardened in Cuba against the democrats, in the form of blows, kicks and jail
cells. The spectacle embodied the platonic idea of hypocrisy.
To understand Cuba, it is reasonable to take a close look at South Africa. There are many
similarities between the late apartheid and the Castros' dictatorship. The two systems
were erected on harebrained theories that led to abuse and authoritarianism.
The South African apartheid fed from the shameful U.S. tradition of racial segregation,
built on the sophism of “two equal but separate societies,” a model that originated in the
alleged superiority of whites and was forged in the abundant “Jim Crow” legislation.
When the National Party of South Africa adopted that philosophy in 1948 and later
fragmented the country into bantustans, it poured the foundations for horror.
The Cuban dictatorship, in turn, feeds from the superstitions of Marxism-Leninism. The
communists have the exclusive privilege of organizing Cuban coexistence. Even the
Constitution says that. The island's rulers are backed by the certainty of “scientific”
superiority. No other voices may exist because they, through the Party, are the vanguard
of the proletariat, that class on which depends – no one knows why – the outcome of
history.
That infamous South Africa, happily gone, was basically divided into two racial castes:
on one hand, the whites, with all the rights and privileges; on the other, the blacks and
half-castes, second-rate subjects (they weren't even citizens.)
Cuba is divided into two ideological castes: the communists and their “revolutionary”
sympathizers, who enjoy all the rights, and the indifferent citizens and the oppositionists,
branded as worms or scum and treated and maltreated with the greatest contempt. They're
even barred from university studies because of the insistent proclamations that “the
university is for the revolutionists.”
The defenders of racial segregation and apartheid in South Africa legislated on the
feelings of persons. No one could love a person of another race. Couldn't have sexual
relations with him or her. Interracial marriage was not possible. Not even caresses and
kisses.
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The defenders of the dictatorship in Cuba decreed that no one could have affectionate ties
with exiles, political prisoners or oppositionists. The ties between parents and children,
siblings and friends were broken. Sometimes, couples were broken up. Marriage with
foreigners was frowned upon.
The odd category of “disaffected” people was created. The political police watched the
wives of the communist leaders, civilian or military, to notify the husbands of any
adulterous relationship. The revolution owned women's pudenda.
Facing the horror of apartheid, numerous countries began to pressure for a change of
regime. It had to be done. It was the decent thing to do, to end that viscous rot and replace
it peacefully with a pluralistic system based on consensus, democracy and equality before
the law. To achieve this, an economic embargo was instituted, sponsored by the United
Nations.
Besieged by other nations, the white government of Pretoria screamed in protest and
invoked its peculiar laws and Constitution. It exercised its sovereign right to selfdetermination but to no avail. Above that vile “nationalistic” alibi rose decency. White
rulers could not maltreat the black population with impunity as if it were composed of
animals.
The United States, which hesitated cowardly during the international embargo against
South Africa (in the end, it joined it), is one of the few countries that -- in the case of
Cuba -- puts pressure on the economic sector to replace a totalitarian and unjust regime
with a democratic, pluralistic and inclusive government.
That is the coherent thing to do: to contribute to Cuba's self-liberation, as happened in
South Africa. I suppose that, according to Obama, that's the best way to honor Mandela.
*Journalist and writer. His latest book is the novel “Goodbye Again.”
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Cuban dissident Antunez calls for push against Castro regime
By Juan O. Tamayo
jtamayo@ElNuevoHerald.com
Miami Herald, Posted on Mon, Dec. 30, 2013
On the eve of returning to Cuba after a four-month trip abroad, democracy activist Jorge
Luis García “Antúnez” said Monday that Cubans on the island and in exile must
aggressively push to end the Castro government.
“We are returning to Cuba, not to wait for things to happen” but to continue attacking the
government, García said, because “the Castro system is not going to fall and there’s no
reason why we have to continue waiting for Fidel and Raúl to die so we can be free.”
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“No dictatorship has fallen by itself,” he added. “The regime must be destabilized. An
atmosphere of protest and tension, which the repression apparatus cannot control, must be
recreated. The frustration and popular anger must be exploited.
The struggle to remove the Castro brothers from power requires a national strike and
must lead to the release of all political prisoners, the legalization of all political parties
and justice for government security agents who have “blood on their hands,” he added.
Garcia also said that he was not surprised by President Barack Obama’s handshake with
Raul Castro earlier this month “because my impression of Obama is not very good ... He
is a leftist.”
García, who spent 17 of his 49 years in prison, and his wife, Yris Tamara Perez Aguilera
will return Tuesday to their hometown of Placetas in central Cuba. They are considered
to be among the most active government critics on the island.
Both received medical treatment while in the United States, he said. Although doctors in
Cuba had warned him that he had a potentially fatal heart condition, Miami physicians
reported his heart was not that bad but found a benign tumor in his testicles.
They held a news conference in the Miami office of Republican Rep. Ileana RosLehtinen, arranged with the support of the Miami-based Cuban Democratic Directorate
and the Resistance Assembly, a coalition of dozens of anti-Castro groups.
García also dismissed a report from Havana on Monday by the Agence France Press
news agency saying that although many dissidents were allowed to travel abroad this year
for the first time in decades, they had “lost importance on the island, moving away from
the daily problems of the people.”
The traveling dissidents “ratified their well known criticisms of the Cuban government
but did not unveil any viable proposals on the essential problems,” and “adapted their
vision to that of exiles,” the report quoted analyst Arturo López-Levy as saying.
García said the Cuban government scored some points by allowing the dissidents to
travel abroad after Jan. 14, but added that the democracy activists also scored by
denouncing the government’s human rights abuses at every stop.
During their trip García and his wife met with government officials and academics from
the United States, Poland, Taiwan, Hungary, Norway and Sweden and addressed the
human rights panels of the United Nations in Switzerland and the Organization of
American States in Washington.
Their four months abroad, he added, was “more than enough, we believe, to carry out our
principal objective, to denounce the dictatorship.”
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Los dinosaurios y las gacelas
Juan Triana Cordoví es un economista, profesor del Centro de Estudios de la Economía
Cubana de la Universidad de la Habana. Parece una persona franca y llana.
Publicado en El Diario Exterior el 2 de enero del 2014
Cortesía de Carlos Alberto Montaner

E
n su condición de experto, acudió al Ministerio del Interior a dictar
una charla sobre los cambios que propicia el dictador Raúl Castro. Vale la
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pena ver la hora filmada por la policía política y proyectada por medio de
YouTube.
Juan Triana en conferencia en el MININT
Lo interesante es que demuestra el altísimo nivel de desengaño con el
colectivismo marxista. Ya nadie cree en esa soberana estupidez. De la charla
se deduce que Fidel –a quien la única virtud que le concede es que consiguió
prevalecer pese a los descalabros que él mismo provocara– es un tipo terco
e irresponsable, cuyas decisiones hay que ir desmontando para alcanzar un
modo racional y productivo de hacer las cosas.
No lo dice así, y trata a Fidel con respeto, pero el subtexto es ése: la reforma
consiste en desandar todas las inútiles barbaridades hechas por este
arbitrario caotizador, responsable de la pobreza y el atraso que padecen los
cubanos.
Triana Cordoví cree (a mi juicio ingenuamente) que las reformas podrán
llevarse a cabo con éxito en las 2 500 empresas clave que el Estado maneja.
Opina que en ese núcleo productivo la revolución se juega su destino.
Si Triana Cordoví fuera capaz de aplicar su propia lógica arribaría a la
conclusión de que le está pidiendo peras al olmo. Como él ya sabe, porque lo
dice una y otra vez, el Estado es un pésimo e incosteable productor, incapaz
de convertirse en un empresario eficiente.
Al raulismo le está sucediendo algo inevitable: quienes quieren reformar un
Estado-empresario acaban por descubrir que eso no es posible. Como
alguna vez escuché en España: "los dinosaurios no suelen parir gacelas".
Naturalmente, cuando acaben de enterrar ese adefesio tendrán ante ellos
una grave cuestión moral: la función esencial de la dictadura de partido único
era ponerle fin a la existencia de la propiedad privada en los medios de
producción como parte del glorioso trayecto hacia una maravillosa sociedad
sin clases. Una vez que se renuncia a esa perniciosa creencia, ¿por qué y
para qué se va a sostener un modelo político como el comunista con su
lamentable "dictadura para el proletariado"?
Por eso, hace muchas décadas, Milovan Djilas advirtió que el comunismo no
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era reformable. No sé qué tiempo demorará Raúl Castro en admitirlo. Me da
la impresión de que Triana Cordoví no está muy lejos.
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The Once Great City of Havana
World Affairs, 3 December 2013
Dispatches
Michael J. Totten
“Havana is like Pompeii and Castro is its Vesuvius.” – Anthony Daniels
Almost every picture I’ve ever seen of Cuba’s capital shows the city in ruins. Una Noche, the 2012
gut punch of a film directed by Lucy Mulloy, captures in nearly every shot the savage decay of what
was once the Western Hemisphere’s most beautiful city.
So I was stunned when I saw the restored portion of Old Havana for the first time.
It is magnificent. And it covers a rather large area. A person could wander around there all day, and I
did. At first glance you could easily mistake it for Europe and could kid yourself into thinking Cuba is
doing just fine.
And yet, photographers largely ignore it. Filmmakers, too. It must drive Cuba’s ministers of tourism
nuts. Why do you people only photograph the decay? We spent so much time, effort, and money
cleaning up before you got here.
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Perhaps the wrecked part of the city—which is to say, most of it—strikes more people as photogenic.
But I don’t think that’s it. The reason restored Old Havana is ignored by photographers, I believe, is
because it looks and feels fake.
It was fixed up just for tourists. Only communist true believers would go to Cuba on holiday if the
entire capital were still a vast ruinscape. And since hardly anyone is a communist anymore, something
had to be done.
But it doesn’t look fake because it looks nice. Czechoslovakia was gray and dilapidated during the
communist era, but no one thinks Prague isn’t authentic now that it’s lovely again. The difference is
that the Czechs didn’t erect a Potemkin façade in a single part of their capital just to bait tourists. They
repaired the entire city because, after the fall of the communist government, they finally could.
Nothing like that has occurred in Havana. The rotting surfaces of some of the buildings have been
restored, but those changes are strictly cosmetic. Look around. There’s still nothing to buy. You’ll find
a few nice restaurants and bars here and there, but they’re owned by the state and only foreigners go
there. The locals can’t afford to eat or drink out because the state caps their salaries at twenty dollars a
month. Restored Old Havana looks and feels no more real than the Las Vegas version of Venice.
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It’s sort of pleasant regardless, but it reeks of apartheid. The descendents of the people who built this
once fabulous city, the ones who live in it now, aren’t allowed to enjoy it. All they can do is walk
around on the streets outside and peer in through the glass.
The semi-fake renovation is, however, good enough that one thing is blindingly obvious: If Cuba had
free enterprise, and if Americans could travel there without restrictions, the economy would go
supernova.
“The touristy parts of Havana are lovely,” said a friend of mine who has been there many times and
returned home with a Cuban wife a few years ago. “But if you get out of the bubble and look at the
places the tourist busses don’t go, you will see a different Havana.”
That’s for damn sure.
I walked toward the center of town from the somewhat remote Habana Libre Hotel and found myself
the only foreigner in a miles-wide swath of destruction.
I’ve seen cities in the Middle East pulverized by war. I’ve seen cities elsewhere in Latin America
stricken with unspeakable squalor and poverty. But nowhere else have I seen such a formerly
grandiose city brought as low as Havana. The restored part of town—artifice though it may be—
shows all too vividly what the whole thing once looked like.
It was a wealthy European city when it was built. Poor nations do not build capitals that look like
Havana. They can’t. Poor nations build Guatemala City and Cairo.
“Havana” Theodore Dalrymple wrote in City Journal, “is like Beirut, without having gone through
the civil war to achieve the destruction.” Actually, it’s worse even than that. Beirut pulses with
energy. Parts of it are justifiably even a little bit snobbish like Paris. Even its poorest neighborhoods,
the ones controlled by Hezbollah, aren’t as gruesome as most of Havana.
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Yet the bones of Cuba’s capital are unmatched in our hemisphere. “The Cubans of successive
centuries created a harmonious architectural whole almost without equal in the world,” Dalrymple
wrote. “There is hardly a building that is wrong, a detail that is superfluous or tasteless. The tiled
multicoloration of the Bacardi building, for example, which might be garish elsewhere, is perfectly
adapted—natural, one might say—to the Cuban light, climate, and temper. Cuban architects
understood the need for air and shade in a climate such as Cuba’s, and they proportioned buildings
and rooms accordingly. They created an urban environment that, with its arcades, columns, verandas,
and balconies, was elegant, sophisticated, convenient, and joyful.”
But now it looks like a set on the History Channel’s show Life After People, only it’s still inhabited.
Baghdad in the middle of the Iraq war was in better shape physically. I know because I spent months
there and wrote a book about it.
Roofs have collapsed. Balcony doors hang not vertically but at angles, allowing passersby to see
inside homes where the interior paint is just as peeled as it is on the outside. I could even see inside
some people’s homes through gashes in exterior walls. The weight of rain water knocks whole
buildings down as if they were dynamited.
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When your roof caves in, you can’t just call a guy and have him come over and fix it. You have to
wait for the government.
You will wait a long time.
Trust me: you would not want to live there, especially not on a ration card and the government’s
twenty dollar maximum salary. Not that additional money would do you much good. Where would
you spend it? Not even in the slums of Mexico have I seen such pitiful shops. They are not even
shops. They are but darkened caverns on the ground floor which stock a mere handful of items that
could be scooped up and placed in one box.
That is the real Havana, and it is soul-crushing. Life there is a brutal scramble for scraps to survive
amidst ruins. The city looks like it was hit by an epic catastrophe…and it was.
The only hope is escape.
Dalrymple thinks Fidel Castro destroyed Havana on purpose. I don’t know. He’s speculating, of
course, and it seems like a stretch, but he makes an interesting point. The city’s former magnificence,
he says, is “a material refutation of [Castro’s] entire historiography… According to [Castro’s]
account, Cuba was a poor agrarian society, impoverished by its dependent relationship with the United
States, incapable without socialist revolution of solving its problems. A small exploitative class of
intermediaries benefited enormously from the neocolonial relationship, but the masses were sunk in
abject poverty and misery.
“But Havana,” he continues, “was a large city of astonishing grandeur and wealth, which was clearly
not confined to a tiny minority, despite the coexistence with that wealth of deep poverty. Hundreds of
thousands of people obviously had lived well in Havana, and it is not plausible that so many had done
so merely by the exploitation of a relatively small rural population. They must themselves have been
energetic, productive, and creative people. Their society must have been considerably more complex
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and sophisticated than Castro can admit without destroying the rationale of his own rule. In the
circumstances, therefore, it became ideologically essential that the material traces and even the very
memory of that society should be destroyed.”
*
Dr. Carlos Eire is a professor of history at Yale University. He specializes in late medieval and early
modern Europe. His best-selling books, however, are memoirs about growing up in Cuba and
adjusting to exile in Florida. His first, Waiting for Snow in Havana, won the National Book Award in
2003. The sequel, Learning to Die in Miami, was published in 2010.
He came without his family to the United States as a child, along with 14,000 other young Cubans, as
part of a CIA project called Operation Peter Pan that rescued children from the regime so they
wouldn’t become the brainwashed property of the state.
“The question I always get,” he said in a talk at Harvard University’s book store, “is why would any
parent do that? Our parents really felt they had no choice. They had Sophie’s Choice to make. Either
we stayed there and faced another form of being taken away from them, or they could exercise some
choice in where we would end up. By 1961 the Cuban government was already taking Cuban children
away from their parents. Education in state-run schools was compulsory. And the education was
heavily laced with indoctrination of communist principles.”
Castro collaborated in Operation Peter Pan and allowed the United States to take Cuban children away
because, as one former regime official later told Eire, “anything that destroyed the bourgeois family
was music to our ears.”
His first memoir, Waiting for Snow in Havana, describes in loving detail the place of his birth before
the communist wrecking ball flattened it. None of us can return to our childhoods, but that’s more true
for Eire than it is for most people. And he’s angry about it.
“Until full democracy is restored,” he told me,” I will never set foot in my native land. The mere
disappearance of the Castro dynasty will not be enough. My convictions aside, even if I wanted to go,
I simply can't. The Castro regime has declared me an enemy of the state and banned all of my books. I
consider that the greatest honor ever bestowed on me.”
I’m always afraid I’m going to make stupid mistakes when I visit a country for the first time and write
about it in a tone that suggests I know everything. I don’t know everything. I’m not always even sure
what I’m looking at. So I asked Eire for help.
“What are the most common mistakes journalists make when they write about Cuba?” I said.
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“American and European journalists tend to accept and parrot the Castro version of Cuban history
unquestioningly,” he said. “At best, the Castro version of Cuban history is an awful caricature.
Anyone familiar with the real thing has to strain to recognize the features rendered by the caricaturist
in order to make the connection between the drawing and what it represents. Like all caricatures—
even very bad ones—it skews all proportions.”
He insists Cuba was not a Third World nation before Castro seized power. That’s not hard to believe.
Havana is not like San Juan, Puerto Rico, where the old part of town is relatively small. In Havana,
exquisite European architecture stretches block after block after block after block for miles in every
direction. The city could not possibly have been poor when it was built. It might have been a bit
shabby during the pre-Castro Batista era—that wouldn’t surprise me—but Eire grew up there at that
time and insists that it wasn’t.
“Havana had a prosperous economy and a middle class proportionately larger than some European
countries,” said. “Hence the fact that over one million Europeans (and many Asians and Middle
Easterners) migrated to Cuba between 1900 and 1950. When this massive wave of migration began,
the population of Cuba was only around 3 million. To put these statistics in perspective: this would be
the equivalent of the USA attracting 100 million immigrants over the next half century. People do not
migrate in such proportions to a benighted nation.”
But surely not everyone prospered. Revolutions tend not to break out in countries where everyone is
doing just fine.
“Yes,” he said, “pre-Castro Cuba had poverty (every country in the world has poverty), but the city of
New Haven, Connecticut has a sharper divide between rich and poor and a higher percentage of poor
people per capita in 2013 than Cuba did in 1958, and so do about ten other cities in Connecticut.”
Havana outside the tourist bubble is painful to look at. It actually hurt me and brought to mind a line
from Dustin Hoffman’s character in Andy Garcia’s film The Lost City. “She was a beautiful thing,
Havana,” he said. “We should have known she was a heartbreaker.”
It hurts because, unlike in liberal capitalist countries, poverty is imposed. Abolishing private property
and implementing a dismal maximum wage requires extraordinary repression. Free people would
never vote for it, which is why Cuba hasn’t had a single free election since Castro came to power.
“The Committees for the Defense of the Revolution,” Eire said, referring to the network of
neighborhood spies, “are the gatekeepers for everything, especially for the future of everyone’s
children. One bad report and your child’s life can be ruined—which means that instead of living in the
fifth circle of hell like everyone else, they will have to live in the thirteenth circle which is deeper than
anything Dante ever imagined. Then there is the colossal apparatus of State Security. At least with the
CDRs you know who your neighborhood spy is, but the State Security operatives infiltrate everything,
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everywhere, especially the workplace. And they can turn anyone’s life into a nightmare with the snap
of their fingers.”
CDR propaganda,
Havana
Cuban exile Valentin Prieto in Miami shares Eire’s disgust of the CDRs and the government’s child
abuse.
“Imagine if the state police came knocking on your door because your CDR neighbor smelled that
black market chicken you fried last night to feed your kids,” he said. “You would tend to be
surreptitious in everything, including thought and expression. You’d put up a false front, act like
you’re the happiest, luckiest guy on Earth. The biggest problem with foreign journalists when it comes
to Cuba is that they take everything at face value. ‘So-and-so said he’s very happy that the revolution
gave him an education and that he has free healthcare.’ Yet so-and-so ain’t so happy because his
daughter has to sell her ass to tourists because while he’s educated, he can’t earn a decent wage. And
so-and-so isn’t so happy that he’s got to find medicines and other medical supplies to take to his
daughter while she’s in the hospital. That kind of stuff never gets reported.”
He told me about what happened at his sister’s elementary school a few years after Castro took over.
“Do you want ice cream and dulces (sweets),” his sister’s teacher, a staunch Fidelista, asked the class.
“Yes!” the kids said.
“Okay, then,” she said. “Put your hands together, bow your heads, and pray to God that he brings you
ice cream and dulces.”
Nothing happened, of course. God did not did not provide the children with ice cream or dulces.
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“Now,” the teacher said. “Put your hands together and pray to Fidel that the Revolution gives you ice
cream and sweets.”
The kids closed their eyes and bowed their heads. They prayed to Fidel Castro. And when the kids
raised their heads and opened their eyes, ice cream and dulces had miraculously appeared on the
teacher’s desk.
“Notwithstanding the murders and assassinations and tortures and such,” Prieto said, “the
indoctrination and exploitation of children is the worst thing the regime has done and continues to do
to this day. A student’s file in Cuba doesn’t just have information on their attendance and education.
It’s more like a dossier on that child’s family and their revolutionary ‘ardor.’ Kids are made to spy on
their families. They’re questioned as to whether the family speaks ill of Fidel and the Revolution, on
whether or not they attend meetings, or whether they have more than their allotted share of milk, etc.
This is why the Cuban American community created such a ruckus over Elian Gonzalez. Kids don’t
belong to their parents in Cuba, they belong to the state. Period.”
He says the worst thing about the CDR spies is that they don’t even work for the government. They
volunteer to rat out their neighbors for an extra handful of beans every month. “It is literally citizen
spying on citizen,” he said. “I’ve heard of cases of a brother snitching on a brother, or a son snitching
on a father. Once the regime comes to an end, things in Cuba are going to get ugly and bloody,
especially with and against those CDR bastards. If I were a father living in Cuba trying to feed my
family and had the CDR make my life a living hell every time I happened upon a black market piece
of meat, or milk for my children, you can bet your ass that the first guy I’m coming for once the
government goes down is that CDR SOB that’s been snitching on me for years. People are always
talking about reconciliation when it comes to Cuba, how Cubans outside of the island are going to
have to reconcile with Cubans still on the island. There will, of course, be some of that. But the real
reconciliation needed will be between those ‘haves’ like the CDRs and the ‘have nots.’”
*
Though I learned all kinds of things from random encounters with everyday Cubans, I had no choice
but to supplement my field work by interviewing exiles like Eire and Prieto. I’d risk arrest if I reached
out to high-profile dissidents. Regime officials wouldn’t speak to me, and they’d just ladle bullshit up
anyway. The people I casually met know Cuba on a granular level better than the exiles possibly
could, but they have to be careful.
“Cuba is full of dissidents,” Eire said. “Most of them are silent, however, and will remain silent.
Conditioned to fear the omnipresent ears and eyes of Big Brother, they will not speak their minds to
foreign journalists. Highly skilled in the arts of deception, they will praise the regime while seething
inside. Those who are not silent are constantly under siege or in prison. Contacting these visible
outcasts means losing one’s chance to be in Cuba: expulsion is certain for any journalist who seeks out
the opposition.”
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His analysis might be slightly out of date at this point. I never did meet a Cuban, seething or
otherwise, who praised the regime. I’m sure it still happens, but I get the sense it happens a lot less
often now than it used to. Criticism is more open, though it’s sometimes elliptic.
Let me give you an example.
I visited a small art gallery inside the home of famous photographer Jose Figueroa and his wife
Cristina Vives. When I first stepped into the living room I thought I might have made a mistake, that I
was not where I wanted to be, because the first photographs I saw on the wall by the front door
featured Castro’s chief executioner, Che Guevara. The most prominent wasn’t actually a photo of Che
Guevara, per se. Rather, it showed a cigarette lighter embossed with that famous image of Che taken
by Alberto Korda.
Figueroa himself seemed a shy man, but his wife Cristina is happy to show tourists around.
“Jose was visiting the United States on 9/11,” she said. “He was in New York City. It was a
frightening time, and he had that lighter with him.” She pointed at her husband’s photograph on the
wall, the one with the Che lighter. “Because of what had just happened, the lighter was confiscated in
the security line at the airport. That famous lighter with that famous image is gone forever because of
Osama bin Laden. It’s a shame, but it’s a great story, isn’t it? Think about it.”
Wait. Why, exactly, is that a great story and why was she telling me to think about it? What did she
mean? That the United States has a heavy-handed government, too? That the Americans got in one
last swipe at Che Guevara before moving on to the Terror War? That the ripple effects from Al
Qaeda’s assault on New York City reached as far as Havana? That an object showing the face of one
mass murdering sonofabitch was indirectly destroyed by another mass murdering sonofabitch?
I don’t know what she was trying to say, but she made one thing loud and clear: she wanted me to
think about what she was telling me, and she was leaving some things unsaid. That’s often how people
talk to each other in totalitarian countries. Foreigners who aren’t used to it need to know and pay close
attention.
Most of Figueroa’s pictures on the wall were taken in the 1960s and the 1970s. They feature bourgeois
middle class people doing bourgeois middle class things during a time of proletarian collectivism. His
photos are in black and white, which suggested a bygone era even at the time they were taken.
“I’m sure you’ve seen other pictures from Cuba at that time,” Cristina said. “They probably showed
bearded revolutionaries with guns. But most Cubans were not bearded revolutionaries with guns. Most
of us were middle class. And we were here, too.”
Figueroa’s black and white images of Cuba’s vanished middle class are as sad as they are arresting.
An entire class of people—my class—was murdered, imprisoned, forced into exile, or forced into
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poverty. Fidel Castro didn’t only destroy Havana’s buildings. He destroyed the lives of the people
who live in them.
Here is one of Jose Figueroa’s photographs. He
is waving goodbye to his friend Olga, possibly forever, as she prepares to board her flight to exile in
Florida
Many of Figueroa’s pictures seem to me quietly subversive in the most subtle of ways, not because
they’re anti-communist but because they’re non-communist. That’s my take, anyway. Neither he nor
his wife said a single word critical of the regime. Maybe I’m wrong. This is my interpretation. I own
it.
But listen to what Cristina said next.
“You should go to the art museum,” she said, “the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes. Everyone who
goes there is struck by a Flavio Garciandia painting from 1975. You have to realize that everything
was political then. Cuban art was required to serve socialist principles. The Beatles were banned. Yet
Garciandia painted a picture of a pretty girl laying in a field of grass and called it ‘All You Need is
Love’ after the Beatles song. The museum immediately bought the painting for a small sum and
prominently displayed it. Things started to change after that.”
So Garciandia the painter and the art museum curators mounted a protest. Not only did they get away
with it, it had the desired effect.
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Only in a communist country or an Islamist theocracy would such acts be considered rebellious. Few
in Europe or the United States would even notice that painting. It certainly wouldn’t be a political
lightning bolt. Only in a totalitarian country where every damn thing under the sun has to be
ideological can such a blatantly apolitical painting be considered political.
Is that what Jose Figueroa was doing with his photographs in the 60s and 70s? Being anti-communist
by being non-communist at a time when everything had to be communist? Did he get away with it
because he used a camera instead of a canvas and because he covered his ass once in a while by
including Korda’s image of Che?
I don’t know. Nobody said that to me. He certainly didn’t, nor did his wife. Maybe I only saw what I
wanted to see. It happens.
Displaying non-communist art is allowed now, and they said nothing “negative” about the revolution
or government, so nothing they’re doing in that gallery is technically subversive at all, nor is anything
either of them said to me. For all I really know, they’re both regime sympathizers.
(You can get a coffee table book of Figueroa’s photos, by the way, from Amazon.com and see for
yourself.)
But there was more to see in their gallery. Figueroa and his wife had mounted a television screen on
the wall above a doorway into one of the back rooms. On the screen played a video shot from a handheld camera out the window of a commercial airplane at cruising altitude. I could see the wing jutting
out the side of the plane above clouds far below, and I could hear the roar of the engine, but that was
it. Nothing was actually happening on screen.
“What am I looking at here?” I said. The film, if I could call it that, seemed incredibly dull, but there
had to be a point I wasn’t seeing.
“That,” Cristina said, “is a film of the entire flight in real time from Havana to Miami.”
Oh. Well. That was certainly interesting.
“The flight takes less than an hour,” she said. “It feels like a long time if you stand here and watch it,
but it’s no time at all if you’re on the plane. We are so close, and yet so far. It all depends on your
perspective.”
Most photographs on the wall in their home were black and white, but I’ll never forget one color
photograph in the very last room. The image struck me with great force before I even knew what it
was.
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It shows a man inside what appears to be a Cuban house. The main room is sparsely furnished. Paint is
peeling off the walls. The man is opening his front door just the tiniest crack and carefully peering
outside. The image conveyed to me a feeling of fear and hope at the same time.
“Do you know what that is?” Cristina said. “On his television screen?”
I hadn’t really noticed that inside the man’s house in the photograph was a small black and white
television set. The image on the screen was grainy and vague.
“No,” I said. “I can’t tell what’s on the screen.”
“It is the fall of the Berlin Wall,” she said, “broadcast on Cuban television.”
I felt a jolt of adrenaline. It was my body’s way of telling me I was seeing and hearing something
important, something I’d have to remember and later write down.
“But there’s something wrong with the picture,” Cristina said. “Do you know what it is?”
I looked intently at it again. What was wrong with the photo? All I saw was a Cuban man peering with
tremendous caution outside his front door while communism self-destructed in Europe.
“Tell me,” I said.
“The fall of the Berlin Wall was never broadcast on television in Cuba,” she said. “The picture is
fake.”
*
In Havana I met an elderly Jewish couple from Austin, Texas. They travel a lot, especially now that
they’re retired.
She escaped Nazi Germany when she was a child. She’s old enough to remember Kristallnacht, the
Night of Broken Glass, the prologue to the Holocaust when mobs of rampaging brownshirts shattered
the windows of Jewish-owned buildings and stores.
Her family fled to Cuba, of all places, before moving again to the United States. She and her husband
have been married for more than sixty years now.
“I’ve seen poverty in other countries,” she said, “but here it bothers me more. I’m not sure why.”
“It bothers me more, too,” I said. “And I know why.”
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She has personal experience with totalitarian governments, so I wasn’t surprised when she agreed with
my analysis after I shared it.
“In most countries,” I said, “no one has to live in a slum. It’s difficult to get out, but it’s possible to get
out. Here people get twenty dollars a month and a ration card and that’s it. They’re forced by law to be
poor. Exile is the only way out.”
She nodded and thought about what I said. I could see from the look on her face that she was
remembering terrible events in her own life that I can never relate to.
“I’m glad I came,” she said. “It has been quite an experience. But you couldn’t pay me enough to
come back here.”
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ECONOMÍA EN CRISIS; Los nuevos ricos en Cuba
Se pueden dar el lujo de cenar tres veces a la semana en una paladar y pagar 150 cuc por
un cubierto en la Plaza de la Catedral para comer exquisiteces
Imagen tomada de un video de la cena de fin de año organizada por
Habaguanex en la Plaza de la Catedral de La Habana. (YouTube)
LA HABANA, CUBA/IVÁN GARCÍA/ESPECIALsáb ene 4 2014 19:18
No son tan ostentosos como los nuevos ricos rusos que compran compulsivamente y
vacían los anaqueles en Marbella. Tampoco su tren de vida y gastos tiene que ver con
un millonario de Qatar, que por puro placer compra un arruinado club de fútbol europeo.
Los nuevos ricos cubanos tienen otra pinta y comportamiento.
"Hay varias castas. Están los privilegiados de toda la vida: ministros, gerentes de
empresas boyantes o generales que han cambiado el uniforme verde olivo por una
impoluta guayabera blanca. Ellos pueden comer mariscos y tomar vino tinto español",
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dice un exfuncionario.
En su opinión, es una clase muy especial. "Se accede por genes familiares, lealtad o
adulonería. Pero es un coto exclusivo. Según su jerarquía, estos burgueses
revolucionarios pueden tener un yate y hasta un Hummer".
Una nueva clase social
Una persona que conoce de cerca el poder, afirma que suelen ir de vacaciones a Ibiza o
Cancún. "Están por encima de las leyes y la Constitución. Por decreto divino, pueden
tener antenas de cable, internet en casa y varios autos. No necesitan apagar los los
aires acondicionados para ahorrar energía y cuando el dólar estaba prohibido, en sus
carteras habían billetes del supuesto enemigo".
Hubo y aún existen otros tipos de ‘ricos’. La gente les dice 'macetas'. Es una fauna
variopinta de ladroncillos de cuellos blanco que se birlan unos cuantos millones de
pesos y abundan en diferentes niveles de los ministerios públicos. "Portan el carnet del
partido a conveniencia o te sueltan un discurso repleto de consignas revolucionarias.
Ésa casta le ha sabido dar una vuelta al sistema", expresa una señora que fue sirvienta
en la casa de un dirigente.
Los cubanos comunes y corrientes saben que andan en carros del Estado, con gasolina
del Estado y que le roban al Estado. Que invierten en negocios familiares. Y debajo del
colchón guardan dólares y euros, entre otras divisas. "Los más inteligentes desertan en
un viaje oficial y con el dinero robado montan una empresa discreta en la Florida",
asevera el exfuncionario.
La gente de a pie igualmente sabe que va en aumento el número de emprendedores
privados que está ganando bastante en sus negocios.
También, que en Cuba existen los ‘metedores de cuerpo’. Personas que siempre han
vivido al margen de la ley. Vendiendo drogas, ropa de marca, perfumes piratas, casas o
autos. Y con la plata ahorrada, los 'metedores de cuerpo' abren una cafetería o alquilan
habitaciones a turistas extranjeros por 30 dólares la noche.
Otros privilegiados son los ricos 'de flay’. Según una maestra jubilada, "son los cubanos
que gracias a las remesas giradas por parientes en Miami, que para sostener el tren de
vida de estas sanguijuelas, no pocas veces tienen hasta dos trabajos".
Todos ellos, desde la casta verde olivo hasta los ricos 'de flay’, marcan la diferencia con
esa amplia mayoría de la población que come caliente una vez al día y alivia el calor
con un ventilador chino.
Fastuoso tren de vida
Los nuevos ricos se pueden dar el lujo de cenar tres veces a la semana en una paladar
y pagar 150 cuc por un cubierto en la Plaza de la Catedral, para comer exquisiteces y
esperar el nuevo año escuchando a Isaac Delgado.
Algunos los envidian. Pero, en general, los cubanos aceptan las nuevas reglas de
juego. Ven bien que su vecino tenga un negocio, haga dinero y pueda alojarse en un
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hotel de Varadero. Y que el Estado venda autos y te permita viajar al extranjero.
Aplauden que se elimine la absurda doble moneda y reclaman mejores salarios, con la
esperanza de algún día ellos también puedan cenar en restaurantes caros o visitar
Cayo Coco.
Lo que la gente reprocha es la hipocresía de los jerarcas del régimen. Que hablen en
nombre de los pobres mientras viven y cenan como los nuevos ricos de Rusia.
Por eso, cuando muchos cubanos ven a Raúl Castro, les parece estar observando a
Vladimir Putin. Puede que sea una ilusión óptica
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Cuban children treated to scaled-down celebration in Havana following
toy raid
By Juan O. Tamayo
jtamayo@ElNuevoHerald.com
Miami Herald, Posted on Sat, Jan. 04, 2014
Cuba’s dissident Ladies in White treated 55 children to cake and candies in a Three
Kings Day gathering Saturday in Havana, hit hard by police raiders who seized toys that
were to be distributed but supported by an emergency wire transfer of cash from Miami.
Jose Daniel Ferrer, leader of the Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU), meanwhile
reported that similar police raids in eastern Cuba seized $600 to $900 in cash, five laptops
and all the toys from dissidents who planned three other kids’ parties.
Authorities also seized $8,000 in private savings from activist Aimee Garces, who
recently sold her family home and buys and sells clothes, and $300 sent to Ferrer’s
daughter by an aunt in the United States, he said.
Ferrer and 43 other activists were detained early Friday as police raided dissident homes
in Santiago de Cuba, Palma Soriano and Palmarito de Cauto to break up the planned
parties for kids. Ferrer was one of the last to be freed, at 9 p.m. Friday.
The dissident UNPACU is now trying to gather the minimum necessary supplies to host
the parties planned for more than 200 kids, he added, but may have to wait until after
Three Kings Day on Jan. 6.
In Havana, Ladies in White leader Berta Soler said the women went ahead with a party
for 55 children, gathered at the group’s headquarters Saturday, although police raiders
seized all the toys and other party supplies on Friday.
The women managed to find some small story books for the kids, Soler said, and to buy
three cakes, some candy canes and balloons, in part with a swift Western Union money
transfer from Cubans in Miami.
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Cuban government supporters have alleged the toys were part of a planned “provocation”
backed by the Miami-based Cuban American National Foundation and the U.S.
government’s Agency for International Development (USAID).
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Cuba's classic cars are icons of oppression that deserve scrapping
It's deeply distasteful that we prefer to admire an Oldsmobile than consider the
communist dictatorship that led to its survival

Mark Wallace
The Guardian, Sunday 5 January 2014 14.50 EST
'The motor museum driving Cuba’s roads each day might seem quaint to tourists, who
can go back to their air-conditioned, reliable and safe modern cars when their holiday is
over.' Photograph: Eamonn McCabe
Most western travellers visiting Cuba will have come across the island's cars long before
their plane lands. They appear in every travel guide, and you can buy calendars and
posters of the 1950s classics that still drive through the streets of Havana.
They've become an icon of the island – considered a quaint, unmissable feature of Cuba's
unique atmosphere. So, it was against a background of nostalgia that the news broke that
they may at last be retired. It was portrayed almost as a saddening shame that these
majestic beasts of the road might disappear.
This is patronising nonsense. As the experience of the rest of the world shows, if Cubans
had the choice they would have abandoned their clapped-out Studebakers and
Oldsmobiles long ago. The only reason they didn't is that the communist dictatorship that
rules them did not allow it.
In a classic example of some being more equal than others, only senior party officials and
a smattering of celebrities deemed of use to the party have been allowed to buy new
vehicles from abroad over the past 60 years.
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The motor museum driving Cuba's roads each day might seem quaint to tourists, who can
go back to their air-conditioned, reliable and safe modern cars when their holiday is over
– in reality the sight is a symptom of the way in which dictatorship runs down the lives of
those forced to labour beneath it.
The tourist attitude is a form of rubbernecking at misfortune, of the type that has
commonly become unacceptable in decent society. While our Victorian ancestors thought
it quaint to set up villages of what they considered to be primitive Africans at shows in
Britain, today we rightly act to end the misery of poverty instead of gawping at it.
Somehow Cuba has managed to escape that trend. While Iran and North Korea are seen
for what they really are, the last outpost of dictatorship in the Americas is let off lightly,
all Buena Vista Social Club tracks, mojitos and sun-soaked beaches.
Maybe it's that the cars, along with the island's music, are a leftover from what is to the
west a vanished age of style and romance. Maybe it's simply part of the wider fashion for
excusing the actions of the Castro regime, hand in hand with the incongruous sight of
western liberals wearing T-shirts of the racist and murderer Che Guevara.
Whatever the cause, it's deeply distasteful that we prefer to admire old cars than consider
the system that led to their survival – extensive censorship of the media, vast police
surveillance, near-total restrictions on freedom of assembly and speech, arbitrary arrest
and torture of journalists and dissidents. There is a good reason why large numbers of
Cubans have fled to the US in recent decades, and why people still take the desperate
measure of cobbling together rafts and trying to float across the Caribbean, risking their
lives to be free.
Raúl Castro's relaxation of the rules on car imports is only a baby step towards true
freedom in Cuba, of course. For a start, the state still imposes huge taxes on car imports,
leading to Peugeot 508s going on sale for $262,000 under the new rules. But it's a start.
Once a little freedom is let into a society, inevitably people demand more.
As ever, communist autocrats struggle to let go. After 60 years, it will take a long time to
unravel the oppressive web of permits, snoopers, secret policemen and torturers that
propped up Fidel and now prop up his brother.
As the icons of that age, the cars, fall by the wayside, the rest, one must hope, will follow.
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Cuba charter business consolidates in Florida
By Mimi Whitefield
mwhitefield@MiamiHerald.com
Posted on Sun, Jan. 05, 2014
CW Griffin / MIAMI HERALD STAFF
People line up to travel to Cuba on New Year's Day at Miami International Airport via
Island Travel &Tours. Miami has long been travel central when it comes to trips to Cuba.
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In December — the peak of holiday travel to the island — 394 charter flights departed
from Miami International Airport.
Not only are charters flying to more Cuban cities than ever before, but the charter
industry has consolidated in Florida with flights from Tampa and Fort Lauderdale as
well.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if there are 20 flights leaving from Florida on New Year’s Day
alone,” Michael Zuccato, general manager of Cuba Travel Services, said on New Year’s
Eve. It actually turned out to be 16 flights, including two from Tampa.
Seven charter companies compete for passengers in Florida — now the only place in the
nation where travelers can catch regular charter flights to Cuba.
Travel to the island has evolved in other ways, with new travel rules issued by Cuba in
2013 and record numbers of travelers heading to Cuba from the United States in the past
year.
When the Obama administration reauthorized people-to-people trips to Cuba in 2011, it
also expanded to 15 from three the number of cities authorized to serve as U.S. gateways
to Cuba. Charter companies enthusiastically began making plans to serve new markets,
and a boom in Cuba travel was expected.
But efforts to start charter service from cities including Chicago, Atlanta, Baltimore and
San Juan, Puerto Rico, have fallen by the wayside. Currently there aren’t even flights
from the traditional gateway of New York.
Although some charter companies say they are still interested in offering flights from
cities outside Florida, they say they will do it only if they can make the finances work.
The reality is that Cuba charters are economically feasible only from U.S. cities near
communities with large Cuban-American populations.
Even though 98,050 Americans traveled to Cuba in 2012 on people-to-people tours
designed to increase links with the Cuban people, and almost as many took the tours
through Nov. 15, 2013, Cuban-Americans visiting family members, and increasingly to
do business in Cuba, account for the majority of the trips.
During 2012, 475,936 Cuban-Americans traveled to the island; through Nov. 15, 2013,
the figure was 471,994, making it likely the 2012 number was surpassed by the end of the
year.
Miami-based The Havana Consulting Group estimates that combined number of CubanAmerican and people-to-people travelers will probably exceed 600,000 in 2013 — a
boost for Cuba, which experienced a slowdown in European travel last year.
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After a disappointing October when the number of international visitors to Cuba fell to
167,977, Cuba’s National Office of Statistics and Information recently reported that
travel had rebounded in November with 234,266 foreign tourists. Canada accounted for
38.9 percent of November’s visitors.
With the November increase, Cuban tourism officials said they expected Cuba would end
the year with numbers similar to 2012, when it had 2.8 million international visitors.
But when it comes to travel from the United States to the communist island, Miami
remains the linchpin. Although three charter companies compete on Cuba routes from
Tampa, currently only one, Xael Charters, offers twice-weekly flights from Fort
Lauderdale to Havana.
In contrast, there were 293 departures to Cuba from MIA in November, compared to 231
in November 2012. During the December rush, the number of Cuba departures from MIA
exceeded December 2012’s by more than 100 flights.
The charter companies also have spread their wings beyond the Cuban capital and now
offer direct flights from Miami to Santiago de Cuba, Camagüey, Cienfuegos, Holguín
and Santa Clara.
In late November, however, it appeared the holiday travel season was in jeopardy. The
Cuban Interests Section announced on Nov. 26 that it was suspending consular services
until further notice because its U.S. bank, M&T, was getting out of the business of
handling financial services for diplomatic missions and it had been unable to find another
bank.
Less than two weeks later, the Interests Section said M&T had extended its deadline and
would accept deposits of Cuban fees for visas and passports until Feb. 17 before finally
closing Cuba’s accounts on March 1.
But there was plenty of angst among potential travelers for a few weeks, said charter
operators.
“There was acute awareness on the part of the Cubans that the busiest season of the year
was coming up. Cuba knew it had to solve the problem, and they did, and we’re confident
they will come up with a more permanent solution,” said Bill Hauf, president of Island
Travel & Tours.
Island Travel recently moved its headquarters from Tampa to Miami. “You really can’t
be in the business without being in Miami,” Hauf said.
The charter company now offers six flights a week from Miami to Havana and three
weekly flights from Tampa to the Cuban capital.
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Island Travel had hoped to begin service from Baltimore/Washington International
Airport in 2012, but the flights never got off the ground.
“We are committed to do that flight, but because it’s not a Cuban-American market, it’s
going to take a good deal of promotion and education to let people know they are eligible
to travel to Cuba,” Hauf said.
Cuban-Americans are allowed to travel freely to Cuba, but going to Cuba and spending
money is prohibited for most Americans unless they fall into certain categories such as
those on humanitarian and religious missions, journalists and people on professional
research and academic trips.
People-to-people visits, which are supposed to be “purposeful” trips designed to promote
the free flow of information with everyday Cubans — rather than vacations on the beach
— also are allowed.
Opening Cuba travel to all Americans would help make travel from the other U.S.
gateways feasible, Hauf said.
Cuba Travel Services received landing permission from Cuba for charter service from
Fort Lauderdale, Houston and San Juan, Puerto Rico, in 2011. But today it isn’t flying
any of those routes.
CTS, which has offices in Miami and California, has expanded in Florida, however. It
started service to Havana and Santa Clara from Tampa in December, and also serves
Santa Clara, Havana, Camagüey, Cienfuegos and Santiago from MIA.
“The finances didn’t make sense from the other gateways,” said CTS’ Zuccato. In early
2013, CTS tried service from Los Angeles to Havana. It is still interested in the route, and
would like to “reinstate it again when the time is right.”
One of the issues that make service difficult from other authorized gateways is the
intricacies of leasing planes, said Zuccato.
Although there is no regularly scheduled commercial air service to Cuba, airlines such as
American, Delta and JetBlue are permitted to lease their aircraft to the Cuba charter
companies.
“To find an aircraft that is available for a few hours a day to make a trip from Miami to
Havana is a lot easier than trying to find an aircraft that is available for 12 hours a day for
a trip from California to Cuba,” Zuccato said.
With so many discount airlines serving Florida airports, charter operators trying to
operate from other gateways also find it difficult to compete on price for travelers who
could get a cheap flight to Miami or Fort Lauderdale and then board a charter to Cuba.
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CTS also is interested in the New York metropolitan market, but said its preference
would be to fly out of Newark, N.J. — closer to New Jersey’s large Cuban-American
population. But so far, the U.S. has not authorized Newark as a gateway for Cuba
charters.
Zuccato said CTS plans to begin seeking authorization for Newark this year.
The other big travel development in 2013 was Cuba’s overhaul of its migration and travel
rules. On Jan. 14, Cuba removed almost all restrictions on travel by its citizens.
Although the number of Cubans making foreign trips has increased, it has not been much
of a boon for U.S. charter companies, said Hauf. “The tickets are sold in Cuba and we get
just a modest fee for carrying passengers from Havana,” he said.
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US-Cuba migration talks to be held Wednesday in Havana
By Juan O. Tamayo
jtamayo@ElNuevoHerald.com
Miami Herald, Posted on Mon, Jan. 06, 2014
U.S. and Cuban government officials will meet in Havana on Wednesday for the second
round of migration talks since the Obama administration resumed the contacts in July,
according to well informed sources.
The U.S. State Department had no immediate comment but last summer said the talks do
not represent a change in U.S. policy toward the island and are consistent with
Washington’s efforts to ensure safe migration between the two nations.
President George W. Bush suspended the migration talks, held twice a year since 1995, in
2003. The Obama administration resumed them in 2009 but suspended them again after
Cuba arrested U.S. government contractor Alan P. Gross on Dec. 3, 2009.
The talks resumed again on July 17, 2013 in Washington, without any official
explanation of why they had been suspended or why they were starting up again.
The second round will start Wednesday in Havana, according to sources who asked for
anonymity because they were not authorized to make the information public. There was
no indication of how many days they would last.
Under U.S.-Cuba migration accords in 1994 and 1995 — which followed the 1994
exodus of more than 30,000 people on homemade rafts — Washington promised to issue
at least 20,000 migrant visas to Cubans per year. The two nations also agreed to meet
periodically and work toward “safe, legal and orderly migration.”
The U.S. diplomatic mission in Havana issued 24,727 immigrant visas in the fiscal year
that ended on Sept. 30, 2013, a dip compared to 26,720 in FY2012, according to U.S.
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government figures. The number of tourist visas issued in the same period more than
doubled, from 14,362 to 29,927.
An El Nuevo Herald report on Dec. 9 estimated that at least 44,000 Cuban migrants
arrived in the United States, both legally and illegally, during the 12-month period, the
highest total in a decade.
State Department spokesman William Ostick noted in July that continuing to “ensure
secure migration between the U.S. and Cuba is consistent with our interests in promoting
greater freedoms and increased respect for human rights in Cuba.”
Those talks were led by Eduard Alex Lee, then acting deputy assistant secretary of state
for Western Hemisphere affairs, and Josefina Vidal Ferreiro, the Cuban foreign ministry
director general for U.S. affairs.
Resumption of migration talks was widely perceived as part of an Obama administration
effort to make improvements around the edges of U.S.-Cuba relations, largely frozen by
Gross’ continued imprisonment.
After the July meeting, U.S. officials repeated their call for the release of Gross while
Cuban officials continued to complain that friendly U.S migration policies for Cubans are
luring away island citizens.
Gross is serving a 15-year prison sentence in Havana for giving Cuban Jews sophisticated
communications equipment, paid for by the U.S. government in what Cuban officials
regard as a thinly veiled effort to topple the communist government.
Obama administration officials insist that there can be no significant warming of U.S.Cuba relations unless Gross goes home. Havana has offered to swap him for four
convicted Cuban spies in U.S. prisons, but Washington has rejected that deal.
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Home | Columns | Media Watch | Reports | Links | About Us | Contact
Column 010614 Brewer
Monday, January 6, 2014
The Rogue Political Regime in Cuba is Unlikely to Change
By Jerry Brewer
Cuba continues to rival even itself by increasing, and possibly surpassing, its over 50 year
Castro brother’s repressive security stranglehold on the majority of its citizens. The tired
and disastrous Communist state apparatus continues to slowly crawl along, virtually
denying even basic human rights that have been awaited for decades by the Cuban
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people.
Fidel Castro led Cuba from 1959 until 2008, an island nation that today is estimated to
have a population of slightly over 11 million people.
During his choke hold domination, Castro exhibited his regime’s violent propensities
early as Cuba became a major contributor to wars in the Caribbean, Central America and
elsewhere. Targeting Africa, he sent tens of thousands of troops to support Sovietinvolved wars in Africa, particularly in Angola.
Fidel Castro and his brother, Raul, who now serves as Cuba’s national leader, continue
their anti-U.S. agendas and rhetoric as they maintain and establish close relationships
with left-leaning and other anti-U.S. government leaders. The Castro brothers openly
embraced the bloody regimes of the late Saddam Hussein of Iraq; Libya’s Muammar
Gaddafi; and Iran’s Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Add to these Bashar al-Assad in Syria, and
the leaders of North Korea, China, Russia, Venezuela, Nicaragua, and Bolivia, among
others.
What does all of this mean, and what do we say to those who say the cold war is over and
this is old news? It has been said that U.S. policy has likely delayed rather than hastened
Cuban democracy, and held back Cuba’s socioeconomic abilities. Some pro-Castro
pundits claim that gradual and limited shifts, allowances and improvements for the
Cuban people are evident on the island. And there are those who rationalize that Cuba is
too poor to be a threat to anyone.
Reality -- versus rose-colored views of Cuba, its citizens, government and rogue security
services, factually tell quite a different story.
The Castro brothers have not discarded their bloody revolutionary communist and
socialist ideology over the last 50-plus years of iron fisted rule.
The Cuban government and the Castro security apparatus are frequently accused today
of tremendous human rights abuses that involve beatings and torture to innocents. These
acts include oppression, arbitrary imprisonment, intimidation, harassment and violence
against women. Cubans throughout the island have a limited voice to this very day. Some
are able to blog or share news and incidents of brutality with others throughout the world
via electronic mail, albeit often highly censored. The Twitter network is often saturated
by “breaking” news of incidents of arrests of notables, descriptions of perceived
kidnappings by security officials, beatings, torture, and unfair trials.
Human Rights Watch alleges the government "represses nearly all forms of political
dissent," and that "Cubans are systematically denied basic rights to free expression,
association, assembly, privacy, movement, and due process of law.” No political party is
permitted to nominate candidates or campaign on the island.
In the 1990s, Human Rights Watch reported that Cuba's extensive prison system, one of
the largest in Latin America, consisted of 40 maximum-security prisons, 30 minimumsecurity prisons, and over 200 work camps. According to Human Rights Watch, political
prisoners, along with the rest of Cuba's prison population, are confined to jails with
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substandard and unhealthy conditions.
As far back as 2003, the European Union accused the Cuban government of "continuing
flagrant violation of human rights and fundamental freedoms." And within the United
Nations Human Rights Council, Cuban members continue to receive criticism.
In 2008 Cuba had the second-highest number of imprisoned journalists of any nation,
behind only the People's Republic of China, this according to the Committee to Protect
Journalists (CPJ).
Gladys Bensimon, an award winning multilingual producer, director and president of
HBR productions near New York City, has spent much of her career exposing dictators
and associated human rights violators. One of her most recent films was "Celebrating
Life in Union," a factual docudrama narrated by the famed Cuban American actor Andy
Garcia.
The film and powerfully courageous story of surviving ex-Cuban political prisoners is
told through their memories of imprisonment, physical and mental torture, and death by
firing squads under the tyrannical and oppressive Castro regime.
Cuba continues to maintain and aggressively fund its state intelligence service, the
Dirección de Inteligencia (DI). DI agents are especially active in Venezuela, and they are
found in and around the U.S. and much of Latin America, with a large hub in Mexico
City. Their recent espionage activities within the U.S. have been widely and factually
documented.
Cooperative engagement with Cuba’s totalitarian regime, curbing sanctions against Cuba,
as well as Cuba’s token and claimed concessions promulgated by the world media will
not bring about this regime’s demise. Chief of State Raul Castro recently warned Cubans
not to waste their time hoping to build wealth (as he is not about to let that happen).
No one is responsible for the failed Cuban revolution of the Castros’ except for Fidel,
Raul, and their loyal and close minions. It remains a weak, corrupt, bankrupt, and
miserable Communist party and revolution, hurting and oppressing the Cuban
homeland.
——————————
Jerry Brewer is C.E.O. of Criminal Justice International Associates, a global threat
mitigation firm headquartered in northern Virginia. His website is located at
www.cjiausa.org.
Once Again, the Castro Regime Lies
Fabio Rafael Fiallo Democracy Digest, National Endowment for Democracy
01-06-14
A cornerstone of the "updating" exercise relates to the creation of a "special economic
zone" in the west designed to host foreign firms and expected to operate according to
criteria other than those applied in the rest of the country. These kinds of special
economic zones have been tested already in a country ruled by another staunch
communist regime: the Kaesong Industrial Complex in North Korea, where some 100
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South Korean enterprises, staffed by 50,000 North Korean workers, are allowed to
operate. The complex has not halted the continued decline of the North Korean
economy, nor the recurrent famines. And there is no reason to believe that the Cuban
version will perform any better.
And much like North Korea, the Cuban regime fails to realize that it is not by insulating
several hundreds of square miles from the rest of the country -- so as to keep the bulk of
the population immunized from the "virus" of capitalism -- that an economy can possibly
take off.
Still more unfounded are the expectations that the Cuban regime is trying to nurture the
political realm. While Raúl Castro proposes to President Obama to establish a "civilized
relationship" between their two countries, the Cuban regime continues to repress
members of the dissidence, denying them the right to express their views, beating them
brutally and submitting them to recurrent arrests.
Arrests of dissidents have in fact been on the rise: 4,000 in 2011, 5,000 in 2012 and
more than 5,300 in 2013. Some leading dissidents -- such as Laura Pollán and Oswaldo
Payá -- lost their lives under strange circumstances. Tellingly, the very day President
Obama shook hands with Comrade Raúl Castro, more than one hundred dissidents
were detained in Cuba. Their crime: to try to organize a gathering on the International
Human Rights Day.
Fabio Rafael Fiallo is a Dominican-born economist and author and a retired official of the United Nations
Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
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The Cuban Paradox: Why is Havana so cautious about reform?
Perhaps because its
reformer-in-chief is also a stalwart of the revolution.
By Javier Corrales
http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2014/01/03/rouhani_nuclear_domestic_reform_m
oderate#sthash.WE2Rx7QB.dpuf
JANUARY 6, 2014
On Jan. 1, Cuba marked the fifty-fifth anniversary of the Cuban revolution, when the
country's citizens rose up to topple the weak and short-lived dictatorship of Fulgencio
Batista.
The revolution led to a power vacuum that was quickly filled by the powerful and longlived dictatorship of Fidel Castro. Fidel ruled Cuba until 2006, when, citing health
reasons, he transferred power to his brother, current President Raúl Castro.
Aside from the fact that Cuba's socialist state has managed to endure for 55 years, there
is little for Raúl to celebrate. Cuba's overall income and caloric consumption per capita
today are not that much higher than they were in 1958.
In 1958, Cuba was at the top among Latin American nations in terms of the number of
newspapers, TV stations, TV sets, telephones, and automobiles per capita; today, it is at
the bottom. The government claims that independence from Washington was a
significant achievement, but today the Revolution is embarrassingly dependent on
Miami, which in 2013 sent remittances amounting to $5.1 billion, enough to provide
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$1000 for every Cuban worker in a country where the average annual salary is less than
$260.
Cuba is a developmental anomaly. It has some of the highest numbers in average years
of schooling in the world (as is typical in totalitarian states), but also has one of the
lowest economic growth rates in the world. It is hard to find a comparable case: typically,
these higher averages go hand-in-hand with higher incomes.
Many blame the U.S. embargo for Cuba's economic underperformance. But the
embargo has always been offset by the massive subsidies that the Soviet Union
provided during the Cold War and that the petro-state of Venezuela has provided since
2001. And yet, despite these direct subsidies (and Cuba's newly burgeoning trade
relations with countries around the world), the state is still unable to produce anything
efficiently.
Cuba's only value-added export is the talent of its people, who have been emigrating in
droves for the past 55 years despite the lack of civil strife since the mid-1960s. This
year, the government liberalized exit visas (though it did not lower the cost of passports),
leading to a 35 percent increase in departures relative to 2012. So far, only 45 percent of
those who managed to "travel abroad" have decided to return.
Medical doctors also leave in large numbers, usually as part of the state's foreign
missions. But Cuban doctors often take the order to go abroad happily: they seem to
prefer working in the slums of Venezuela, Brazil, and Haiti to the "socialist paradise" they
call home, even though they are paid only a fraction of what the Cuban government
charges for these services.
The Cuban economy's dysfunctional nature has not escaped Raúl Castro. In fact, the
economy's trials have become a favorite theme in his speeches. Every time he has a
chance to talk about local conditions, Raúl admonishes some aspect of the status quo:
the "inefficiency" of state-owned companies, the "laziness and proclivity to stealing" of
Cuban workers, the "corruption" of managers and bureaucrats, the "absenteeism" of
teachers, the "complacency" of the party's leadership, the decline of "morals" and even
"manners" of Cuba's youth. While Fidel Castro was the denier-in-chief, famous for
speeches that were groundlessly triumphalist and blind to the regime's catastrophes,
Raúl does nothing but complain about the system.
Whereas Fidel was the Revolution's greatest propagandist, Raúl has become the
Revolution's most outspoken fault-finder.
Raúl Castro's attention to the system's flaws is no doubt a breath of fresh air for Cubans
tired of living in la-la land. It has compelled Raúl to introduce some of the most sweeping
market-oriented reforms of the last 55 years. But the problem is that Cuba's president is
acting both as a reformer and a stalwart of the long-standing revolutionary regime. Raúl
wants to reform and preserve the system, and this is producing hesitant and confusing
reforms.
Raúl's deep roots have made him as repressive as he is open, limiting the economy and
curtailing private enterprise. On the one hand, Raúl has created more opportunities for
Cubans to become self-employed, to use remittances from exiles, and to buy and sell
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their assets such as homes and vehicles. These are huge reforms. Today, a record
number of Cubans -- 444,109, to be exact -- have obtained self-employment licenses,
and a real estate market is burgeoning for the first time since the revolution. >From a
fiscal point of view, these economic reforms have been successful: fiscal revenues from
the private sector are up by 18 percent since 2011.
But as is typical of old-line communists, and especially of his brother, Fidel, Raúl
remains apprehensive about the private sector. He worries that the private sector could
become too large and thus able to challenge the state's stranglehold on society.
Therefore, rather than boosting the private sector with further reforms, the government is
holding fast to restrictive policies.
Key areas of the economy remain closed to competition. Self-employment is still banned
in most professions that require advanced skills, such as engineering, architecture,
software development, and the medical sciences. Large-scale hiring is prohibited, so
private enterprise is limited to micro firms and family businesses. Credit for the private
sector is virtually non-existent. The self-employed continue to be overregulated; many
are closing their businesses because they cannot afford taxes or find enough customers,
since the bulk of the population is still employed by the state and receives meager
wages. Consequently, the self-employed sector remains far below the goal of 1.5 million
individuals set by Raúl when he launched his reforms in 2011.
Raúl's reformer/conservative duality is equally visible in politics. He has expanded the
freedom of expression in a number of decrees that liberalize access to cell phones and
the Internet -- major steps in the expansion of speech opportunities. Raúl has also
voluntarily supported a new amendment to Cuba's constitution that establishes a fiveyear term limit -- a move that is remarkable even by contemporary Latin American
standards, where presidents are wont to relax rather than restrict term limits. Earlier in
2013, he said this would be his last term, which means that he intends to leave office in
2018. And internationally, Cuba is fully cooperating with peace talks in Colombia, a
process that is vital for U.S. interests in South America.
But meanwhile, Raúl has also increased Cuba's political repression. Arbitrary detentions
have increased from 2,074 in 2010 to more than 5,300 in 2013. The state arrested more
than 909 human rights activists in October 2013 alone. This included some members of
the Ladies in White, a peaceful, pro-human rights women's association fighting for the
rights of Cuban prisoners. Cuba Archive, an organization that monitors human rights,
argues that under Raúl's government, the state has overseen at least 166 deaths and
disappearances, all politically-motivated, including the possible assassination of Cuba's
most important civil rights leader, Oswaldo Payá, in 2012. Politically, therefore, Cuba is
not moving forward, but backwards.
Maintaining his old-line roots, the Cuban president also continues to privilege the military
over any other sector. During his tenure as minister of defense, Raúl oversaw military
operations, and after becoming president, he accelerated Cuba's transition to a pseudomilitary regime by appointing key military officials to his cabinet, often to replace civilian
fidelistas to consolidate the transition to his own government. Raúl also increased the
military's control of industries in Cuba that engage in foreign trade. And though Raúl is
critical of almost every sector, he never criticizes the military. In fact, he is openly
supportive of it. Just this year, the government launched the construction of three new
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"military cities," state-of-the-art housing development projects for members of the Armed
Forces.
In political science, we are not that surprised by duality. From Russia to China to the
Arab World, new leaders often emerge who try to act simultaneously as reformers and
old-liners, hoping to overhaul the status quo while maintaining the main elements of the
existing regime. While political scientists expect one side to prevail, they are used to the
idea of conflicted leaders.
But in Washington, this duality only worsens the divide between those who favor
rapprochement and those who oppose it. Raúl's duality raises hope among some groups
who feel the time is ripe for the United States to open to Cuba, and vice versa. But
others see Raúl the old-liner, and they become even more adamant about vetoing any
efforts to rebuild the ties between the two states. The result is a continued impasse in
U.S.-Cuba relations.
Raúl Castro seems to be fine with this middling approach. Just two weeks after the
famous controversial handshake between Obama and Raúl during Nelson Mandela's
funeral, Raúl gave a speech where he addressed U.S.-Cuban relations. Rather than
take the opportunity to lambast the empire, as his brother would have done, Raúl stated
that officials from both countries have been meeting productively on immigration and
other issues, proving that bilateral relations can be "civilized." In his tone and approach,
Raúl has shown a pragmatic and even self-satisfied side.
But he also said this: "We don't demand that the United States change its political and
social system, nor will we negotiate with ours." With this simple line, Raúl displayed the
core of his conservatism. His duty as supreme leader of Cuba, he once affirmed, is to
ensure the survival of the system. He won't pay the price of better relations with the
United States if that means system change.
Raúl's words were also a warning to his compatriots: namely, that his government is
uninterested in real change.
Raúl's words were also a warning to his compatriots: namely, that his government is
uninterested in real change. For Cubans who found hope in Raúl's initial reforms, this
statement is hard to swallow -- not just because of its innate conservatism, but because
it comes from the very same man who makes, at every opportunity, the strongest case
for a system overhaul than any Cuban official has made in decades.
At some point, Raúl Castro might find himself forced to choose between reform and
tradition. While it is common for leaders to want to be reformers and old-liners at the
same time, they eventually select one approach over the other. Reforms have a
tendency to be self-generating: more freedoms lead to demands for more freedoms, and
this in turn means a deeper overhaul of the system. Raúl will need to decide to either
yield to these demands or to block them to preserve the system that he and his brothers
founded 55 years ago. So far, he hasn't faced this choice. The freedom to be that
ambivalent was probably Raúl's biggest cause for celebration on the anniversary last
week -- but that freedom won't last forever.
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Cuba's ETECSA increases business telephony rates
January 6, 2014 | By Sean Buckley
Cuba's state-run service provider ETECSA has increased the prices of its business
telephony tariffs.
Under the new pricing regime, the basic fee for a primary telephone line will be 86 cents
a month. Local calls will cost 75 cents per minute between 6 a.m. and 5:59 p.m. and 53
cents per minute outside of this timeframe.
ETECSA has also terminated the bonus for local calls and increased the installation fee
for primary telephone lines to $3.77.
The new rates are part of the Ministry of Communications' resolution 281/2013.
These new tariffs are just one of many new moves the incumbent telco has made to
enhance its services. In the residential market, ETECSA said in June that it would extend
ADSL-based Internet services to the country's homes by the end of this year.
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Stubborn or cowardly? Only Raúl Castro knows
By CARLOS ALBERTO MONTANER
elblogdemontaner.com
Miami Herald, Posted on Mon, Jan. 06, 2014
Raúl Castro has begun 2014 with another sorry speech. Why does the general repeat a string of
ideological nonsense in which nobody believes, not even himself? Hard to tell.
Apparently, Raúl remains subject to his brother’s intellectual and moral authority, but by now the
nomenklatura and almost the whole country take it for granted that the Comandante is the
principal cause of the economic catastrophe afflicting the Cubans.
How do we know this? It’s sufficient to simply watch and patiently listen to the lecture that Juan
Triana Cordoví, professor of economics at the University of Havana, gave to the leadership of the
political police in order to defend and explain Raúl Castro’s reforms. (Go to
elblogdemontaner.com to find a YouTube link.) This is a member of the regime haranguing his
comrades with full authority.
Despite his speech, Raúl is convinced that Marxism and its collectivist sequel have failed. He
acknowledges that egalitarianism is counterproductive and admits that the regime engaged for
decades in imposing absurd prohibitions that have turned the lives of Cubans into hell.
Naturally, none of this means that he will accept political reforms. Marxism may be hogwash, but
Stalinism is useful to him for ruling. He will try, however, to correct the economic disasters
produced by his brother because he believes that the survival of the regime depends on that.
How? First, he has eliminated some unnecessary prohibitions. The dictatorship can allow the
ownership of mobile telephones, the sale and purchase of houses and cars, the departure and
return of dissidents, or the private hiring abroad of some athletes. None of that endangers the
government and all of that cheers up the masses.
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He also proposes to create a tenuous economic sideshow — “nonstate labor,” that ridiculous
euphemism — so civilian society may develop small private businesses, almost all of them
service-oriented, that will provide jobs for more than a million and a half people. Those
entrepreneurs would gradually leave the bulging payrolls of the state, produce some comestibles
and alleviate the miserable lives of Cubans.
But that’s unimportant. The essence of the reform is something else: The state, directed by
military officers, will reserve the control and enjoyment of some 2,500 medium and large
companies that constitute the heart of the country’s productive apparatus. That’s the lion’s share.
It is in this economic space where the fate of the revolution will be decided, the Raúlists say
pompously. Raúl has turned subsidiarity upside down: civilian society will take care of everything
that the state cannot do.
A perfect blunder. How will the army brass manage to make the state-owned enterprises efficient
to the point that they’ll generate profits permanently? Raúl, a military man convinced of the
usefulness of negative reinforcement, has a recurring fantasy. He believes that — through
controls, audits, punishment and threats supervised by his son Alejandro, a tough colonel in the
intelligence service — he will produce a miracle.
Nonsense. How long will it take Raúl Castro and the Raúlists to understand that the state is a
lousy manager of enterprises, small and large? When will he understand that the objectives and
methodology of the really efficient businesses are totally different from those of the state?
Why does Raúl think that all public enterprises everywhere end up being centers of corruption
with bloated payrolls, technologically backward and unproductive? When will they admit that the
communist system cannot be reformed, as Gorbachev confirmed in the 1990s? Or do they just
want to die in power and let those left behind dismantle the errors and the horrors?
Is it stubbornness, cowardice, conviction, irresponsibility or all of them together? You decide,
perplexed reader.
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CUBA : El turismo mantuvo a flote la economía cubana en 2013
Cuba cuenta con más de 60.000 habitaciones hoteleras, distribuidas en 335 hoteles
ubicados a lo largo del archipiélago, el 71 % de ellas dedicadas al turismo de sol y playas,
mientras el 23 % al de ciudad y 2 % se destinan al de naturaleza.
EL UNIVERSAL , lunes 6 de enero de 2014 06:49 PM
La Habana.- Cuba cerró 2013 con el registro de 2.851.000 turistas extranjeros, una cifra
ligeramente superior al año anterior, aunque no se cumplió la previsión de recibir a unos
tres millones de viajeros internacionales, informó hoy el Ministerio de Turismo (Mintur)
de la isla.
Un informe del Mintur divulgado por medios locales señala este lunes que a pesar de no
lograrse los crecimientos esperados en llegadas de turistas durante 2013, se aprecia un
nuevo récord para ese cierre de estadísticas, resaltó Efe.
El ejercicio recién concluido cerró con un crecimiento de 0,5 por ciento respecto a 2012,
cuando la cifra de llegadas internacionales fue de 2.838.607 visitantes, según indicó el
director comercial del Mintur, José Manuel Bisbé, citado por la edición digital del
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periódico oficial Granma.
Canadá se mantuvo como el mercado líder de la isla con un crecimiento este año del
10%, al superar el millón de viajeros que pasaron vacaciones en Cuba el pasado año,
seguido de los visitantes del Reino Unido y Alemania.
Detrás aparecen Francia, Argentina, Italia, México, España, Rusia y Venezuela, en ese
orden, y se completa el escalafón con Chile, Colombia, Holanda, Suiza, China, Perú y
Brasil, de acuerdo con datos de la estatal Oficina Nacional de Estadística e Información
(ONEI).
Bisbé resaltó el incremento de las emisiones desde España, Italia, Portugal, Polonia y
República Checa, países que tenían tendencia al decrecimiento, y consideró que ahora
exhiben resultados favorables.
Como aspectos negativos, el funcionario señaló errores observados en las acciones
comerciales y de comunicación, porque en su opinión no se apreciaron debidamente
detalles que ocurrirían en algunos mercados como el ruso, que tuvo un significativo
decrecimiento.
Entre enero y noviembre de 2013 llegaron a Cuba 63.518 turistas rusos frente a los
78.835 que en igual período de 2012 habían visitado la isla, según cifras de la ONEI.
El directivo turístico explicó que también influyeron el bloqueo que el Gobierno de
Estados Unidos mantiene sobre Cuba, así como los efectos de la crisis económica
mundial, y en ese sentido citó como ejemplo, la suspensión de vuelos a la isla de la
aerolínea española Iberia, con lo cual se perdió la llegada de 74.000 visitantes.
Cuba cuenta con más de 60.000 habitaciones hoteleras, distribuidas en 335 hoteles
ubicados a lo largo del archipiélago, el 71 % de ellas dedicadas al turismo de sol y playas,
mientras el 23 % al de ciudad y 2 % se destinan al de naturaleza.
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En la isla operan 30 empresas mixtas que abarcan más de 6.000 habitaciones, además de
62 contratos de administración y comercialización con 13 cadenas hoteleras
internacionales.
El turismo constituye un sector estratégico en el plan de ajustes emprendidos por el
Gobierno cubano para "actualizar" su modelo económico socialista y representa el
segundo capítulo en ingresos de divisas a la economía de la isla.
Este sector genera unos 2.500 millones de dólares en ingresos anuales, después de la
venta de servicios médicos, que reporta unos 6.000 millones de dólares a la isla, según
datos oficiales.
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Cuba 2013: números rojos, reformas y represión
Con un raquítico crecimiento de 2,7%, Cuba se ubica en el lugar 15 entre 20 naciones del
continente.. donde sí no ha habido apertura es en el tema político.
Iván García Quintero
enero 07, 2014
Cafetería en La Habana, Cuba, en espera del
2014
"La economía cubana no acaba de despegar", dice Antonio, jubilado de 71 años. Y
tiene razón. Un análisis preliminar de las economías en América Latina y el Caribe,
publicado por la CEPAL, informa que los principales rubros en Cuba han retrocedido o
se han frenado.
Con un raquítico crecimiento de 2,7%, Cuba se ubica en el lugar 15 entre 20 naciones
del continente. "Las reformas emprendidas por Raúl Castro no logran activar los
motores de la economía", afirma Luis, 38 años, contador.
"En el tema migratorio se produjo la reforma principal", expresa Amalia, 63 años, ama
de casa. Pero cualquier balance serio que se haga del año 2013 en Cuba resulta
preocupante. La productividad anda por los suelos. Los salarios congelados. Y los
índices financieros están atrofiados por el uso de dos monedas y tres o cuatro tipos de
cambios diferentes.
Las bajas inversiones extranjeras, que no alcanzan el 10% del PIB, inciden en la
recesión que sufre la economía. "Con una Ley de Inversiones enrevesada, un mercado
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laboral controlado por el gobierno que impide la libre contratación, un burocratismo
colosal que frena la agilidad en diferentes negocios con capital foráneo son, entre otras
causas, las claves para el escaso monto de inversiones directas que permitan renovar
el obsoleto parque industrial y tecnológico", explica Juan Carlos, economista retirado de
69 años.
Cuando en 2006 el General Raúl Castro heredó el poder, durante 47 años administrado
por su hermano Fidel, prometió transformaciones profundas en la agricultura y un vaso
de leche para cada cubano. "Siete años después, ni lo uno ni lo otro", comenta Juana,
26 años, peluquera.
A pesar de que Castro II considera los frijoles más importantes que los cañones, en
2013 la agricultura sufrió una debacle. La producción azucarera se incumplió en 192 mil
toneladas. Y la de frijoles en 6 mil. La de viandas decreció en 154,4 millones de
toneladas. Las mayores caídas fueron en plátanos, con un 33%, y papas, un 16%.
Los cultivos de ajos, cebollas, melones, coles y lechugas también mermaron. Por cuarto
año consecutivo, la producción citrícola sigue sin crecer: en 2013 descendió un 28%. En
otras frutas, el retroceso fue de un 7%. Del desastre solo se salvaron las cosechas de
malangas, boniatos, yucas y algunas hortalizas. En la recolección de guayabas y piñas
hubo pequeños crecimientos.
Y aunque la ganadería reportó un crecimiento del 9,4%, con mayores entregas de carne
vacuna y porcina, la producción lechera solo llegó a 365 millones de litro, un 12%.
"Los tecnócratas han puesto especial énfasis en la agricultura. Las normas de
arrendamiento de tierra se han corregido tres veces y los precios de compra del Estado
a las diferentes cosechas han crecido", opina el vendedor de un agromercado.
Es cierto. Las cooperativas tienen una mayor autonomía. Los campesinos privados
pueden vender sus cosechas directamente a centros turísticos o comercializar sus
excedentes en mercados agropecuarios, atendiendo a la oferta y demanda. Pero no ha
sido suficiente. En 2013, el régimen tuvo que destinar 2 mil millones de dólares a la
compra de alimentos. Y las previsiones para 2014 no son optimistas.
Celso, ingeniero agrónomo con veinte de años de experiencia, opina que hay varias
causas para el pobre desempeño de la agricultura, "pero la fundamental es que el
sistema nunca ha funcionado. También por fenómenos como el empobrecimiento de la
tierra en el país: unos 2,5 millones de hectáreas están erosionadas; la salinidad y la
sodicidad han comprometido la producción de más de un millón, y otros 2,5 millones de
hectáreas se encuentran compactadas. Esto, unido a un mal manejo del agua y a
inadecuadas técnicas en el manejo de los suelos, lleva a la desertificación que ya ocupa
el 16% del territorio nacional".
Difícil y caro para el ciudadano es conseguir comida, sobre todo porque el problema
estructural de la economía no solo se circunscribe a la agricultura. Las bajas
cotizaciones del níquel en el mercado mundial provocaron una disminución en los
ingresos por concepto de exportaciones. Y el turismo tampoco creció lo esperado. En
2013 no se llegó a los tres millones de visitantes previstos.
Aunque el gobierno apuesta por un turismo de alto estándar y planifica la construcción
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de campos de golf, cotos de cazas y hoteles de lujo, el visitante que recala en Cuba,
como promedio, llega con la opción de 'todo incluido' y sus gastos son inferiores a otras
zonas turísticas del Caribe.
"La excepción son los cubanoamericanos, que vienen cargados de paquetes y gastan
generosamente los dólares, comprándole cosas a sus parientes", apunta un taxista. En
su opinión, el ministerio de turismo debe tomar nota del crecimiento de los
excursionistas nacionales.
El turismo interno creció un 12,6% en los primeros siete meses del año pasado.
Alrededor de 625 mil turistas locales, 100 mil más que en 2012, se alojaron en hoteles
de playas y cayos. Recuérdese que antes de 2008, los cubanos residentes en la isla
sufrían un vergonzoso apartheid turístico, y las instalaciones turísticas eran solo para
extranjeros.
Según el economista Juan Carlos, "además de las remesas, la otra entrada principal de
divisas frescas el gobierno la obtiene de la venta de servicios médicos en el exterior".
Los más de 21 mil galenos en países de Asia, África y América Latina reportaron
ganancias de 6 mil millones de dólares. Y de acuerdo al grupo The Havana Consulting,
la diáspora en Estados Unidos y Europa giró un estimado de 2 mil 600 millones de
dólares.
El trabajo por cuenta propia muestra señales de agotamiento. El 60% de los negocios
privados decrecen o crecen muy poco. Reinerio, dueño de un paladar, piensa que “si no
tienes publicidad de primera, excelencia en el servicio y una ubicación en zonas
frecuentadas por turistas y diplomáticos, es muy difícil prosperar”.
Pavel Vidal, ex economista del Banco Central de Cuba, dijo a la agencia AP que "a todo
este sector privado se le ha dado una nueva oportunidad, pero evidentemente hay un
ambiente macroeconómico que no favorece la expansión de la demanda que ellos
necesitan". Tras el entusiasmo inicial, el número de cubanos con negocios propios se
ha mantenido creciendo lentamente en los últimos dos años, llegando a 444 mil en
2013, el 9% de la fuerza laboral del país.
Donde sí no ha habido apertura es en el tema político. Cuba sigue siendo la única
nación del hemisferio occidental que prohíbe la oposición.
Raúl Castro cambió los métodos. Ya no hay juicios sumarios ni largos años de cárcel
para los opositores. Ahora el modus operandi son los actos de repudio, patadas de
kárate y detenciones exprés. El peor acoso lo sufren los disidentes de barricada. Desde
hace 21 meses, en precarios calabozos duermen Sonia Garro y su esposo Ramón
Alejandro Muñoz. Acusados de 'atentado' y 'desorden público' están en un limbo
jurídico.
Si vivir en Cuba es difícil, debido a las carencias materiales, bajos salarios y precios
exorbitantes de artículos de primera necesidad, ser opositor es el último escalón.
Mientras el cubano de a pie sigue esperando el vaso de leche prometido por el General
en 2008, disidentes como Antonio Rodiles esperan que en 2014 la democracia esté un
poco más cerca.
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Cubaeconomía
A pagar impuestos y cuanto más mejor
Posted: 08 Jan 2014 05:20 AM PST
Elías Amor Bravo, economista
Según se informa en Granma, hoy comienza el plazo para la declaración del impuesto sobre los
ingresos personales, que se extiende hasta el 30 de abril.
A diferencia de lo que ocurre en otros países, en la economía castrista sólo están obligados a
pagar este impuesto “los trabajadores por cuenta propia que tributen por el Régimen General,
personas naturales que reciban gratificaciones, socios y representantes de empresas mixtas
residentes en el país (por los dividendos o participación de las utilidades en las empresas), y
otras personas naturales que generen ingresos gravados por tributos”.
Es decir, los trabajadores que prestan sus servicios en el aparato empresarial en manos del
estado y en los distintos organismos del sector presupuestado (que representan prácticamente el
90% de la ocupación total existente en el país) quedan exonerados de este impuesto, que solo
recae en aquellos que apuesten por emprender y crear riqueza por la vía del trabajo por cuenta
propia.
Buena forma de empezar el año. Enhorabuena.
El sistema tributario del régimen castrista segmenta a los contribuyentes de forma grosera. Una
fórmula que difícilmente se observa en otros sistemas fiscales del mundo, en los que, “el power
to tax” del gobierno se establece con una misma norma fiscal sobre todos los perceptores de
ingresos, sea cuál sea su adscripción productiva. Una norma que después se modula por
criterios de equidad o progresividad, pero todo el mundo está obligado a pagar.
Estamos hablando de ingresos personales. Es decir, los que se derivan del trabajo. Porque
cuando se trata de empresas o sociedades, existen otras figuras impositivas especializadas que
gravan su actividad, pero que en Cuba, por esa obsesión ideológica contra lo que representan
las bases de una economía libre de mercado, se aborrecen.
De esa manera, la ONAT, Oficina Nacional de Administración Tributaria, organismo encargado
por el régimen de recaudar, concentrará sus actividades sobre los cerca de 400.000 trabajadores
por cuenta propia que están sometidos a esta norma recaudatoria. Conviene recordar que en
Cuba, existen otros 4.618.700 que no se encuentran obligados a pagar este impuesto por
ingresos personales. Es cierto que los salarios que perciben dejan escaso margen para cualquier
aventura impositiva, y que ya contribuyen al estado por las vías estalinistas de apropiación de
rentas, pero no deja de ser significativa esta segmentación.
Es decir, los buenos propósitos del régimen de fomentar una cultura y responsabilidad tributaria
se van a referir tan solo al 8% de trabajadores del país, sobre los que va a recaer la voracidad de
ingresos del régimen para proporcionar al Presupuesto del Estado los recursos necesarios para
sus distintas actuaciones. El resto de los fondos, el régimen los detrae directamente de las
empresas que son de su propiedad por distintas vías de apropiación, más parecidas a los
métodos feudales que a los modernos sistemas fiscales.
Se abre una etapa para los trabajadores por cuenta propia en el pago de sus impuestos, que les
llevará a sanciones, inspecciones, correcciones de errores, nueva presentación de formularios y
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un sinfín de actividades que, dadas las reducidas dimensiones de la mayor parte de los
proyectos emprendedores que han nacido al amparo de los llamados “lineamientos” se pueden
convertir en un auténtico vallede lágrimas para los pobres cuentapropistas.
Al régimen poco le importa la supervivencia de estos nuevos negocios, muchos de ellos en fase
de nacimiento, que requieren la máxima atención para hacer frente a todos los problemas que se
derivan de la gestión del día a día. No. Para el régimen, lo que importa es que se entreguen
rápido las declaraciones, que todo el mundo pague, y cuánto más mejor. Una perspectiva muy
estimulante para el desarrollo de esa nueva economía privada de la que tanto alardean.
Es cierto que la ONAT ha anunciado una serie de medidas para facilitar a los trabajadores por
cuenta propia el cumplimiento de sus obligaciones, como un solo modelo de declaración, la
ampliación de horarios y apertura de sedes y dependencias. Desconozco qué interés puede
tener todo ello, salvo recaudar más. A la vista de este barullo, las rebajas de un 5% parecen
exiguas y de escasa relevancia.
En cualquier economía en la que se estimula el nacimiento de un sector emprendedor, capaz de
generar empleo y riqueza, se apuesta por otro tipo de política fiscal. El régimen se obsesiona con
obtener ingresos de las actividades más eficientes que funcionan en Cuba, y ya se anuncian más
impuestos como el de utilidades, el de transportes, el de la propiedad, etc. Una maraña que
recae sobre los cuenta propistas en su mayor parte y que lastra sus posibilidades de desarrollo a
corto y medio plazo. Al final, quien sale ganando es el régimen.
Cuba to partially privatize taxi service
Eastday.com, 2014-01-09 15:11
HAVANA, Jan.8 -- Cuba plans to partially privatize its taxi service as part of the country's
recent economic reforms to streamline a bloated public sector and make such service
more efficient, the Government Gazette announced Wednesday.
Cuba's taxi drivers, who up to now have worked as employees of the state-run taxi
service, will become self-employed workers who lease their cars from the state.
This plan was made after the success of a pilot project carried out in the capital Havana
since 2010 and at the beach resort of Varadero since 2011, official daily Granma
reported, adding the privatization plan would be implemented gradually around the
country.
Debora Canela Pina, an expert from Cuban Transportation Ministry, was sure that the
change would lead to improvement in the quality of taxi service in Cuba.
"More than just changing the appearance of taxis, the new scheme forms part of an
operating model that changes the companies' structures, their administrative personnel
and taxi drivers, with the fundamental aim of raising the quality of services being offered
today," she said.
The new model "considerably decreases the amount of time clients wait after requesting
the service and maintains the obligation of using a taximeter or official rate," she added.
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In the future, drivers will be in charge of taxis' maintenance, fuel and repairs and can
decide how many hours to work. Passengers will be able to pay in Cuban pesos or U.S.
dollars.
The new model is set to be put into practice nationwide by the end of 2014.
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Cuba privatizes taxi service in latest economic reform
By Rigoberto Diaz | AFP – Wed, Jan 8, 2014
View Photo
AFP/Adalberto Roque - A boy passes a line of taxis in Havana, on September 11,
2009
Taxi drivers in Cuba, who until now have been government employees, are to become
self-employed workers, the latest in a raft of economic reforms on the Communist island.
State-run media reported on Wednesday that the government was making the change with
the goal of improving the island's slow and unreliable livery service.
It also hopes to pare down the bloated government payroll on this island of some 11.1
million people.
A private taxi pilot program, which has been underway since 2010 in Havana and the
nearby beach resort area of Varadero, now will be expanded island-wide, the Communist
Party newspaper Granma said Tuesday.
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The reform will help smoothe out "irregularities in service" and a halt a decline in quality
of cars in the islands' taxi fleet, among other challenges.
The Havana government said it envisions that taxi drivers will work in organized
cooperatives and lease vehicles from the state.
Taxi fares will be payable both in Cuban pesos and in foreign currency, according to
Granma, providing another source of coveted hard currency for the cash-strapped island.
President Raul Castro in 2011 introduced sweeping economic reforms aimed at breathing
new life into Cuba's decrepit Soviet-style economy.
The reforms have covered everything from the currency system to the kinds of jobs
Cubans are permitted to take on as self-employed workers.
Castro also has created hundreds of cooperatives from former state enterprises, in a bid to
reduce the legions of state workers who get a government paycheck.
Officials said there are now some 445,000 privately employed workers. The state
nevertheless remains the Cuba's largest employer, with nearly five million employees.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
US, Cuba to hold migration talks in Havana
By PETER ORSI / Associated Press / January 8, 2014
HAVANA (AP) — Cuban and U.S. representatives are set to meet in Havana for a new
round of restarted migration talks on Thursday, a signal of the longtime Cold War foes’
recent willingness to engage in areas of mutual interest but unlikely to be a harbinger of
a major thaw in relations.
The meetings are supposed to be held every six months to discuss the implementation
of 1990s accords under which the United States agreed to issue 20,000 immigration
visas annually to Cubans.
‘‘Under the Accords, both governments pledge to promote safe, legal and orderly
migration between Cuba and the United States. The agenda for the talks reflects
longstanding U.S. priorities on Cuba migration issues,’’ the U.S. State Department said
in a brief statement. ‘‘This does not represent any change in policy towards Cuba.’’
Cuban authorities did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In the past, the talks have also been used as opportunities to broach other topics — a
rare chance for dialogue between nations that do not have full diplomatic ties and have
been at each other’s throats since shortly after the 1959 Cuban Revolution.
The migration talks, along with separate discussions aimed restarting direct mail service,
were suspended in 2011 after the arrest of U.S. government subcontractor Alan Gross in
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Cuba in 2009. Discussions held on migration in July 2013 were the first between the two
countries since 2011. Multiple meetings on mail service were also held last year.
Gross was accused of acting against Cuba’s national sovereignty and sentenced to 15
years. He maintains that his work setting up hard-to-detect Internet networks for the
island’s Jewish community posed no threat to the state.
His imprisonment remains a major point of contention between Havana and Washington.
But diplomats say privately that the Obama administration decided early last year not to
let the case stand in the way of all engagement.
Representatives of the two governments met multiple times in 2013, and diplomats on
both sides say they enjoy cordial personal relationships with their counterparts.
The most recent discussions in Havana in September focused on mail delivery. The
State Department called the talks ‘‘fruitful’’ and Cuba called them ‘‘respectful,’’ though no
deal has yet been struck.
One issue that may come up this week is Cuba’s recent banking woes at its diplomatic
missions in Washington and at the United Nations. The institution that had processed
Cuba’s diplomatic banking in the United States moved to sever the relationship in late
2013, prompting Cuba to suspend nearly all consular services in the country.
The bank offered an extension and Cuba resumed visa processing and other services
Dec. 9. But Havana has yet to find a permanent U.S. banking partner, and is only
guaranteeing consular services through the Feb. 17 extension.
The State Department says it has been working with Cuba to try to resolve the matter.
___
Peter Orsi on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Peter_Orsi
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Más de 850 detenciones arbitrariascometió el régimen militar de Raúl
Castro en diciembre del 2013
Centro de Información Hablemos Press, 01-09-14
Santa Marta 394, Apto 3 alto, e/t Franco y Subirana, municipio Centro
Habana, La Habana. Teléfono: +53 7 879 9331 o +53 5 319 6927.
Contacto: robersm2007@gmail.com
Nuestro sitio Web: www.cihpress.com
La Habana, Cuba.
Informe de Diciembre del 2013.
Arrestos por motivos políticos registrados por CIHPRESS en 2010/1499
Arrestos por motivos políticos registrados por CIHPRESS en 2011/3835
Arrestos por motivos políticos registrados por CIHPRESS en 2012/5503
Mes
Enero/2013
Cantidad de arrestos por meses
Acumulado Total
302
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Febrero
471
773
Marzo
394
1167
Abril
377
1544
Mayo
323
1867
Junio
175
2042
Julio
255
2297
Agosto
478
Septiembre
Octubre
Noviembre
Diciembre
665
763
662
853
2775
3440
4203
4865
5718
En el mes de diciembre del 2013, el Centro de Información Hablemos Press
documentó 853 detenciones arbitrarias, llevadas a cabo por el aparato represivo del
régimen militar del General Presidente Raúl Castro contra activistas, opositores,
periodistas independientes y otros actores de la sociedad civil cubana. De estas
detenciones arbitrarias, más de 350 ocurrieron el 10 de diciembre, Día Internacional
de los Derechos Humanos.
Este gran número de detenciones -la cifra de arresto más alta en el 2013, según
indica nuestra tabla comparativa- demuestra que a pesar de que el régimen militar
tomó posesión en el Consejo de Derechos Humanos de Naciones Unidas continúa
violando los tratados internacionales a la vista de todos, sin que se tomen medidas.
Decenas de mujeres que integran el Movimiento Damas de Blanco fueron detenidas
otra vez en este mes; en la mayoría de los casos durante la detención fueron
golpeadas, vejadas y maltratadas por agentes del Departamento de la Seguridad del
Estado (DSE), de la Policía Nacional Revolucionaria (PNR) y otros miembros del
Ministerio del Interior. (Nuestro centro está dispuesto a poner en manos de
organismos interesados fotografías, videos y audios con los testimonios de las
víctimas).
Otros activistas de la sociedad civil, como periodistas independientes, blogueros y
miembros de organizaciones religiosas también fueron detenidos, golpeados y
encerrados en calabozos por más de 10 horas, por el solo hecho de hacer valer sus
derechos de libertad de opinión, expresión, reunión y movimiento.
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Desafortunadamente, los gobiernos democráticos y los organismos internacionales
que velan por el respeto a los Derechos Humanos en el mundo no quieren ver las
violaciones que continúa cometiendo el régimen militar castrista, o se hacen los de la
vista gorda.
En los cuatro años que nuestro Centro lleva documentando estos casos, se han
registrado 16555 detenciones arbitrarias durante el mandato de Raúl Castro y el
año 2013 ha sido el de más alta cifra, con 5718.
A continuación fichas de detenciones por motivos políticos documentadas
en Diciembre por CIHPRESS:
1) Nombre: Eralidis Frometa Polanco.
Cargo y organización: Movimiento Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán.
Dirección: San Miguel del Padrón, La Habana.
Notas: Eralidis Frometa, fue detenida por agentes de la Seguridad del Estado y de la
Policía Nacional cuando se dirigía a la iglesia Santa Rita de Casia para participar de
una misa. La encerraron en un calabozo varias horas.
Fuente: Laura María Labrada Pollán.
Fecha del arresto: 1-12-2013.
Fecha del reporte: 1-12-2013.
2) Nombre: Sandra Guerra Pérez.
Cargo y organización: Movimiento Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán.
Dirección: Melena del Sur, Mayabeque.
Notas: Sandra Guerra, fue detenida y golpeada por agentes de la Seguridad del
Estado y de la Policía Nacional, que utilizaron la violencia, cuando ella intentaba
montar un autobús para viajar a La Habana y asistir a la iglesia Santa Rita de Casia
para participar de una misa junto a sus compañeras. La encerraron en un auto de
patrullas por más de cuatro horas al sol. Dice que sintió sensación de asfixia,
mareos, falta de aire y tubo sudoraciones contantes.
Fuente: Sandra Guerra Pérez.
Fecha del arresto: 1-12-2013.
Fecha del reporte: 1-12-2013.
3) Nombre: Mayelín Peña Bullaín.
Cargo y organización: Movimiento Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán.
Dirección: Melena del Sur, Mayabeque.
Notas: Mayelín Peña, fue detenida por agentes de la Seguridad del Estado y de la
Policía Nacional, que utilizaron la violencia, cuando ella intentaba montar un autobús
para viajar a La Habana y asistir a la iglesia Santa Rita de Casia para participar de
una misa junto a sus compañeras. La encerraron en un auto de patrullas por más de
cuatro horas al sol. Dice que sintió sensación de asfixia, mareos, falta de aire y tubo
sudoraciones contantes.
Fuente: Sandra Guerra Pérez.
Fecha del arresto: 1-12-2013.
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Fecha del reporte: 1-12-2013.
4) Nombre: Adriana Portales Milanés.
Cargo y organización: Movimiento Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán.
Dirección: Melena del Sur, Mayabeque.
Notas: Adriana Portales, fue detenida por agentes de la Seguridad del Estado y de la
Policía Nacional, que utilizaron la violencia, cuando ella intentaba montar un autobús
para viajar a La Habana y asistir a la iglesia Santa Rita de Casia para participar de
una misa junto a sus compañeras. La encerraron en un auto de patrullas por más de
cuatro horas al sol. Dice que sintió sensación de asfixia, mareos, falta de aire y tubo
sudoraciones contantes.
Fuente: Sandra Guerra Pérez.
Fecha del arresto: 1-12-2013.
Fecha del reporte: 1-12-2013.
5) Nombre: Eugenia Díaz Hernández.
Cargo y organización: Movimiento Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán.
Dirección: Centro Habana, La Habana.
Notas: Eugenia Díaz, fue detenida por agentes de la Seguridad del Estado y de la
Policía Nacional cuando se dirigía a la iglesia Santa Rita de Casia para participar de
una misa. La encerraron en un calabozo varias horas.
Fuente: Laura María Labrada Pollán.
Fecha del arresto: 1-12-2013.
Fecha del reporte: 1-12-2013.
6) Nombre: Marbelis Olivares Destrade.
Cargo y organización: Movimiento Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán.
Dirección: Centro Habana, La Habana.
Notas: Marbelis Olivares, fue detenida por agentes de la Seguridad del Estado y de
la Policía Nacional cuando se dirigía a la iglesia Santa Rita de Casia para participar de
una misa. La encerraron en un calabozo varias horas.
Fuente: Laura María Labrada Pollán.
Fecha del arresto: 1-12-2013.
Fecha del reporte: 1-12-2013.
7) Nombre: Marielis Díaz Torres.
Cargo y organización: Movimiento Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán.
Dirección: Herradura, Pinar del Río.
Notas: Marielis Díaz, fue detenida por agentes de la Seguridad del Estado y de la
Policía Nacional al intentar montar un autobús para viajar a La Habana y asistir a la
iglesia Santa Rita de Casia para participar de una misa. La encerraron en un calabozo
más de 6 horas.
Fuente: Laura María Labrada Pollán.
Fecha del arresto: 1-12-2013.
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Fecha del reporte: 1-12-2013.
8) Nombre: Nidia Rodríguez Santiesteban.
Cargo y organización: Movimiento Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán.
Dirección: Bayamo, Granma.
Notas: Nidia Rodríguez, fue detenida por agentes de la Seguridad del Estado y de la
Policía Nacional al dirigirse a la iglesia de San Salvador de Bayamo para participar
de una misa. Permaneció detenida desde las 8:00 de la mañana hasta las 2:00 de la
tarde.
Fuente: Nidia Rodríguez Santiesteban.
Fecha del arresto: 1-12-2013.
Fecha del reporte: 1-12-2013.
9) Nombre: Soraya Milanés Guerras.
Cargo y organización: Movimiento Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán.
Dirección: Bayamo, Granma.
Notas: Soraya Milanés, fue detenida por agentes de la Seguridad del Estado y de la
Policía Nacional al dirigirse a la iglesia de San Salvador de Bayamo para participar
de una misa. Permaneció detenida desde las 8:00 de la mañana hasta las 2:00 de la
tarde.
Fuente: Nidia Rodríguez Santiesteban.
Fecha del arresto: 1-12-2013.
Fecha del reporte: 1-12-2013.
10) Nombre: Xiomara Montes de Oca Mediaceja.
Cargo y organización: Movimiento Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán.
Dirección: Bayamo, Granma.
Notas: Xiomara Montes de Oca, fue detenida por agentes de la Seguridad del
Estado y de la Policía Nacional al dirigirse a la iglesia de San Salvador de Bayamo
para participar de una misa. Permaneció detenida desde las 8:00 de la mañana hasta
las 2:00 de la tarde.
Fuente: Nidia Rodríguez Santiesteban.
Fecha del arresto: 1-12-2013.
Fecha del reporte: 1-12-2013.
11) Nombre: Yaquelín García Jaén.
Cargo y organización: Movimiento Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán.
Dirección: Bayamo, Granma.
Notas: Yaquelín García, fue detenida por agentes de la Seguridad del Estado y de la
Policía Nacional al dirigirse a la iglesia de San Salvador de Bayamo para participar
de una misa. Permaneció detenida desde las 8:00 de la mañana hasta las 2:00 de la
tarde.
Fuente: Nidia Rodríguez Santiesteban.
Fecha del arresto: 1-12-2013.
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Fecha del reporte: 1-12-2013.
12) Nombre: Yaima Pérez León.
Cargo y organización: Movimiento Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán.
Dirección: Bayamo, Granma.
Notas: Yaima Pérez, fue detenida por agentes de la Seguridad del Estado y de la
Policía Nacional al dirigirse a la iglesia de San Salvador de Bayamo para participar
de una misa. Permaneció detenida desde las 8:00 de la mañana hasta las 2:00 de la
tarde.
Fuente: Nidia Rodríguez Santiesteban.
Fecha del arresto: 1-12-2013.
Fecha del reporte: 1-12-2013.
13) Nombre: Elisa Mayor Cabrera.
Cargo y organización: Movimiento Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán.
Dirección: Bayamo, Granma.
Notas: Elisa Mayor, fue detenida por agentes de la Seguridad del Estado y de la
Policía Nacional al dirigirse a la iglesia de San Salvador de Bayamo para participar
de una misa. Permaneció detenida desde las 8:00 de la mañana hasta las 2:00 de la
tarde.
Fuente: Nidia Rodríguez Santiesteban.
Fecha del arresto: 1-12-2013.
Fecha del reporte: 1-12-2013.
14) Nombre: Yudisbel Rosselló Mojena.
Cargo y organización: Movimiento Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán.
Dirección: Bayamo, Granma.
Notas: Yudisbel Rosselló, fue detenida por agentes de la Seguridad del Estado y de
la Policía Nacional al dirigirse a la iglesia de San Salvador de Bayamo para participar
de una misa. Permaneció detenida desde las 8:00 de la mañana hasta las 2:00 de la
tarde.
Fuente: Nidia Rodríguez Santiesteban.
Fecha del arresto: 1-12-2013.
Fecha del reporte: 1-12-2013.
15) Nombre: Yanelkys Gallardo García.
Cargo y organización: Movimiento Damas de Blanco Laura Pollán.
Dirección: Bayamo, Granma.
Notas: Yanelkys Gallardo, fue detenida por agentes de la Seguridad del Estado y de
la Policía Nacional al dirigirse a la iglesia de San Salvador de Bayamo para participar
de una misa. Permaneció detenida desde las 8:00 de la mañana hasta las 2:00 de la
tarde.
Fuente: Nidia Rodríguez Santiesteban.
Fecha del arresto: 1-12-2013.
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Fecha del reporte: 1-12-2013.
Más información en el documento adjunto
-Roberto de Jesús Guerra Pérez
Director de Hablemos Press
Santa Marta 394 Apto 3 e/t Subirana y Franco, La Habana. Tel: 879 93 31 o Móvil: 5
319 69 27.
E-mail:robersm2007@gmail.com pagina donde pueden encontrarnos
www.cihpress.com o http://cubanheroes.blogspot.com y síguenos en
Twitter @HablemosPress.
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Cubaeconomía
La reforma del servicio de taxi no podrá funcionar
Posted: 09 Jan 2014 03:14 AM PST
Elías Amor Bravo, economista
El régimen castrista acaba de anunciar una nueva reforma, la enésima, esta vez en el sector del taxi.
A partir de ahora, se generaliza la prestación del servicio por medio de la Agencia de Taxi en pesos
convertibles, una experiencia que desde el año 2010 había estado funcionando en La Habana, de
manera experimental.
Los taxis de esta Agencia se alquilan a los conductores de CUBATAXI, que pasan a ser trabajadores
por cuenta propia y dejan de formar parte de la nómina del estado. El marco de la relación se regula
mediante un contrato en el que se establecen las condiciones a cumplir ambas partes.
La reforma está inspirada, como tantas otras cosas, en los llamados “lineamientos” aprobados en el
VI Congreso del Partido Comunista de Cuba y que auspicia “el fomento de nuevas formas de gestión
en los transportes de pasajeros y carga, así como otros servicios vinculados con la actividad” ha
entrado en vigor tras su publicación en la Gaceta Oficial Extraordinaria No.1 del presente año.
El origen de estos pretendidos cambios arranca, como casi todo, del fracaso absoluto del sistema
económico ideado por la llamada “revolución” hace más de medio siglo. El Grupo Empresarial
Cubataxi, dependiente del estado, como prácticamente toda la economía, había venido
desarrollando sus funciones con un modelo que ha generado irregularidades en el servicio,
apropiación de la recaudación, plantillas excesivas y un parque de vehículos envejecido. Ni más ni
menos que el ejemplo de lo que significa la gestión por el estado de un servicio como el transporte
de taxi a los ciudadanos.
Y entonces, llega la reforma a golpe de decreto. Que los taxistas asalariados del estado pasen a
prestar sus servicios como trabajadores por cuenta propia es el tipo de reformas que gustan al
régimen castrista. Todo cambia, pero sigue más o menos igual. El régimen de derechos de
propiedad, por ejemplo. Pieza clave del éxito de cualquier proceso de transformación económica, el
derecho de propiedad continua estando en manos del estado, que alquila a los taxistas, los autos
para que presten el servicio. Muy parecido al arrendamiento de las tierras en la política agrícola. En
ningún momento se plantea la cesión del derecho de propiedad. Los cubanos pueden trabajar por
cuenta propia, pero nunca serán verdaderos dueños del fruto de su esfuerzo. No hay mejor forma de
quitar cualquier tipo de incentivo al desempeño laboral que ésta.
En tales condiciones, ni reforma ni cambio. Más bien, todo lo contrario, más de lo mismo, pero de
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otra forma.
Seguro que podrán haber cambios de imagen, o que se incorporen nuevos modelos de gestión con
impacto en las estructuras empresariales, en los trabajadores administrativos que desarrollan sus
funciones, e incluso en los profesionales del taxi, con el objetivo fundamental de incrementar la
calidad con que se ofrecen hoy estos servicios, pero el origen del proceso económico, el acceso a
los derechos de propiedad, sigue inalterado.
En esencia, los trabajadores por cuenta propia del taxi asumen, a partir de ahora, con los ingresos
obtenidos de sus servicios, los gastos de mantenimiento, el pago del combustible y parte de la
reparación del vehículo. A cambio, pueden disponer de los autos más tiempo y realizar todas las
"carreras" quieran, pagando eso sí, los impuestos. De propiedad, nada.
Eso sí. Por estructuras estatales de control, que no falte.
La reforma prevé la creación de la Empresa Taxis-Cuba a la que se van a transferir todos los activos
que se requieran de las actuales entidades: un total de 20 agencias subordinadas a la mencionada
empresa. Por si no fuera suficiente, tanto la empresa estatal como las 20 agencias seguirán
contando con trabajadores estatales a los que se retribuirá en función con los resultados de las
labores que desempeñen.
Las agencias estatales que se van a crear podrán ofrecer servicios como arrendamiento de locales
para ofrecer servicios vinculados al transporte como es el “caso de ponchera, fregado, reparaciones
mecánicas, entre otros”.
En su caso, las agencias podrán incorporar a personas propietarias de sus vehículos para prestar el
servicio del taxi, siempre y cuando cumplan los requisitos técnicos y de confort establecidos para
este tipo de servicios. Estos propietarios deberán asociarse a las agencias. En caso contrario, no
podrán atender las solicitudes de transporte de las personas jurídicas, incluidas las de tour
operadores y agencias de viajes, servicios que hasta el momento han sido exclusivos del sector
estatal.
La reforma trata de controlar los escasos resquicios de actividad privada independiente, a partir de
los nuevos sistemas de control de las agencias dependientes de Taxis- Cuba. La pregunta es, ¿por
qué solo agencias estatales? ¿Por qué no agencias privadas? ¿Por qué no permitir a la iniciativa
privada, por ejemplo, los dueños de autos privados que quieran trabajar como taxistas, crear sus
propias agencias de servicio no dependientes del estado?
Se está perdiendo una nueva oportunidad para flexibilizar y abrir la economía a la plena participación
de los privados, no sólo como trabajadores por cuenta propia, sino como gestores de sus proyectos
empresariales. Sería posible realizar esa ampliación del mercado dentro del marco de la economía
castrista. Idealmente, las cooperativas de transporte privado, creando sus agencias y alquilando
autos a trabajadores por cuenta propia, podrían servir como modelo de competencia frente al estado,
que sigue siendo el dueño de toda la economía.
La libre elección de actividad profesional es una pieza fundamental para el éxito de las economías.
En Cuba es imposible. Cuanto más se parcelen los sectores y las actividades limitando con
regulaciones, inspecciones y controles el espíritu de libre empresa que se encuentra bien arraigado
en los cubanos después de medio siglo de economía estalinista impuesta por la fuerza, mayor será
la ineficacia de los resultados y la economía, simplemente, no podrá superar su atraso. Se está
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perdiendo una oportunidad nuevamente. O tal vez se quiera así.
Colomé Ibarra, alias Furry, el general enriquecido
En la manzana comprendida entre las calles B, C, 29 y Zapata, el general de cuerpo
ejército Abelardo Colomé Ibarra, conocido popularmente como Furry, exhibe parte de su
patrimonio familiar que marcha viento en popa.
Este artículo de León Padrón Azcuy fue publicado originalmente en el portal Cubanet.
enero 10, 2014
Abelardo Colomé Ibarra.
J
erarcas militares cubanos se enriquecen con múltiples negocios en las
propias narices de los ciudadanos cubanos. En la manzana comprendida
entre las calles B, C, 29 y Zapata, el general de cuerpo ejército Abelardo
Colomé Ibarra, conocido popularmente como Furry, exhibe parte de su
patrimonio familiar que marcha viento en popa.
Aquí el también ministro obsequió a su hijo José Raúl Colomé, una bellísima
casa de dos plantas para utilizarla — como otros vecinos de esa zona– para
arrendamiento a extranjeros. También José Raúl es propietario del
restaurante STAR BIEN, uno de los más visitados por la élite habanera.
Ubicado en 29 entre B y C, No 205, este restaurante fue remozado
recientemente, para convertirse en una joya de la culinaria capitalina, que
compite en precios y calidad con los mejores restaurantes del sector hotelero
de la capital.
Según algunas fuentes que prefirieron el anonimato, el recinto fue adquirido
entre telones, y sumando los costos de restauración, equipamiento,
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ambientación, servicios y decoración, el inmueble está valorado en no menos
de 100 mil CUC y cuenta con una excelente gestión económica a base de un
admirable trabajo de marketing y promoción, teniendo prioridad en los planes
de Havanatur y Cubatur por encima de prestigiosos restaurantes o paladares,
como La Guarida y Gringo Viejo, por solo citar dos ejemplos.
Una foto de la paladar Starbien en una reseña de la Revista Cuba Absolutely.
Mientras La Habana se derrumba STAR BIEN recibe todas las noches
ómnibus de turistas y en sus alrededores se observan una larga fila de
lujosos autos del cuerpo diplomático acreditado en la Habana, o reconocidos
artistas, deportistas y otras figuras que frecuentemente van a consumir los
deliciosos platos que oferta.
Algunos vecinos que han encontrado empleo en este lugar, al ser
entrevistados, evitaron emitir comentarios, por temor a perder su salario que
obviamente es superior al de las restaurantes del estado, pero uno de los
serenos al cuidado de las propiedades de Colomé, y cuyo nombre omito por
seguridad –a pesar de que ya no trabaja en el lugar– se atrevió a decirme:
“es humillante ver como la mayoría de los negocitos del cubano de a pie,
cierran o jamás prosperan por la cantidad de limitaciones que afrontan,
mientras los negociazos de los militares florecen como las margaritas”.
Mientras un número significativo de viviendas se derrumban como soldados
en la guerra, la familia del general Colomé, siempre fiel de la dictadura
castrista, posee varias propiedades de lujo, además de las ya mencionadas.
También son dueños de un confortable apartamento en el edificio 706, de la
calle B entre 29 y Zapata, regalado por José Raúl a su madre, donde se
imparten clases de inglés a jóvenes de la elite comunista y también en
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ocasiones para alquiler de hospedaje.
Resulta una burla que estos generales de la Cuba comunista, se hayan
repartido nuestra tierra como una piñata, mientras dejaron para el famélico
pueblo, el carcomido lema: Socialismo o muerte.
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Cuba: Aumenta compraventa de viviendas
Aniuska Puente, funcionaria del Ministerio de Justicia (MINJUS), declaró a la prensa que
la compraventa de viviendas en Cuba aumentó en 2013 con respecto al año precedente, al
tiempo que decrecieron las permutas.
Pablo Alfonso/ martinoticias.com
enero 10, 2014
La compraventa de viviendas entre particulares en la isla ha experimentado un aumento progresivo.
L
as nuevas regulaciones sobre la compraventa de viviendas aprobadas
hace dos años mediante el Decreto-Ley 288, han provocado una significativa
disminución de los contratos de permuta y un incremento de los propietarios
de viviendas que han legalizado el registrado sus inmuebles.
Aniuska Puente, funcionaria del Ministerio de Justicia (MINJUS), declaró a la
prensa que la compraventa de viviendas en Cuba aumentó en 2013 con
respecto al año precedente, al tiempo que decrecieron las permutas.
Aunque no ofreció cifras concretas, Puente dijo que de diciembre de 2011 a
noviembre último numerosas viviendas se negociaron hasta cinco veces,
pero con la seguridad jurídica garantizada.
En lo que se refiere a la legalización de bienes inmuebles la funcionaria
destacó la creciente tendencia a registrar la propiedad de la vivienda, e indicó
que de enero a octubre de 2013 se inscribieron 873 mil 314 inmuebles, de
ellos 659 mil 968 viviendas y 213 mil 346 inmuebles estatales.
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Puente dijo que “la población” necesita aprender que cada vez que realiza
una permuta o compraventa debe volver a realizar este acto para proteger
sus derechos como propietarios.
Añadió que el MINJUS tiene abiertas en todo el país 170 oficinas del Registro
de la Propiedad, y que para inscribir una propiedad, además del titular, puede
ir cualquier persona autorizada por este - debidamente acreditada- en virtud
de interés legítimo.
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Promueven en Miami la beatificación de monseñor Eduardo Boza
Masvidal
Una de las figuras emblemáticas del exilio cubano y de la iglesia católica en los inicios de
la revolución, monseñor Eduardo Boza Masvidal, está en el lento proceso de subir a los
altares.
Johanna A. Alvarez
Publicado el viernes 10 de enero del 2014
Hace más de un año, se anunció el proceso de beatificación y canonización de monseñor
Boza, quien fuera expulsado de Cuba junto a más de un centenar de sacerdotes en 1961, y
después residió en la ciudad de Los Teques (Venezuela).
Para impulsar el proceso, el Comité Pro Beatificación de monseñor Boza Masvidal que
está en Miami convocó una Misa de Acción de Gracias que será realizada este viernes en
la Ermita de la Caridad.
“La iglesia propone Santos que vivieron en el siglo X, XIII y XIV, y (Boza) es un santo
del siglo XX y es más facil de imitar por los sacerdotes y obispos”, enfatizó Germán
Miret, miembro de este Comité y en compañía de Lorenzo de Toro, director de la revista
cristiana Ideal.
El proceso de beatificación de monseñor Boza apenas comienza y no se sabe cuánto
durará, indicó Miret, quien destacó además que la causa es promovida desde Venezuela,
donde murió y vivió el sacerdote los últimos 40 años.
El arzobispo de Caracas, cardenal Jorge Urosa Savino, dijo que monseñor Boza fue un
“obispo ejemplar” y un “verdadero apóstol de la iglesia tanto en Cuba como luego en
Venezuela”.
“Para los obispos venezolanos, (monseñor) era un ejemplo por su piedad, su amor a Dios,
su amor a la iglesia, su humildad y fortaleza de ánimo”, indicó vía telefónica el cardenal.
“A mí me complace muchísimo que se haya iniciado el proceso de beatificación de este
gran obispo de la iglesia en Cuba y Venezuela”, dijo el arzobispo de Caracas, quien
agregó que estos procesos son “muy largos”.
Por su parte, el Comité está colaborando en el siguiente proceso: acumulación de
información documental escrita por monseñor o sobre él para enviarla al promotor del
proceso, monseñor Raúl José Bacallao, vicario en Los Teques.
Para el comité, conseguir los documentos no es muy difícil.
Monseñor Boza escribió un artículo mensual para la revista Ideal, durante más de tres
décadas, lo que les brinda suficiente material.
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Adicionalmente, el sacerdote cubano Reynerio Lebroc, está encargado de escribir la
biografía de Boza. Y mientras tanto, se están pidiendo testimonio a las personas que
fueron impactadas por el posible futuro beato.
Cuando todos los documentos sean recolectados, serán enviados a otro promotor que
destacará el proceso desde el Vaticano.
“El fue un ejemplo de cómo pudo balancear el amor a la iglesia y el amor a la patria. El
conjugaba las dos cosas y una no contradecian la otra”, opinó Miret, quien conoció a
Eduardo Boza en Cuba, cuando apenas era un adolescente.
“En los años 50, él venía de vez en cuando a confesar al colegio La Salle (donde Miret
cursaba estudios), y me confesé con él varias veces porque era una persona muy calmada
y con una voz muy tranquila y pausada. Me sentía bien cuando me confesaba con él”,
dijo.
Después dejó de verlo por varios años, hasta que se lo consiguió en una de las reuniones
de la Fraternidad de Clero y Religiosos.
Hace unos 15 años, además, fue monseñor Boza junto a monseñor Agustín A. Román,
quienes bendijeron la renovación de votos matrimoniales de Miret con su esposa Leida.
Lorenzo de Toro no conoció a monseñor en Cuba, sino en los Estados Unidos en el año
1971.
Su primera conversación fue sobre el proyecto de Toro sobre una revista que tratara
temas cristianos, cubanos y de actualidad.
Eduardo Boza nació el 22 de septiembre de 1915 en la ciudad de Camaguey, Cuba.
Estudió el bachillerato en el colegio La Salle y cursó Filosofía y Letras en la Universidad
de La Habana.
A causa de sus denuncias de que la revolución era un engaño, fue desterrado el 17 de
septiembre de 1961 junto a 131 sacerdotes cubanos a borde del barco Covagonda que lo
llevó a España. De allí, fue enviado a Venezuela, donde fue nombrado vicario general en
Los Teques.
Desde su destierro, fundó la Fraternidad de Clero y Religiosos, la Union de Cubanos en
el exilio y las Comunidades de Reflexión Eclesiales Cubanas en la Diáspora (Creced).
Lorenzo de Toro resaltó la humildad de monseñor. Recuerda que vivía en un sencillo
cuarto que una vez llegó a ver, y donde su cama no tenía colchón. “Tenía una
colchonetica delgadita porque a él le regalaban colchones y él los regalaba.
Monseñor murió el domingo 16 de marzo 2003 con 87 años. En la ciudad de Los Teques,
se declararon siete días de duelo y se pusieron fotografías de él en las calles. Durante su
entierro, se escucharon las canciones “Guantamera” y “Cuando salí de Cuba”.
En su ultimo artículo en la revista Ideal, monseñor Boza promovía la paz justo en el
momento que el entonces presidente de EEUU, George W. Bush iniciaba la Guerra de
Irak.
Su escrito exaltaba el valor de los pacíficos, sobre los pacifistas, a quienes consideraba
distintos “por buscar la paz a toda costa, aun a costa de la verdad y la justicia”.
La Misa de Acción de Gracias por la proclamación del proceso de beatificación de
monseñor será este viernes 10 de enero, a las 8 p.m. en la iglesia Ermita de la Caridad.
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Cubanos que piden refugio en Colombia rechazan pasajes de regreso a
La Habana
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Los seis cubanos que desde el 1 de enero están en el aeropuerto Eldorado de Bogotá a la
espera de que se les conceda refugio o asilo en el país rechazaron hoy unos billetes de la
aerolínea Avianca para regresar a la isla y dijeron que harán una huelga de hambre.
El Nuevo Herald, Publicado el viernes 10 de enero del 2014
Los cubanos, que permanecen en una sala de tránsito internacional del aeropuerto,
rasgaron los billetes para un vuelo con destino a La Habana, que partió en la mañana de
este viernes, según relató uno de ellos a emisoras locales.
El hombre, que no se identificó, dijo por teléfono a Caracol Radio que una azafata de
Avianca les ofreció boletos para volar a La Habana y como no los aceptaron, la
funcionaria se los dejó en el piso y otro integrante del grupo los rasgó.
“Renuentemente no los cogimos”, dijo el cubano, quien agregó que acto seguido uno de
sus “colegas se para, coge los boletos, los rompe y los botamos”. “Pienso que con eso les
damos respuesta de que no vamos a viajar”, añadió.
Los cubanos, que forman parte de un grupo de once que desembarcó en Bogotá durante
una escala técnica de su vuelo después de que se les negara la entrada a Ecuador, su
destino inicial, han solicitado que se les admita en Colombia como refugiados.
Sin embargo, la Cancillería colombiana descartó ayer esa opción “dado que la
normatividad expresamente niega esta posibilidad cuando se trata de extranjeros en zonas
de tránsito internacional”.
“Jurídicamente no han ingresado a territorio nacional por encontrarse justamente en una
zona de tránsito”, recalcó el Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores en un comunicado
expedido el jueves.
Cinco de los cubanos regresaron voluntariamente a La Habana en días pasados, pero los
otros seis se niegan a hacerlo porque alegan que, en caso de volver, serán castigados por
el régimen cubano, y dijeron que harán huelga de hambre para presionar por una
solución.
“Salimos once cubanos desde Ecuador, cinco decidieron regresar a Cuba, los otros seis
nos quedamos en el aeropuerto ya hace una semana; nos declaramos en huelga de
hambre, no tenemos acceso a nuestra ropa ni a nuestros documentos”, manifestó a RCN
Radio otro que se identificó como Nayid Mayo.
Según Mayo, el grupo no quiere regresar a Cuba “porque no hay garantías de seguridad
en nuestro país, no hay garantías de vida, no tenemos garantías en el Gobierno de (Raúl)
Castro”.
Los cubanos pidieron que organismos humanitarios internacionales les ayuden a resolver
su situación pues además las condiciones que tienen en el aeropuerto son precarias.
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Spanish airline suspends use of Venezuelan currency
Jan. 10, 2014 at 3:26 PM
CARACAS, Venezuela, Jan. 10 (UPI) -- Venezuelan travelers said they were shocked to
discover Spanish airline Air Europa has stopped accepting their currency, the bolivar.
Air Europa announced Friday it has instituted an "indefinite" suspension of sales using
bolivars because Venezuela has not been exchanging the money for U.S. dollars, leaving
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the airline without the more than $160 million owed from the bolivars turned in to
Venezuela's Cadivi foreign exchange agency, USA Today reported Friday.
Resident Javier Martinez said he was shocked to hear of the policy when he attempted to
buy a ticket from Caracas to Madrid.
''The reservation people told me that I could buy the ticket in dollars or Euros, but not
bolivars,'' Martinez said. "I'm Venezuelan and what other money do I have?"
Mildred Amaro, who runs Barquero Tours in La Victoria, said many other international
airlines are taking steps to limit the tickets sold in Venezuela due to the country owing up
to $2.6 million total to various airlines.
"Many airlines are reducing the amount of seats they're offering to local flyers," Amaro
said. "On many routes, it's difficult to find a seat. Inventory is limited."
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Continúa el cólera en Camagüey
Por: Fernando Vázquez Guerra
Camagüey, 11 de enero de 2014.
Alexander Pérez Aguilar se dirigió a la Red Cubana de Comunicadores Comunitarios
para informar que continúa el cólera en la provincia de Camagüey.
Él quiere dar a conocer el caso de su prima Mileykis Aguilar Zaragoza, de 20 años de
edad y vecina de Camino de Jayama sin número, Reparto Jayama, en el municipio
cabecera de la provincia camagüeyana.
Ella se encuentra hospitalizada desde el día 8 de enero, en que después de acudir al centro
asistencial Amalia Simoni Argilagos, por tener síntomas de cólera, se le realizaron
análisis y dieron positivos de la bacteria. Está reportada grave.
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Transporte público en La Habana, de mal a peor
Cuba Libre Digital
Sábado, 11 de Enero de 2014 08:46
Viajar desde Santiago de las Vegas, un poblado al sur de La Habana, al centro
de la capital, es un itinerario que la línea P-12 de Metrobus debe cubrir en una
hora y 15 minutos. Su frecuencia en horas pico debe ser de 8 minutos.
Pero la realidad es otra. Pregúntele a Darío, empleado de una tienda: “En un día
con suerte, demoro una hora y cincuenta minutos en llegar a mi trabajo y casi
dos horas regresar a mi hogar. Es tan malo el servicio que brinda la terminal de
Mulgoba en cualquiera de sus tres rutas, P-12, P-13 o P-16, que los pasajeros
habituales debemos buscar otras opciones”,
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Las otras opciones son desplazarse en viejos ‘boteros’ (taxis particulares) que
cobran 20 pesos por persona. “Si viajara exclusivamente en ‘almendrones’
gastaría 960 pesos en los 24 días de labor, y yo devengo un salario de 440
pesos más 15 cuc de estimulación, que sumado representan 800 pesos
mensuales. Solo en taxis se consumiría mi salario”, indica Darío.
Otra posibilidad para cubrir el trayecto hasta Santiago de las Vegas es abordar
un rutero que sale del Parque El Curita, en las inmediaciones de la calle Galiano.
Desde hace dos años, pequeños microbuses dados de baja del servicio para
turistas, se han reciclado y convertido en una cooperativa, con el objetivo de
aliviar el servicio de transporte urbano.
Cobran 5 pesos per cápita y la mayoría de los vehículos tiene aire
acondicionado. Solo se puede viajar sentado. Ahora mismo en la ciudad
funcionan varias líneas con destino al Cotorro, Alamar, Playa, Marianao y La
Palma, un transitado cruce de calzadas situado en el municipio Arroyo Naranjo.
Viajar en ómnibus ruteros es más barato. Pero no tanto. Darío, por ejemplo, en
los ruteros gasta 240 pesos al mes, casi el tercio de su salario.
Los habaneros de bolsillos estrechos, la mayoría, suelen viajar en ómnibus
urbanos. “No es un buen negocio viajar en taxis o ruteros para ir a trabajar,
porque el salario se te evapora”, dice Miguel, obrero de la construcción que lleva
una hora en una parada en las inmediaciones del Capitolio, esperando el P-8
con destino a Mantilla.
El transporte público en Cuba es una de las tantas asignaturas suspensas del
gobierno cubano. Después de 1959, cuando Fidel Castro llegó al poder, el
servicio de ómnibus urbanos se ha tornado en una pesadilla.
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En los años 60, el régimen compró ómnibus británicos Leyland, en un intento
por diseñar una red de transporte funcional. Entonces en La Habana circulaban
alrededor de 2,500 ómnibus.
Existían más de cien rutas. Y una flota de 3 mil taxis a precios módicos con
autos adquiridos a finales de los 70 a subsidiarias estadounidenses en Argentina
y Canadá.
Aun así, el funcionamiento del transporte público distaba de ser óptimo. Las
guaguas iban atestadas de personas colgadas en sus puertas. A veces para
abordar un ómnibus se necesitaba tener la preparación de un atleta olímpico,
pues se debía correr cientos de metros a toda velocidad ya que los choferes no
se detenían en las paradas.
Hacia mediados de los 80, los añejos Leyland, probablemente los ómnibus que
mejor se adaptaron al pésimo estado de las vías habaneras y maltratos de los
pasajeros, fueron dados de baja tras 20 años de servicio.
Se probó con ómnibus Hino de Japón, Pegaso de España e Ikarus de Hungría.
Pero debido al exceso de explotación, mal estado de las calles y pésima
asistencia técnica, a los pocos años la mitad de esos ómnibus estaban parados.
Con la llegada del 'período especial', una crisis económicas estacionaria que se
alarga por 23 años, el transporte público desapareció. El número de buses en La
Habana se redujo a menos de 150. La gente caminaba decenas de kilómetros
para trasladarse de un sitio a otro. O pedaleaba en bicicletas chinas por oscuras
y ruinosas calzadas.
Los tecnócratas diseñaron el camello. Un remolque adaptado a un camión con
capacidad para 300 pasajeros. Se crearon 7 rutas. Se viajaba apiñados, como
carne prensada en lata. Entre el calor y el estrés del 'período especial', los
camellos se convirtieron en rings de peleas monumentales, terreno fértil de
carteristas y tarados sexuales.
El transporte urbano, en estado de indigencia, a partir de 2007 mejoró su
servicio cuando comenzaron a rodar alrededor de 470 ómnibus articulados de la
marca Yutong, Liaz y Maz. Funciona una empresa, llamada Metrobus, que
gestiona 17 rutas designadas con la sigla P y recorren las principales arterias de
La Habana.
Deben tener una frecuencia en horas pico entre 5 y 10 minutos. Pero debido a
problemas de financiación, más de 170 autobuses están parados por falta de
piezas. Entonces habaneros como Darío deben espera más de una hora en la
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parada para abordar un Metrobus.
La 'solución mágica' del gobierno de Raúl Castro es que la incipiente clase
media cubana (trabajadores privados, artistas, músicos, deportistas que ya
pueden contratarse en circuitos rentados y un segmento que vive a costa de las
remesas giradas desde el exterior), adquieran autos en concesionarias del
Estado. Y con las supuestas amplias ganancias, crear un fondo de inversiones
para adquirir ómnibus nuevos.
Pero a los precios actuales de venta -algunos superan los 260 mil dólares-, es
difícil que el proyecto del régimen funcione. Por tanto, los habaneros de a pie
consideran que el transporte urbano seguirá de mal en peor.
Former U.S. Sen., Fla. Gov. Bob Graham part of Cuba oil drilling
mission
By RYAN MILLS
http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2014/jan/11/former-us-sen-gov-bob-graham-part-ofoil-mission/
January 11, 2014
Former U.S. Senator and Florida Gov. Bob Graham is part of an American contingent traveling to
Cuba on Monday to explore the communist nation’s oil drilling plans.
Graham, the keynote speaker at the Everglades Coalition conference at the Naples Beach Hotel
& Golf Club on Saturday evening, said he will be joining about a dozen others, including
prominent offshore oil industry experts, for the trip, which is being coordinated by the Council on
Foreign Relations.
At least four exploratory wells drilled off Cuba’s northern shore over the last two years have come
up dry, but the island nation’s goal is to attain energy self-sufficiency by tapping into the 4.6 billion
to 9.3 billion barrels of oil believed to be offshore.
“It’s very important for the nation, and particularly important for Florida that any drilling done in
that area be done at a very high standard of safety and with the capability to respond if there is an
accident,” Graham said Saturday afternoon, while relaxing at the hotel’s beachfront restaurant.
“The reason for the trip,” he said, “is to talk to the Cubans, try to better understand what their
plans are, what their capabilities are, and, frankly, how the international community ... can
cooperate in a way to ensure that Cuba drills at the highest level of international safety
standards.”
Graham was co-chair of the National Commission on the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and
Offshore Drilling established by President Barack Obama after the April 2010 BP oil spill in the
Gulf of Mexico. The commission’s other co-chair, William K. Reilly, a former EPA administrator, is
also part of Monday’s trip, Graham said.
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The trip is being coordinated by Julia E. Sweig, a senior fellow at the CFR, Graham said. They
are expected to return to the U.S. on Friday.
The U.S. has a two-pronged policy on Cuba — an economic embargo and diplomatic isolation.
Graham, a supporter of the embargo, said he knows there are those who feel any contact with
Cuba is tacit support for the country’s communist regime. But ensuring Cuba’s oil drilling is done
safely is in the best interest of the U.S., he said. “The consequences of failure are not going to be
on Havana, but are going to be on South Florida. The nature of the currents are going to carry the
oil to the northeast and then to the north,” he said.
Graham said he had not seen an itinerary for the trip, and didn’t know exactly who in the Cuban
government they will be meeting with. “I’m confident that they’re not sending us down there to
meet with people who don’t have some ability to affect the decisions” of the government or private
sector, he said.
Conversations about Cuba’s human rights abuses would likely be “sidebar discussions,” said
Graham, who said he hoped to experience the flavor of the island during his first trip there. “I went
to the Soviet Union before the end of the Cold War, and I’ve been in China, a lot of sensitive
places,” he said, “and I feel I’m sophisticated enough to know when I might be propagandized.”
During his speech at the Everglades conference, Graham said 2013 was the year that Floridians
became aware of how serious the state’s water problems are.
“Now we’re transitioning from awareness to action; what should we be doing about it,” he said.
Included in his prescription: developing a state water plan; restricting activities that lead
to pollution, including over-fertilizing lawns; and focusing on water consumption.
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CFR Marine Disaster Prevention and Preparedness Study Group
January 12, 2014
Under the direction of Julia Sweig, Nelson and David Rockefeller Senior Fellow for Latin America
Studies and Director for Latin America Studies, the Council on Foreign Relations has launched a
Study Group on Marine Disaster Prevention and Preparedness in the Gulf of Mexico. The group
aims to promote the exchange of information and strengthen communication between U.S. and
Cuban experts, policymakers, and practitioners within the fields of gas and oil exploration, natural
disaster mitigation, coastal sustainability, and regulatory oversight of the Gulf of Mexico. The
study group is comprised of senior practitioners and policymakers in the fields of energy, the
environment, climate and sustainability, commerce, the food supply, and security in the Gulf of
Mexico. As the United States, Cuba, Mexico, and other Caribbean nations undertake offshore oil
exploration and prepare for increasingly frequent and powerful hurricanes, this initiative will
develop pragmatic strategies for preparedness and collaboration that advance common interests
and mitigate environmental risks.
Study Group to travel to Havana, Cuba
From January 13 - 17, 2014, the study group will travel to Havana and meet with Cuban
policymakers and practitioners to discuss environmental risks in the Gulf of Mexico related to
natural disasters and offshore drilling. In preparation for the upcoming visit to Cuba, study group
members have consulted with numerous experts and practitioners in the United States. The
group will conduct follow-up briefings and convey their findings after returning from the trip.
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Cuba Travel Roster
Jason Eric Bordoff: Columbia University School of International & Public Affairs
Michael R. Bromwich: Goodwin Procter, LLP
David L. Goldwyn: Goldwyn Global Strategies
Senator Bob Graham: Bob Graham Center for Public Service, University of Florida
Richard J. Lazarus: Harvard Law School
Megan Reilly Cayten: Catrinka
William K. Reilly: TPG Capital
Vicki Seyfert-Margolis: MyOwnMed
Shalini Vajjhala: re: focus partners
Daniel Whittle: Environmental Defense Fund
Michael A. Levi: Council on Foreign Relations
James M. Lindsay: Council on Foreign Relations
Julia Sweig: Council on Foreign Relations
Joel Hernandez: Council on Foreign Relations
Ashley Speyer: Council on Foreign Relations
The Council on Foreign Relations is an independent, nonpartisan membership organization, think
tank, and publisher dedicated to being a resource for its members, government officials, business
executives, journalists, educators and students, civic and religious leaders, and other interested
citizens in order to help them better understand the world and the foreign policy choices facing
the United States and other countries. CFR takes no institutional positions on matters of policy.
Iva Zoric
Director, Global Communications and Media Relations
Council on Foreign Relations
58 East 68th Street, New York, NY 10065
tel 212.434.9639 fax 212.434.9832
izoric@cfr.org
www.cfr.org
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Damas de Blanco marchan en Cuba a pesar de represión
En Cárdenas las mujeres fueron rodeadas, acosadas y ofendidas por turbas paramilitares
compuestas por unas 150 personas al servicio del régimen.
Marti Noticias.enero 12, 2014
E
n la ciudad cubana de Holguín numerosas Damas de Blanco fueron
acosadas y detenidas por las autoridades comunistas, en un intento por
impedir que asistieran a la misa dominical.
Diez mujeres pudieron marchar y asistir a misa, mientras que el resto fue
sitiada y acosada en sus viviendas, además de ser amenazadas con la cárcel
y con hacerles daño hasta causarles la muerte.
Berta Guerrero, representante de la organización en la citada provincia
ofreció su testimonio para Radio Martí.
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Damas de Blanco.

Acosan y detienen a Damas de Blanco en Holguín
Por otro lado, una veintena de mujeres del Movimiento Damas de Blanco de
Matanzas asistió a misa en las parroquias de Colón y Cárdenas.
En Cárdenas, al salir de la iglesia las mujeres fueron rodeadas, acosadas y
ofendidas por turbas paramilitares compuestas por unas 150 personas al
servicio del régimen.
La información la proporcionó desde la ciudad bandera Leticia Ramos
Herrería, representante del grupo en la mencionada provincia.
La represión contra las activistas ha provocado que la líder de las Damas de
Blanco, Berta Soler, y Laura Labrada, hija de la fundadora de esa
organización, Laura Pollán, se presentaran en la tarde del siete de enero en
una estación de policía, en el municipio 10 de Octubre, para presentar una
demanda contra la Seguridad del Estado por saqueo y acoso.
La acción judicial estuvo específicamente motivada en este caso por el asalto
y posterior saqueo efectuado por la policía política en la sede de las Damas
de Blanco en la calle Neptuno del municipio Centro Habana, el pasado 3 de
enero de 2014. Allí, y de acuerdo con la declaración de los demandantes,
junto con los juguetes fueron sustraídos determinados objetos por parte de
las autoridades policiales.
La demanda contra la Seguridad del Estado cuenta con el respaldo legal de
los abogados independientes, Yaremis Flores y Veizant Boloy.
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Política: Díaz-Canel pide más 'críticas' a los medios oficiales, pero con
'equilibrio'
DDC | La Habana | 12 Ene 2014 - 3:31 pm. | 34
Dice que 'todo' lo que se haga debe tener 'muy en cuenta' el discurso de Raúl Castro para
enfrentar 'la propaganda subversiva'.
Retórica cíclica en La Habana. El número dos del régimen, Miguel Díaz-Canel, pidió a
los periódicos nacionales, otra vez, que sean "más críticos", pero indicó que "todo" debe
enfocarse "contra la subversión".
"Hay cosas que criticar, tal como lo hacen en muchos medios provinciales. Ahí tenemos
el enfrentamiento a las ilegalidades, la corrupción, las indisciplinas sociales", dijo el
primer vicepresidente del Gobierno en el II Pleno del Comité Nacional de la oficialista
Unión de Periodistas de Cuba (UPEC).
Pero, a continuación, sembró la semilla de la autocensura: "La crítica, si se hace bien,
ayuda. Pero no se trata de un asunto solo criticarlo, sino buscar al equilibrio necesario, la
integralidad necesaria. Y la profesionalidad es importante en ese camino".
Según el dirigente, "todo" lo que se haga a partir de ahora "debe tener muy en cuenta" el
discurso de Raúl Castro, del pasado 1 de enero, en Santiago de Cuba, "en el cual
reconoció que el problema ideológico es estratégico frente a la propaganda subversiva".
A pesar de las advertencias sobre los límites de la prensa oficial, Díaz-Canel dijo estar
preocupado por la "autocensura" que, en su opinión, "a veces, existe en los medios".
En este sentido, mencionó "el caso de la primera imagen transmitida sobre la agresión
contra el boxeador Julio César La Cruz, donde no se dijo que había recibido una herida
por bala".
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El control: cuestión de todos
Trabajadores, Publicado el 12 enero, 2014 • 20:45 por María de las Nieves Galá
Las indisciplinas, el delito y las ilegalidades han marcado al sector del transporte durante
mucho tiempo. Según se reconoció en la última reunión del secretariado nacional del
Sindicato Nacional de Trabajadores del Transporte y Puertos, el robo de combustible, la
venta ilícita de pasajes, la sustracción de importantes recursos destinados a los medios y
equipos para su explotación, continúan manifestándose en disímiles centros laborales sin
que exista un accionar sobre estos denigrantes fenómenos.
Increíblemente, no son pocas las entidades donde ello ocurre. ¿Cómo explicar que de un
centro de carga de ferrocarriles o de una empresa de camiones desaparezca determinada
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cantidad de combustible y nadie se percate de ello? ¿De qué manera pueden extraerse
neumáticos o algún motor de un área de trabajo como si fueran simples objetos?
En esos lugares, por lo general, existe un agente de protección, está elaborado un amplio
plan de prevención y el tema del delito se analiza en todos los espacios de discusión (dígase
consejos de dirección, reuniones del núcleo del Partido o asambleas sindicales); sin embargo,
no se aprecian los resultados.
Si esto ocurriera solo en el transporte podría decirse que bastaría con ejercer un control más
eficiente y estricto en esos vulnerables centros; no obstante, no es así, ese mal que corroe la
economía y la moral del país pulula en otros sectores de la sociedad: comercio, industria,
agricultura o construcción, por solo poner esos ejemplos.
¿Cuántos casos aún existen, a pesar de las advertencias, de empresas donde se roba dinero a
través de nóminas alteradas, o se firman cheques sin tener el más mínimo recato de lo que se
hace?
Hoy para el país enfrentar hechos de esa naturaleza es una prioridad, si se quiere hacer un
uso eficiente y racional de los recursos de los cuales dispone el Estado, empeñado en
impulsar planes y concretar la actualización del modelo económico cubano.
¿Dónde se falla? ¿Acaso basta con la denuncia ante las autoridades y quizás sean
sancionados uno o varios individuos, cuando se puede descubrir la fechoría?
Para nadie es un secreto que detrás de un hecho delictivo o un fenómeno de corrupción está
como caldo de cultivo el descontrol, lo cual permite que aquellos dispuestos a delinquir
tengan abiertas las puertas para cumplir sus propósitos.
Es cierto que en una empresa o institución todas las personas somos responsables, pero
nadie tiene dudas de que la máxima autoridad en cada entidad es el jefe. Él tiene ante sí el
compromiso de velar por los recursos materiales asignados y eso no se puede hacer desde
un buró o solamente mediante el chequeo de informes.
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Hay que comprobar, regularmente visitar los sitios considerados más sensibles, hacer un
recorrido nocturno imprevisto; dando el frente, los demás se educan. Pero no bastaría solo
con un jefe corriendo de un lado a otro para controlar, si el resto del colectivo no lo asume
como una acción cotidiana. Si los ojos de los trabajadores están bien abiertos para cuidar sus
bienes, nadie les puede robar.
En toda esa batalla, el plan de prevención es importante, mucho más cuando nace desde el
seno de los trabajadores, quienes contribuyen a diseñarlo, porque ellos, mejor que nadie,
saben por dónde se puede “romper el saco”.
Luego, no es para guardar ese plan en una gaveta, debe ser un libro abierto, casi como una
cartilla, que todos identifiquen de memoria.
Recientemente, durante la última sesión del Parlamento cubano, la contralora general de la
República, Gladys Bejerano, al intervenir ante la Comisión de Asuntos Constitucionales y
Jurídicos, subrayó como “causales de las insuficiencias en el control interno, que generan
condiciones para el delito y la corrupción, las debilidades en la conducta de los cuadros para
establecer orden, disciplina y exigencia”. Y también destacó la importancia del control
obrero, como mecanismo democrático para revertir esas distorsiones.
Para los trabajadores y el movimiento sindical es vital librar esa batalla, de forma sistemática
y eficiente, porque ninguna aspiración podrá materializarse desde una economía de escasos
recursos bajo los impactos de manos inescrupulosas.
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Cuban students open rare study program to Miami
Updated 1:29 pm, Monday, January 13, 2014
MIAMI (AP) — A group of students from Cuba is opening the communist country's first
academic trip in more than five decades to the largest public college in Miami, unofficial
capital of the exile community.
Fifteen Cuban students have arrived and two more are en route for a semester of study
at Miami Dade College, the institution's provost, Rolando Montoya, announced Monday.
The students range from 18 to 37 and will be taking courses in sociology, computing,
business and other subjects.
The visit marks the first time Miami Dade College will provide classes to students still
living in Cuba, Montoya said. The college has long been one of the first stops for Cuban
and other immigrants in Miami seeking an education and to establish themselves in the
U.S.
"We always say we are a single people, if we are over there or here," Montoya said. "We
are here with our arms wide open."
U.S. students are permitted to travel to Cuba for academic study under the "people-topeople" exchanges re-established by the Obama administration in 2011. But the
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exchanges are largely one-sided, with Cuban students rarely traveling to the U.S. for
similar study.
Two Cuban medical students traveled to the U.S. in 2010 to speak at universities about
life on the island. And Cuban graduate students and professors have visited occasionally
to teach or attend conferences. But few could recall any group of undergraduate
students spending a semester in the U.S.
"I'm sure there's been some, but I think they have been an exceptional, one-shot deal,"
said Ted Henken, a professor at Baruch College in New York and president of the
Association for the Study of the Cuban Economy.
Miami is home to the largest population of Cubans outside the island. In the past many
have resisted travel by musicians, artists and others still living on the island. But strong
opposition has declined as younger generations and new arrivals have been more open
to a relationship with Cubans on the island.
Montoya said changes in Cuba's travel laws made the visit possible: Thousands of
Cubans have recently been permitted to travel after the government eliminated the
much-detested "white card" needed to leave. The number of Cubans receiving U.S.
nonimmigrant visas jumped by 82 percent from October 2012 to July 2013 compared to
the same period a year before, according to the U.S. State Department.
"I think this is consistent with that trend in which students are looking outside the country
more than before," he said.
Among the arriving students are musicians, artists, attorneys and others; more than half
are women. They were granted J-1 visas traditionally given to visiting students, teachers,
doctors and others.
Few such visas had been granted prior to the change in Cuba travel policy that went into
effect last year. In 2012, just eight such visas were granted. Figures for 2013
weren't available.
The Foundation for Human Rights in Cuba approached Miami Dade College about
hosting the students, Montoya said. That non-profit organization works to promote
democracy and human rights on the island. They offered to recruit the students, while
Miami Dade College helped with visas and enrollment paperwork.
The foundation is paying the student's tuition, housing, meal and transportation costs,
Montoya said. A message left at the foundation by The Associated Press was not
immediately returned.
The students will take courses in English, sociology, computer, psychology, business
and English. The classes include "Principles of Business and
Organizational Management."
"I think we picked an academic content that will really help them once they go back,"
Montoya said.
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Montoya said the trip wasn't announced until Monday because of student privacy issues
— and politics.
"We also wanted to make sure that this wouldn't be interpreted as something political
that would allow Cuban authorities to deny their departure from Cuba," Montoya said.
After a news conference Monday, the students briefly shook hands with their professors.
Several wore Miami Dade College sweatshirts. They didn't speak at the event and were
quickly escorted away as reporters approached.
One who talked afterward with reporters, graffiti artist Danilo Maldonado, said the
students want to learn, "Everything we can to make my country as free and developed
as possible."
____
Follow Christine Armario on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/cearmario
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Analysis: How the Cuban economy performed in 2013
By José Luis Rodríguez*
Cuba Standard, January 13,14
At the close of 2013, it is possible to make some preliminary evaluations about what
happened in the Cuban economy in the past 12 months and draw some perspectives for
the new year. To be sure, a more exhaustive analysis will require more information.
As was informed, GDP growth reached only 2.7 percent, below the 3.6 percent foreseen
in the plan. As early as in the National Assembly session in July, it was pointed out that
growth in the first half was 2.3 percent, and it was predicted that the year’s total would
be between 2.5 percent and 3 percent, based on the difficulties encountered since the
end of 2012, when Hurricane Sandy caused losses of $6.97 billion to the country.
In addition to the storm, the Minister of Economy and Planning informed that the
slowdown in growth was influenced by non-compliance in planned hard-currency
revenues — which forced a major adjustment of the plan and perspectives for 2014 in
October — as well as by lower growth rates in manufacturing and construction.
Available information indicates that investment slowed down from a rise of 16 percent in
the first half to 7.1 percent at the end of the year, which was 14.7 percent below plan. In
that sense, the accumulation rate is a meager 7.8 percent in relation to GDP, underlining
the persistence of low efficiency in the investment process in Cuba.
In the area of state investment, a 7.1-percent growth was reported in the number of
dwellings built by the government. Even so, the plan was only 84 percent fulfilled.
As to the most important macroeconomic indicators, a 2.3-percent growth was obtained
in global labor productivity, compared to a median salary that grew 1.7 percent to 474
pesos per month, reflecting a positive development.
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Also, the gradual reduction of state employment continued, with a 1.5-percent decline.
That compares to 6-percent growth in the non-state sector. The unemployment rate was
3.3 percent.
As far as the non-state sector goes, the year closed with 444,109 self-employed workers
(trabajadores por cuenta propia), occupied in 201 activities. This is 2.8 times more than
in 2010. In addition, there are now 270 new non-agricultural cooperatives; 228 more are
about to be approved, all of which shows substantial growth of the private and
cooperative sector in 2013.
The results in other economic areas reflect a complex situation. For instance, oil
production decreased 0.7 percent, although exports rose 9.5 percent, based on
restriction of domestic consumption. It was also informed that the global energy intensity
index improved.
In the case of the non-sugar agricultural sector, the numbers through September
showed rises in the production of rice (7.7%), corn (10.3%) and eggs (2.4%), while they
decreased for milk (-2%), viands and vegetrables (-1.8%) and beans (-5.7%).
Sugar production reached 1.513 million metric tons, for a growth of 8.1 percent from the
previous harvest. However, world market prices were an average 16.43 cents per
pound, down 15.5 percent. Likewise, nickel prices dropped nearly 17 percent from
December 2012 to December 2013.
Freight transportation shrunk 8.6 percent. Although passenger transportation rose 8.1
percent nationwide and 7.1 percent in Havana, these numbers are insufficient and below
the plan and real needs.
Retail trade circulation rose 12.7 percent in non-convertible pesos (CUP), and 6.5
percent in convertible pesos (CUC). This growth, however, was in both cases influenced
by price rises. Also, wholesale trade rose 35 percent.
Domestic finances show a budget deficit of 1.2 percent of GDP. This is below forecast,
due to the contraction of a group of activities, which is reflected by the fact that budgeted
expenses reached 62.9 percent of GDP, compared to 71 percent in 2012. Meanwhile,
revenues decreased to 58.3 percent from 67.3 percent in the previous year, according to
estimates.
As to the population, a total of 1.773 billion pesos (CUP) in personal loans was granted;
liquidity grew 4 percent, although it was reported as balanced.
The external sector yielded a positive trade balance for goods and services of US$1.256
billion, which, although it is a favorable result, is probably $221 million below that of
2012, according to estimates. In that sense, it’s worthwhile pointing out that tourism
didn’t grow compared to the previous year, which produced a 13-percent noncompliance of the plan.
As to imports, the WTI reference oil price rose 9.1 percent. In the case of food, the
forecast of $1.938 billion in purchases for 2013 was possibly lower, according to
previsions made in July. However, the final results show a mixed situation, with
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significant price rises for beans (51%), powdered whole milk (42.3%), and pork (33.1%),
and decreases for wheat (-37.1%), corn (-29.4%), and rice (-13.8%), among other
significant products.
From the point of view of external finances, the year concluded with a favorable track
record of punctual debt payments, and a favorable renegotiation process that should
positively reflect on the country’s external credibility.
Even so, the tense financial situation in 2013 also triggered the need to lower growth
forecasts for 2014 (to be continued).
*José Luis Rodríguez is a former economy and finance minister and consultant with the Centro de
Investigaciones de la Economía Mundial (CIEM) in Havana. He can be reached at joseluis@ciem.cu. This
article was first published in Cuba Contemporánea.
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2014 may bring more austerity, import cuts
Jan. 13, 2014
CUBA STANDARD – Cuba’s reformers — already busy with currency unification,
simultaneously encouraging and limiting private-sector growth, turning around
dysfunctional state companies, and selling the Mariel export processing zone to
investors, among many other tasks — may also have to cope with tightening cash flow in
2014.
As economic reforms have yet to produce any tangible results as far as revenues go —
just two years from the 2016 deadline set by the lineamientos of reform in 2011 —
officials predict continued sluggish GDP growth in 2014. Following a disappointing 2.7percent increase in 2013 — 0.9 percent less than predicted — the economy is expected
to grow at a dismal 2.2 percent in 2014, Economy and Planning Minister Adel Yzquierdo
told the National Assembly at its year-end session.
With prices of Cuban export commodities such as nickel and sugar expected to continue
their decline, tourism stagnating, expenses for food imports destined to rise yet again,
and many state companies likely to require continued subsidies, the government will
have to extend its austerity policy in order to keep the country’s recent debt-service
record clean.
“In 2014, international prices could trigger a shock of terms of exchange,” says Pavel
Vidal, a former Central Bank economist who now teaches at Universidad Javeriana in
Colombia. “In such a scenario, and given that the reform doesn’t show robust results in
revenue generation, a new adjustment in imports and a heightening of hard-currency
restrictions should not be dismissed.”
As the overall deficit for 2014 is expected to reach 3.9 billion Cuban pesos, or 4.7
percent of GDP (the government doesn’t reveal what part is in hard currency), the
Central Bank is floating domestic bonds among Cuban banks and cranking up the
money printing machines.
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Raúl Castro announced in 2009 that meeting Cuba’s foreign debt obligations was a top
priority. Even so, some foreign players in Cuba are concerned, fearing that Cuba is just
one cutback decision in Caracas — or a hurricane — away from the next default.
“Cuba is entering into a very tough period with severe liquidity issues, and [there is] a
real risk of what happens if Venezuelan support is cut further,” said one foreign
businessman in Havana who spoke on background. The country “has been successful in
renegotiating various sovereign debt deals, with Russia, China, Japan, France,
Netherlands and others,” he added. “But I don’t see how this translates into new money,
which is not part of a bilateral political deal.”
Under Nicolas Maduro — Hugo Chávez’ besieged successor — Venezuela has
continued to provide Cuba with half its oil needs at subsidized prices, and apparently
maintains a high level of Cuban medical service purchases. However, VenezuelanCuban mega projects, such as offshore oil drilling, a new refinery at Matanzas, and a
ferronickel plant in Moa, have been put on ice.
To be sure, other foreign observers in Havana are less pessimistic, believing that
Maduro will continue Venezuela’s commitment to Cuba, and that it will be able to do so
as long as the oil price remains above $90 a barrel. Also, Cuba has been quite
successful recently in diversifying its medical service exports, thanks to agreements with
Brazil, Ecuador and Arab countries.
Finally, even though their effect is difficult to predict, the reforms do have an upside.
Currency reform and devaluation will open a window of opportunity for Cuban state
companies to boost exports, says Vidal. Whether many state companies will be in a
position to take advantage is another question, as their dysfunction continues. Even new
ones such as Azcuba and BioFarmaCuba are already generating defaults, as deputies in
the National Assembly learned recently.
What’s more, tax revenues may be rising, as small, privately-owned businesses begin to
gain traction. Tax collections have grown marginally in 2013, but there are now 440,000
cuentapropistas, 45,000 more than at the end of last year, and some of them are gaining
stable footing. Also, the government has granted licenses to 270 non-agricultural
cooperatives.
The Mariel Special Development Zone is another wild card. No manufacturer has
publicly committed to opening shop at Mariel, but Cuban officials are optimistic, talking
about some 300 companies that have expressed interest.
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Exchange Rate Unification: The Cuban Case
By: Alain Ize and Augusto de la Torre
Paper | December 2013
In Exchange Rate Unification: The Cuban Case, Augusto de la Torre and Alain Ize take
an international perspective in examining the challenges Cuba faces in unifying its
exchange rate, and compare various options to meet this objective.
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Since 2011, the Cuban authorities have placed exchange rate
unification as one of their top policy priorities. Indeed, the current dual exchange rate
system—whereby a one-to-one exchange rate for the “convertible peso” coexists with a
twenty four-to-one exchange rate for the “Cuban peso” (both against the U.S. dollar)—
introduces severe and pervasive distortions with costly consequences for resource
allocation and the growth potential of the Cuban economy. At the same time, the
unusually large (by international comparison) spread between the two exchange rates
exacerbates the transition costs and thus constitutes one of the main reasons delaying
their unification.
De la Torre and Ize argue in favor of a fast unification approach, cushioned during a preannounced transition period by lump-sum taxes and subsidies applied on an enterpriseby-enterprise basis. By allowing for relative price changes to operate in full from the
start, the immediate unification would maximize efficiency gains. At the same time, by
cushioning the Cuban economy from potentially large transitional pains—including fiscal
revenue losses, productive dislocations, inflationary outbursts and distributional effects—
the lump-sum taxes and subsidies (to be gradually phased out) would ease the transition,
thereby boosting policy credibility. However, to ensure the viability of the scheme and
the rapid materialization of the efficiency gains, important habilitating reforms would be
needed, particularly regarding the governance of state enterprises.
This paper was prepared for a series of expert workshops on Cuban economic change in
comparative perspective organized by the Foreign Policy Latin America Initiative at the
Brookings Institution and the University of Havana’s Center for the Study of the Cuban
Economy and the Center for the Study of the International Economy. It was developed
from a presentation made at an experts’ seminar in Havana, Cuba on September 26,
2013 and subsequently revised.

Download
Exchange Rate Unification: The Cuban Case
23 pages, 5.5 MB
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Survey predicts record year for U.S. remittances and travel to Cuba
January 13, 2014
CUBA STANDARD — Remittances to Cuba reached a record $2.77 billion in 2013, 6.57
percent more than the previous year, a Miami-based consulting firm concludes,
extrapolating from a recent survey of several hundred residents in South Florida.
According to the survey by The Havana Consulting Group, remittances may break
another record in 2014.
“In 2014, the $3 billion barrier for cash remittances could be broken for the first time,” the
company said in a press release about the survey. “Everything depends on the next
liberating measures of the Cuban government.”
The developing world is expected to receive $414 billion in migrant remittances in 2013,
an increase of 6.3 percent over the previous year, according to the World Bank.
However, if Cuba remittances are growing as fast as the survey suggests, it would go
against the trend in Latin America and the Caribbean, which continue to be affected by
the spotty recovery of the U.S. economy.
A spokesman for Englewood, Co.-based Western Union, which handles the bulk of U.S.Cuba remittances, declined to comment on the company’s performance and remittances
to Cuba, before 2o13 earnings are released.
Between 1.062 million and 1.181 million Cubans who live in the United States send
money to the island, the Havana Consulting Group survey suggests. Of the 822
interviewees contacted at supermarkets in South Florida and Miami International Airport,
62.8 percent said they send remittances to Cuba.
Surprisingly, younger people are more likely to send money; 93.8 percent of those
surveyed were between ages 20 and 49. In contrast, the majority of recipients on the
island are older than 50, most of them women.
“In other words, currently on the island women have a bigger role in the management of
financial resources at home than men,” the study says. “She is the one who determines,
generally, how resources are used, and how they are spent or invested.”
The survey detected “profound differences in buying power among Cubans according to
regions.” The lion’s share of the remittances — 41.7 percent — is going to Havana.
When the provinces are grouped in three regions — west, center and east, the
differences are stark. The West receives 56.8 percent of all remittances, the central
region 29.2 percent, and the East only 14 percent.
“The numbers confirm that the Eastern region is the poorest. Its low hard-currency
buying power make the Eastern population the most economically and socially
vulnerable of the nation.”
The survey also found that 82.13 percent of those sending remittances are white, while
12.05 percent described themselves as mixed-race, and only 5.82 percent as black.
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The vast majority of recipients, 99.2 percent, use remittances to buy food. However, 45
percent also use the hard currency to pay for telecommunications, particularly cell
phones. A small part of remittances go to investments in private businesses. And some
also goes to paying for hotel stays in beach resorts that had previously been off-limits for
Cubans.
Meanwhile, the number of U.S. travelers to Cuba likely reached a historical high of
600,000 in 2013, Havana Consulting Group suggests. In 2012, according to the
consulting firm, 574,000 U.S. citizens and residents traveled to Cuba. As of midDecember 2013, 569,000 U.S. passengers had traveled to Cuba.
According to the survey, 67.4 percent of those interviewed travel to the island. Of those,
87 percent travel once a year; 6.2 percent travel at least once every quarter, suggesting
a substantial number who travel on business. The median stay in Cuba is between five
and seven days.
Of the travelers, more than one-third — 36.3 percent — visit tourist resorts; 54.9 percent
of the beach visitors go to Varadero. More than 80 percent of the beach visitors said
they stay in hotels. As to transportation, one-third rent cars, and 17.87 percent hire
government-owned taxis.
The study estimates that Cuban Americans visiting the island spend between $660
million and $660 million annually there.
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Portugal says it will extend Cuban healthcare program
January 13-2014
CUBA STANDARD — The Portuguese minister of health expressed his intent to
continue a six year-old for-pay program that has deployed Cuban doctors to 18 smaller
towns in the southern rural regions of Algarve and Alentejo that lack primary care
services, official media reported.
Portuguese Health Minister Paulo Macedo and the Cuban ambassador in Lisbon,
Johana Tablada, described the program “as positive,” according to official news service
ACN. The two countries signed the first two-year contract in 2008; the current contract
expires this month.
With currently 39 Cuban doctors, the Portuguese program is small. However, it is a
bridgehead in the potentially larger European market.
Cuba has also tried to sell Portugal medicine and vaccines, apparently with no results to
show so far.
Cuba is successfully expanding for-pay medical service exports, with 5,400 doctors and
1,000 doctors contracted by Brazil and Ecuador, respectively, and smaller programs in
Angola, Algeria, South Africa, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. The biggest Cuban medical
contingent abroad, an estimated 30,000, is contracted by Venezuela.
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Based on a calculation of local salaries for doctors, Portugal pays Cuba at least $1.32
million per year for the services.
Some 10 percent of all doctors working in Portugal’s national health system are
foreigners, by far most of them from neighboring Spain. Forty Colombian doctors were
contracted in 2009, in addition to dozens of Colombian doctors already working in
Portugal.
As is the case in many deployments of Cuban medical personnel abroad, local doctors’
organizations are objecting. In November 2009, a union representing independent
doctors sent a letter to Portugal’s prime minister, complaining about the “unacceptable
and humiliating” work conditions of the Cuban doctors.
According to the Sindicato Independente dos Médicos, the Cuban government pays its
doctors in Portugal euro 500 (US$668) per month. The health minister responded the
Portuguese government pays the equivalent of a Portuguese doctor’s monthly salary to
the Cuban government, but cannot control how much of that goes to the Cuban doctors.
The host municipalities provide free lodging and transportation to the Cuban doctors. In
Cuba, a primary physician earns the equivalent of at most $40 a month.
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2013 a bad year for religious freedom in Cuba
Christian Today, Published 13 January 2014 | Michael Trimmer
A man holds palm leaves in the shape of a cross as Christian pilgrims leave a Palm Sunday mass at San
Rosendo Cathedral in Pinar del Rio, Cuba, Sunday, April 1, 2007. Palm Sunday commemorates Jesus
Christ's triumphant entry into Jerusalem, and is the start of the church's Holy Week. (AP Photo/Javier
Galeano)
The advocacy group Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) has renewed its call
upon the leadership of Cuba to improve religious freedom in the country.
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CSW's Chief Executive Mervyn Thomas said in a statement that, "We are deeply
concerned by the continued deterioration in religious freedom over the past year
in Cuba. Each Sunday the government continues to violate the most basic of
rights: the right to freely participate in religious services and form part of a
religious community without interference."
CSW documented 185 reported cases of religious freedom violation in 2013, up
from a total of 120 in 2012. Most of the victims of these incidents were Catholics,
but many Baptists, Pentecostals, and Methodists were also targeted.
Mostly the issues revolve around the arbitrary arrest of parishioners seeking to
go to regular church services, but there were also many reports of harassment,
intimidation and pressure from state security services on religious institutions.
According to CSW, these pressures originate from the Office of Religious Affairs
of the Central Committee of the Cuban Communist Party. Their aim, CSW
contends, is to force religious groups to change internal governing structures,
statutes and constitutions, making them less democratic and therefore easier for
the central government to control.
Churches that either do not submit to this rule or those that the government takes
an objection to for other reasons often face legal sanctions or closure.
Examples of particularly brutal human rights violations of this kind continued right
up until the end of the year. On 20 December, six members of an interdenominational protestant group were beaten and imprisoned for nine hours in a
windowless cell with no ventilation or light after attempting to carry out open air
evangelism in the city of Bayamo.
A few days later, on 22 December, 60 women affiliated with the Ladies in White
movement, a group protesting for the release of jailed human rights activists and
dissidents, were arrested in the early hours of the morning and held in prisons,
police patrol cars, and police stations across the country to prevent them from
attending Sunday morning Mass.
Cuban authorities continued to push religious groups to expel or bar Cubans
associated with human rights or pro-democracy groups from their congregations.
Religious groups that defied these government demands saw their bank
accounts frozen and entire denominations found their requests to receive foreign
visitors on religious visas denied.
Improvements in some areas were tempered by failure in others. While the need
of a "white card" for Cubans who wished to travel abroad was dropped in many
cases, at least two leaders in the Apostolic Movement were informed in 2013 that
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they would not be permitted to leave Cuba, without any reason for this given by
the authorities.
Describing the danger looming in 2014, Mr Thomas said: "We are particularly
concerned at attempts by the government to exert control over the internal affairs
of religious groups, and specifically at the new regulation that limits entire
denominations and religious associations to one bank account.
"Given that the government runs the bank and regularly freezes the accounts of
individual churches as a way to exert pressure or punish them, this is an
extremely worrying development.
"The Cuban government's claims of reform and respect for human rights cannot
be taken seriously unless these violations are addressed and real protections for
religious freedom for all put in place. Once again we urge Raul Castro to make
this a priority of the government in 2014."
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Gallery: New law threatens Cuba's classic, beautiful cars
Join the conversation
CNN iReport
By CNN Staff
updated 9:28 AM EST, Mon January 13, 2014
Our iReport
assignment on "Cuba's vintage cars" resulted in dozens of submissions from readers around the world. One
iReporter, Wolfgang Theofel, visited Cuba for a university trip with his school back in February 2013. The
German student was there for a geographical excursion and photographed the vintage cars in the area.
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HIDE CAPTION
Vintage cars in Cuba
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 Cuba's new law makes buying a new car easier
But it could lead to the demise of its famous classic models
Have you seen Cuba's stunning vintage cars? Send us your images!
(CNN) -- Cuba recently eased restrictions on car imports and acquisitions in the country,
doing away with a law that made icons of its old American Pontiacs and Chevys.
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Though there have been some reports that new cars are so far prohibitively expensive
for most locals, some fear the easing of the law spells the beginning of the end for these
vehicular stalwarts.
Urban planner Wolfgang Theofel sent us some of his photos of these classic cars, from
a trip last year.
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El pesado lastre de las pérdidas económicas
Miguel Febles Hernández
Granma, Enero 13, 2014
Como diría el célebre Sherlock Holmes: ¡Elemental, amigo Watson! Ningún negocio,
establecimiento, entidad o timbiriche se crea para generar pérdidas. De ser así, su dueño no
dudaría un segundo en cerrarlo o en transformar el perfil productivo o comercial para buscar la
imprescindible solvencia económica.
A pesar de constituir tal aseveración una verdad irrebatible, clara y evidente, ha costado mucho
trabajo hacerla parte consustancial de la gestión empresarial, enmarañada en viejas prácticas
con resultados casi siempre cuestionables en materia de eficiencia y rentabilidad.
El primer golpe de aldaba para acabar de una vez por todas con el flagelo de las pérdidas
económicas en las empresas estatales cubanas se dejó escuchar en el VI Congreso del Partido,
al quedar refrendada tal decisión en los Lineamientos de la Política Económica y Social del
Partido y la Revolución.
Plantea el documento que "las empresas estatales o cooperativas que muestren sostenidamente
en sus balances financieros pérdidas, capital de trabajo insuficiente, que no puedan honrar con
sus activos las obligaciones contraídas o que obtengan resultados negativos en auditorías
financieras, serán sometidas a un proceso de liquidación o se podrán transformar en otras
formas de gestión no estatal".
Sin embargo, transcurridos casi tres años de la aprobación de los Lineamientos, todavía existen
empresas, sobre todo en el sector agropecuario, cuyo estado económico-financiero es
lamentable y en algunos casos, a pesar de los reiterados llamados de alerta, no se vislumbra un
cambio radical a corto plazo.
Todavía en la mente de ciertos directivos pe-san sobremanera experiencias ya vencidas por el
tiempo, como el subsidio por pérdidas u otras formas de financiamiento, cual tabla salvadora del
Estado para enmendar los descalabros en el cumplimiento de los planes y en el control sobre los
gastos empresariales.
A la espera siempre del rescate desde "arriba", que les saque las castañas del fuego; en no
pocos equipos de dirección se enraizó el inmovilismo, la rutina, el actuar negligente, la
mediocridad y la falta de iniciativa, fenómenos que inciden negativamente en el buen desempeño
de cualquier organización.
Cuando en determinado escenario se les escucha explicar la manera de sacar a flote las
entidades que dirigen, queda claro enseguida que no tienen una visión exacta e integral de cómo
salir del atolladero, solo proponen medidas coyunturales que apenas sirven para apuntalar los
problemas sin ir a su solución definitiva.
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Poco cambiará el estado de cosas si no se elimina el personal improductivo que todavía pulula
por las entidades, el pago de salarios sin respaldo productivo, el inadecuado manejo de los
créditos bancarios, los inventarios ociosos, los gastos por pérdidas de animales o cosechas, y la
interminable cadena de impagos.
El asunto va más allá de un simple reacomodo: se trata de vincular los ingresos a los resultados
que se obtengan, elevar la productividad, diversificar la producción y los servicios, incrementar
los rendimientos, y buscar nuevas alternativas y variantes para desplegar al máximo las
potencialidades de cada entidad.
Solo de esta manera, con mayor autonomía pero también con mayor responsabilidad, las
empresas podrán "oxigenar" las cuentas y generar utilidades que aseguren el desarrollo
endógeno, el cumplimiento de las obligaciones fiscales y la contribución al progreso y bienestar
social de las localidades donde operan.
Amén de otras formas de gestión a asumir como parte del proceso de actualización del modelo
económico cubano, la empresa estatal socialista es y será el corazón mismo de la base
estructural del país: hacer de ella un ente fuerte y organizado constituirá, por tanto, el desvelo
mayor de todos.
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Cubaeconomía
Algunos apuntes sobre un artículo en GRANMA
Posted: 13 Jan 2014 01:03 AM PST
Elías Amor Bravo, economista
No es un artículo escrito por un economista liberal. No. Por el contrario, pertenece a la edición de Granma,
hoy, 13 de enero. Y me gustaría destacar su contenido, porque creo que es la primera vez que en el diario
oficial del régimen castrista se publican cosas tan ciertas como que blanco y en botella, solo puede ser leche.
Diaz Canel lo pidió el otro día. Vamos a ver en qué queda todo ésto.
Insisto. Me interesa mucho más valor el trabajo realizado por Miguel Febles Hernández, y su artículo “El
pesado lastre de las pérdidas económicas”. Las primeras líneas son absolutamente ciertas y ofrecen una buena
idea de por dónde van los tiros, por ello cito textualmente,
“Como diría el célebre Sherlock Holmes: ¡Elemental, amigo Watson! Ningún negocio, establecimiento,
entidad o timbiriche se crea para generar pérdidas. De ser así, su dueño no dudaría un segundo en cerrarlo
o en transformar el perfil productivo o comercial para buscar la imprescindible solvencia económica”.
Para señalar a continuación lo que parece ser evidente en la economía castrista,
“A pesar de constituir tal aseveración una verdad irrebatible, clara y evidente, ha costado mucho trabajo
hacerla parte consustancial de la gestión empresarial, enmarañada en viejas prácticas con resultados casi
siempre cuestionables en materia de eficiencia y rentabilidad”.
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¿La solución? Bien, el autor menciona expresamente, al “VI Congreso del Partido, al quedar refrendada tal
decisión en los Lineamientos de la Política Económica y Social del Partido y la Revolución”. Al parecer, la
panacea que puede conseguir que todo resplandezca a la luz del sol. La cura de todos los males.
E insiste al indicar que,
“El documento (los Lineamientos) plantea que las empresas estatales o cooperativas que muestren
sostenidamente en sus balances financieros pérdidas, capital de trabajo insuficiente, que no puedan honrar
con sus activos las obligaciones contraídas o que obtengan resultados negativos en auditorías financieras,
serán sometidas a un proceso de liquidación o se podrán transformar en otras formas de gestión no
estatal".
Bien, si está tan claro, ¿por qué no se actúa? Y de nuevo vuelve a plantearse la cuestión de forma explícita
“Sin embargo, transcurridos casi tres años de la aprobación de los Lineamientos, todavía existen empresas,
sobre todo en el sector agropecuario, cuyo estado económico financiero es lamentable y en algunos casos, a
pesar de los reiterados llamados de alerta, no se vislumbra un cambio radical a corto plazo”.
E incluso se identifican los responsables,
“Todavía en la mente de ciertos directivos pesan sobremanera experiencias ya vencidas por el tiempo, como
el subsidio por pérdidas u otras formas de financiamiento, cual tabla salvadora del Estado para enmendar
los descalabros en el cumplimiento de los planes y en el control sobre los gastos empresariales”.
El por qué actúan así los directivos de las empresas públicas responde a la dependencia de un órgano superior
que es el responsable final al que todos se deben. Tal vez habría que preguntarse por qué arraigan
determinados vicios en esos equipos directivos y qué responsabilidad hay que atribuir "al de arriba",
“A la espera siempre del rescate desde "arriba", que les saque las castañas del fuego; en no pocos equipos de
dirección se enraizó el inmovilismo, la rutina, el actuar negligente, la mediocridad y la falta de iniciativa,
fenómenos que inciden negativamente en el buen desempeño de cualquier organización”.
Y por supuesto, la responsabilidad en la falta de conocimientos técnicos lo que tiene fácil arreglo porque para
ello está la formación,
“Cuando en determinado escenario se les escucha explicar la manera de sacar a flote las entidades que
dirigen, queda claro enseguida que no tienen una visión exacta e integral de cómo salir del atolladero, solo
proponen medidas coyunturales que apenas sirven para apuntalar los problemas sin ir a su solución
definitiva”.
El autor incide en una cuestión que es irrefutable, y que parece extraída de algún documento interno del
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Fondo Monetario Internacional en aquellos países en que desarrolla sus políticas financieras,
“Poco cambiará el estado de cosas si no se elimina el personal improductivo que todavía pulula por las
entidades, el pago de salarios sin respaldo productivo, el inadecuado manejo de los créditos bancarios, los
inventarios ociosos, los gastos por pérdidas de animales o cosechas, y la interminable cadena de impagos”
Para poner el dedo en la llaga de forma más que evidente,
“El asunto va más allá de un simple reacomodo: se trata de vincular los ingresos a los resultados que se
obtengan, elevar la productividad, diversificar la producción y los servicios, incrementar los rendimientos,
y buscar nuevas alternativas y variantes para desplegar al máximo las potencialidades de cada entidad”.
En lo que no coincidimos es en la solución a este problema de la economía castrista correctamente definido.
Ahí el autor se queda atrás y si no avanza más, tal vez sea porque ha ido muy lejos. Por ello, sinceramente le
felicito. El análisis que ha realizado sobre el estado de postración en que se encuentra la economía ideada por
los Castro hace medio siglo es correcto y valiente,
“Solo de esta manera, con mayor autonomía pero también con mayor responsabilidad, las empresas
podrán "oxigenar" las cuentas y generar utilidades que aseguren el desarrollo endógeno, el cumplimiento
de las obligaciones fiscales y la contribución al progreso y bienestar social de las localidades donde operan”.
Y ahí es donde yo me permito recordar que difícilmente se conseguirá mejorar la productividad, la eficiencia y
el funcionamiento de estas empresas mientras que no se resuelve la cuestión básica y fundamental de los
derechos de propiedad. El gran tabú castrista. El tótem al que parece que todos temen, y no quieren ni
mencionar. Pero ellos mismos se dan cuenta que el estado, como empresario, es el responsable del desastre en
que se encuentra la economía, y que no es posible otorgar al estado funciones que vayan más allá de las
correspondientes a la asignación de recursos, la distribución o la estabilidad económica.
Que el estado no es un productor eficiente, y que cuando una economía se basa en la propiedad estatal de los
medios de producción, o sea, en la “empresa socialista”, mal asunto. No hay que pedir peras a los olmos,
porque no las van a dar. Los análisis tienen que llegar al final del problema y olvidarse que el “corazón del
sistema de una economía” está formado por la libertad de empresa, la propiedad privada y el mercado. Ahí
está la clave de la autonomía y la responsabilidad. Lo demás es perder el tiempo.
Reiniciará operaciones esta semana refinería de petróleo de Cienfuegos
Trabajadores, Publicado el 13 enero, 2014 • 8:20 por Ramón Barreras Ferrán
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Un tanque similar a este será objeto de una reparación capital este año.
Foto del autor
Tras culminar lo que los especialistas denominan “parada de oportunidad”, para ejecutar el
mantenimiento del equipamiento tecnológico, la refinería de petróleo de la provincia de
Cienfuegos reiniciará las operaciones esta semana, con el propósito de “correr” más de 18
millones de barriles en el presente año.
Entre los objetivos principales para la etapa, figuran además: lograr niveles de pérdidas cada
vez menores, obtener un rendimiento superior en los llamados productos claros, reducir el
consumo de electricidad por debajo de 33,29 kilowatt por tonelada de crudo procesada y
mantener niveles adecuados de ahorro de agua, reactivos químicos, aceites y lubricantes y
del fuel oíl (equivalente), utilizado en los hornos para generar la energía necesaria.
Para el año está previsto el montaje del sistema de pararrayos de los tanques de crudo, a fin
de protegerlos de las descargas atmosféricas; la reparación capital de un tanque con
capacidad de 20 mil metros cúbicos de gasolina, y el establecimiento de medidores de flujo
para la transportación por vía ferroviaria.
La planta cienfueguera, primer proyecto de la Alianza Bolivariana para los Pueblos de
Nuestra América materializado en Cuba, cumplió el plan de producción del pasado año, por
sexta ocasión consecutiva. Desde enero y hasta finales de noviembre “corrió” 19 millones 683
mil barriles de crudo, por lo que totalizó 121 millones 349 mil desde su puesta en marcha el
21 de diciembre de 2007.
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CUBA FACTS
Issue 61
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Website Accessible at http://ctp.iccas.miami.edu/
Cuba Facts is an ongoing series of succinct fact sheets on various topics, including, but not limited
to, political structure, health, economy, education, nutrition, labor, business, foreign investment, and
demographics, published and updated on a regular basis by the Cuba Transition Project staff.
Cuba’s Military Power Elite
Principal Government Institutions
Cuba’s Communist Party: according to Cuba’s 1992 Constitution, Chapter I, Article 5 “the
Communist Party of Cuba, a follower of Marti’s ideas and of Marxism-Leninism, and the
organized vanguard of the Cuban nation, is the highest leading force of society and of the
state, which organizes and guides the common effort toward the goals of the construction of
socialism and the progress toward a communist society.”
Communist Party Politburo: 15 member committee. The Politburo is the State and
society’s highest power as designated by the Communist Party supremacy. The First and
Second Secretary of the PPC represents maximum authority.
Council of Ministers: according to Cuba’s 1992 Constitution, Chapter X, Article 95, “The
Council of Ministers is the highest ranking executive and administrative body and
constitutes the government of the Republic.” Article 96 points out that: “the Council of
Ministers is composed of the head of state and government, as its president, the first vice
president…and the other members that the law determines.”
Council of State: according to Cuba’s 1992 Constitution, Chapter X, Article 74, “the
National Assembly of People’s Power elects, from among its deputies, the Council of State,
which consists of one president, one first vice president, five vice presidents, one secretary
and 23 other members.”
National Assembly of the People’s Power: Cuba’s congressional body approves, without
dissent, laws and decrees issued by the Council of State.
Military in the Communist Party’s Politburo (15 members – 9 military)
General Raúl Castro (1931- ): 82 year old Commander-in-Chief of the Armed forces,
First Secretary of the Politburo and President of the Council of Ministers and Council of
State. He has developed an inner circle of power; loyal and trusted military veterans.
Jose Machado Ventura (1930- ): 83 year old Second Secretary of the Politburo of the
Communist Party and Sierra Maestra veteran. A hard line Marxist and member of the inner
circle of power.
“Comandante Histórico” Ramiro Valdés (1932- ): the 81 year old participated in the
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Moncada attack, disembarked in Granma, guerrilla warfare veteran, founding member of
State Security, member of the Politburo, Vice-President of the Council of Ministers and
Council of State.
General Abelardo Colome “Furry” (1939- ): the 74 year old is Minister of the Interior
(MININT), member of the Politburo, Council of Ministers and Council of State. Cuba’s
guerrilla warfare and African wars veteran. The most trusted and powerful member of Gen.
Castro’s inner circle.
General Leopoldo Cintras Frias (1941- ): the 72 year old is Minister of the Armed
Forces (MINFAR), member of the Politburo, Council of Ministers and Council of State.
Cuba’s guerrilla warfare and African wars veteran. Member of Gen. Castro’s inner circle of
power.
General Álvaro López Miera (1943- ): the 70 year old is First Vice-Minister of the
MINFAR, Chief of the General Staff, member of the Politburo, Council of Ministers and
Council of State. Cuba’s guerrilla warfare and African wars veteran. Raised by Raul Castro
and Vilma Espin like a family member. López Miera is the second most powerful figure in
Gen. Castro’s inner circle.
General Ramón Espinosa (1939- ): the 74 year old is a member of the Politburo, ViceMinister of the MINFAR. Cuba’s guerrilla warfare and African wars veteran. Member of
Gen. Castro’s inner circle of power.
Jorge Marino Murillo (intelligence officer, retired) (1961- ): member of the Politburo,
Vice-President of the Council of Ministers, President of the VI Party Congress’ Commission
for the Implementation of Economic Policies.
Adel Onofre Yzquierdo (retired military) (1945- ): member of the Politburo, Minister of
the Economy, Vice-President of the Council of Ministers and Council of State. African wars
veteran.
Important FAR Members
General Joaquín Quinta Solas (1938- ): the 75 year old is the MINFAR Vice-Minister.
Cuba’s guerrilla warfare and African wars veteran. Member of the Communist Party Central
Committee. Member of Gen. Castro’s inner circle of power.
General Luciano Morales Abad (1946- ): Chief of the Western Army (includes Special
Troops and Armored Division). African wars veteran. Member of the Communist Party
Central Committee.
General Raúl Rodríguez Lobaina: Chief of the Central Army (includes Tank Regiment
La Paloma Base). African wars veteran. Member of the Communist Party Central
Committee.
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General Onelio Aguilera Bermúdez (1953- ): Chief of the Eastern Army (includes
Division 50 and Border Brigade at Guantanamo’s Naval Base). African wars veteran.
Member of the Communist Party Central Committee.
General Ramón Pardo Guerra (1939- ): the 74 year old is the Civil Defense National
Chief of Staff. Cuba’s guerrilla warfare and African wars veteran. Member of the
Communist Party Central Committee. Member of Gen. Castro’s inner circle of power.
Note: The Air and Naval force have been extensively reduced due to the economic crisis.
Their units are under the Armed Forces.
Intelligence and Security Services
General Carlos Fernández Gondin (1938- ): the 75 year old is MININT’s First ViceMinister, Chief of State Security. African wars veteran. Member of the Communist Party
Central Committee. Member of Gen. Castro’s inner circle of power. He oversees the various
intelligence departments such as Latin America (M-2); Europe (M-32); Solidarity
Movements (M-18); Industrial Espionage (M-6); Florida (M-19) designed to infiltrate the
Cuban exile’s political groups and news agencies; United States (M-1) which includes
federal agencies, academic centers, congressional offices and military intelligence. Notable
operatives of the MININT’s Intelligence are the five spies in the “Wasp Network” and Ana
Belen Montes, who infiltrated the highest levels of the Pentagon.
Vice Almirante Julio Cesar Gandarilla: Chief of Military Counter-Intelligence. In
charge of Cuban State Security and counterespionage in the Armed Forces. Member of the
Communist Party Central Committee
Alcibiades Muñoz Gutierrez: Director General of Intelligence for the MININT. Former
Chief of MININT’s Database Bank. He has been a MININT prominent officer since the
early 1980s, when he held the rank of Colonel.
General Eduardo Delgado (1955- ): former Director General of Intelligence for the
MININT (1994-2013). He was the Chief Investigator during the Arnaldo Ochoa trial and
execution. Presently Delgado is the Director of the “Instituto Superior del MININT.”
General Humberto Francis Pardo (1947- ): Chief of MININT Personal Security
Division. He commands the elite troops.
Colonel Alejandro Castro Espin (1965- ): Chief of Intelligence Coordination for the
MINFAR and MININT. Son of Raul Castro and Vilma Espin.
Military Involved in Economic Activities
Currently, the military holds the highest positions in vital sectors of the economy and
politics, dominating over 65% of the island’s economic activities. The military officers
involved in the economy manage the means of production, economic institutions and
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financial activities.
General (retired) Ulises Rosales del Toro (1942- ): the 71 year old Vice-President of the
Council of Ministers in charge of agriculture and the food industry. Cuba’s guerrilla warfare
and African wars veteran. Former MINFAR Chief of Staff. He has clashed with Gen.
Colomé in the past. He is still trusted by Gen. Raul Castro.
General (retired) Samuel Rodiles (1932- ): the 81 year old is the Chief of Physical
Planning (urbanization- industrial installation, military zoning, etc.), President of the War
Veterans Association. Cuba’s guerrilla warfare and African veteran. Member of Gen. Raul’s
inner circle of power.
General (retired) Antonio Enrique Lusson (1930- ): the 83 year old is the Vice-President
of the Council of Ministers in charge of transportation and its infrastructure. Cuba’s guerrilla
warfare and African wars veteran. Member of the Communist Party Central Committee and
of Gen. Raul’s inner circle of power.
General Salvador Pardo Cruz (1947- ): Minister of Heavy Industry. He held various
responsibilities in the Anti-Aircraft Missile units in Africa. Former Director of state
companies in the Union of Military Industries. African wars veteran.
General Ricardo Cabrisas Ruiz (1937- ): the 76 year old is the Vice-President of the
Council of Ministers. Former Minister of Foreign Trade.
General Maimir Mesa Ramos (1962- ): Minister of Communications. Former President
of ETECSA- state owned company with monopoly over communication services. Graduated
from the FAR’s Academy in Communication.
General Homero Acosta Alvarez: Secretary of State Council. Started his law career in the
FAR. Former Military Judge in the MINFAR’s Military Tribunals. Graduated from the
FAR’s Academy in Communication.
Colonel Manuel Marrero (1964- ): Minister of Tourism (MINTUR). Architect and former
Director of Gaviota S.A.
Colonel Luis Alberto Rodríguez López Calleja (1960- ): Raul Castro’s son-in-law.
Director of the Ministry of Defense’s GAESA (Enterprise Administration Group, S.A.).
GAESA controls and supervises different sectors of the Cuban economy. Responsible for
the Port of Mariel project and investments. Member of the Communist Party Central
Committee.
General Leonardo Ramón Andollo (1945- ): Second Chief of General Staff, Chief of
Operations for the MINFAR, Second Chief of the VI Party Congress’ Commission for the
Implementation of Economic Policies, in charge of reorganizing government structures.
African wars veteran. Member of the Communist Party Central Committee.
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Colonel Héctor Oroza Busutin: in charge of CIMEX S.A., company under GAESA’s
control since 2011, that oversees more than 80 businesses (operating in US dollars and
Cuban Pesos) including banks and jewelry stores.
General Luis Perez Rospide (1940- ): Veteran of the guerrilla wars. Director of Gaviota
Group S.A., business that manages the most luxurious hotels in Cuba, over 13,000 hotel
rooms, 150 restaurants and thousands of employees.
Businesses Operated by Cuba’s FAR and GAESA S.A.
• Gaviota S.A.: hotel and tourism industry marketing and sales.
• CIMEX (Comercio Interior, Mercado Exterior): largest commercial corporation in Cuba. Manages
businesses in the areas of real estate, banks, retail stores (over 250), shopping centers, fast food restau
gas stations, etc.
• Servicio Automotriz S.A.: car rental services for tourists, car repair and gas stations.
• Aero Gaviota: manages tourism and airlines.
• Tecnotex: import/export of technology and services.
• Almacenes Universal: warehouses located in Wajay, Mariel, Cienfuegos and Santiago.
• Almest: real estate and tourism services.
• Antex: customer service and commercial operations in Africa.
• Agrotex: agriculture and livestock.
• Sermar: exploration of Cuban waters and naval repair (shipyard).
• Servicio la Marina: provides security and support to GAESA (some employees are operatives of th
MININT’s Intelligence department M-6).
• Geocuba: geodesy and cartography.
• Cubanacán: tourism.
_________________________________________________
*This updated report was prepared by Jaime Suchlicki and Pedro Roig (January 2014).

The CTP can be contacted at P.O. Box 248174, Coral Gables, Florida 33124-3010, Tel:
305-284-CUBA (2822), Fax: 305-284-4875, and by email at ctp.iccas@miami.edu. The
CTP Website is accessible at http://ctp.iccas.miami.edu/.
.
Otra bravuconería más
Por: Martha Beatriz Roque Cabello
El edificio en que vivo tiene 42 apartamentos y tres plantas, la primera ocupada por una
tienda de divisas nombrada La Mía, la mayoría del tiempo no se ve a nadie por los
pasillos; no obstante el 13 de enero, a las 9 de la noche, por segunda vez desde la última
golpiza que recibí el pasado 19 de noviembre, un grupo de unos 8 o 10 vecinos se pararon
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en la puerta de mi casa para decirme que “no van a permitir más reuniones”. Acto
seguido comenzaron un mitin de repudio en el pasillo frente a mi apartamento, con un
televisor que sacaron para el lugar y videos, al parecer sobre la oposición y mi persona,
para ayudar a lavarles más aún el cerebro e incrementarles los odios.
Desde noviembre para acá que la dictadura decidió no permitir reuniones en mi casa, han
llenado los pasillos, la escalera y la pared frente a mi apartamento con fotos de Fidel y
Raúl Castro y pancartas con consignas, así como un mural en el que permanece un
periódico Granma con una foto mía y palabras ofensivas.
Durante todos estos meses, miércoles tras miércoles, ha estado en la entrada del edificio
la policía política, acompañada de la Policía Nacional Revolucionaria y dos o tres de los
vecinos que se han parado en mi puerta para impedirle la entrada a las personas que
quieren acceder a mi casa e incluso arrestarlas, con la modalidad de dejarlas tiradas lejos
de sus residencias.
Esto repetido una y otra vez deja de ser noticia, pero hay un viejo dicho que reza: “tanto
da el cántaro a la fuente hasta que se rompe”. Es imposible vivir con el acoso que la
policía política tiene sobre mi persona, basado en el hecho de la proximidad de los
apartamentos en el inmueble. No puedo prácticamente abrir las ventanas, pues de forma
descarada miran para adentro. Tienen tomada un área común que da a mi casa y le han
puesto una reja con llave, lo que implica que ni tan siquiera puedo limpiar las ventanas
por fuera. Me dejan correr agua por debajo de la puerta de entrada al apartamento,
también en la ventana de la cocina que da al patio de uno de los miembros de la Brigada
de Respuesta Rápida, solo por señalar algunas de las situaciones que vivo en el día,
aunque se sabe que en abril de 2013 me golpearon e hicieron un esguince en mi hombro
izquierdo.
A pesar de que el Director Municipal de Salud Pública estuvo en mi casa y ordenó
fumigar con un líquido especial para los asmáticos, orientando que no había que volver a
hacerlo hasta dentro de 3 meses, que es el tiempo que dura ese producto químico; la
vecina que me queda enfrente continúa mandando a echar el humo en el área común,
conociendo que he tenido que darme aerosol después de aspirarlo.
He tratado de legalizar mi estancia de 15 meses en este apartamento y no me lo han
permitido, so pretexto de que hice reparaciones donde vivía anteriormente que no
admiten que la casa sea reconocida en el Registro de Propiedad.
El pasado jueves una de las personas que usualmente está en la puerta los miércoles me
empujó a la salida de la tienda de la planta baja, estaba acompañada de dos disidentes que
plantean no van a permitir que eso vuelva a suceder sin que tenga una respuesta. He
tratado de que no se actúe indebidamente, pero tanta ignominia cansa.
Aunque la policía política utiliza a estos ciudadanos para su fachada teórica, en la
práctica son ellos los que usan de la fuerza que tienen para no permitir que se efectúen las
reuniones de la Red Cubana de Comunicadores Comunitarios, que evidentemente
molesta al régimen. ¿A quién van a hacer creer que son los vecinos indignados los que no
quieren que nos reunamos?
He solicitado a mi abogada, la doctora Amelia Rodríguez Cala, que eleve un escrito a la
Sala de la Seguridad del Estado del Tribunal Provincial, que nos juzgó con el objetivo de
que quede sin lugar mi licencia extrapenal, pues estoy tan presa como cuando estaba en el
Manto Negro.
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Cuando me fueron a entregar el documento de la licencia extrapenal, el 22 de julio de
2004, estaba presente un oficial de la Seguridad del Estado y otro de Cárceles y Prisiones,
antes de tomarlo en la mano pregunté: “¿Esto tiene alguna limitación?” y el oficial de la
policía política, que trabajaba como instructor en Villa Maristas, me respondió: “Lo único
que no puedes hacer es pisar el césped”.
Si bien es cierto que la mayoría de los que formamos parte de la oposición interna
conocemos de cerca lo que significa el hostigamiento del régimen y hemos padecido de él
por muchos años, es muy difícil vivir con esta situación las 24 horas del día.
En estos momentos me encuentro sola en Cuba, mi familia emigró en su totalidad y no
tendría ni siquiera quien me llevara algo a la prisión, no obstante prefiero estar entre esas
rejas, porque estoy bien presa y ahora la diferencia es que también lo estoy sin que tenga
un costo político para el régimen, porque lo que hacen una y otra vez, se convierte en más
de lo mismo, no solamente conmigo, también con el resto de la oposición y ellos lo
saben.
Quizás hay quien piense que una solución sería dejarnos de reunir en esa fecha o aquí en
mi casa, pero ceder ese espacio implicaría poner fichas de dominó para que cayeran una
detrás de otra y seguir consintiendo otros abusos al régimen, lo que por un problema
elemental de principios no es tolerable.
Aunque la mayoría de los miembros de la Red Cubana de Comunicadores Comunitarios
que por vivir en La Habana o cerca acuden semanalmente a las reuniones, no ha dejado
de hacerlo por esta forma de intimidación, son seres humanos a los que maltratan de
palabra y de obra. Un ejemplo de ello es Arnaldo Ramos Lauzurique, uno de los
integrantes del Grupo de los 75, que tiene 73 años de edad, y el oficial conocido por el
nombre de Camilo lo golpeó y le rompió los espejuelos, aun así se mantiene viniendo
todos los miércoles.
Mi decisión está lejos de ser cobardía, porque para estar en la prisión se necesita valor; es
una solución a lo que está sucediendo conmigo y con los demás miembros de la
organización que dirijo, que aunque parezca repetitivo hace que la vida sea insoportable.
Como protesta podría adoptar otras actitudes, como ponerme en huelga de hambre, pero
mi estado de salud no va a permitir una tercera muerte clínica.
Formar parte del Consejo de Derechos Humanos es lo que le aprueba al régimen actuar
de esta forma con la oposición interna, como siempre con la perorata de que el pueblo
revolucionario enardecido es el que no permite a los “mercenarios” actuar; y los
“buenos” policías toman posición para evitar que las “masas” le vayan a hacer daño a los
que disienten. Así está el país en estos momentos.
La Habana, 14 de enero de 2014.
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