Cuba objects to being placed on US trafficking list
Havana (AFP) - Cuba objected Wednesday to being placed on the US human
trafficking list, saying it distorted the overseas work of its doctors
and its requirement that students work as part of their education.
The US State Department on Monday removed Cuba from its bottom rank of
countries with the poorest records on human trafficking, noting
improvements in Havana's handling of sex trafficking. But it placed it
on a second-tier watchlist instead.
"Cuba should not be on any unilateral list nor be the object of
surveillance of any kind," the Cuban foreign ministry said in a statement.
It added that Cuba was committed to a policy of "zero tolerance" of
prostitution or the commercialization of sex.
While acknowledging that the State Department had noted Cuba's efforts
to combat sexual trafficking, the foreign ministry hit out at US
criticism of its record on forced labor.
"It continues to present tendentious and manipulated elements on the
selfless work, amply recognized internationally, of our medical
collaborators in third countries," it said.
Thousands of Cuban doctors and health workers are stationed in countries
in Latin America and Africa under government to government contracts
that have become an important source of hard currency as well as
diplomatic good will.
But there have been complaints that the Cuban doctors are paid far less
than their local counterparts, or than what Havana receives for their
services.
The foreign ministry also said the State Department "distorts the Cuban
educational system, which applies the teachings of (independence hero
Jose) Marti in linking study with work, in qualifying as supposed forced
labor these tasks these Cuban students carry out."
Source: Cuba objects to being placed on US trafficking list - Yahoo News
-
http://news.yahoo.com/cuba-objects-being-placed-us-trafficking-list-202344622.html;_ylt=AwrC1zH9E7pV_zAAETLQtDMD;_ylu=X3oDMTByOHZyb21tBGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDBHNlYwNzcg--
Thursday, July 30, 2015
Telco Cuba, Inc. Receives The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) International Section 214 License
Telco Cuba, Inc. Receives The Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
International Section 214 License
HOLLYWOOD, Fla., July 29, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- (OTCPK: QBAN) Telco Cuba,
Inc. – U.S. based mobile telecom and data connectivity service provider,
Telco Cuba announced today that it has been granted the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) International Section 214 license,
enabling Telco Cuba to provide telecommunication services originating
from The United States of America and terminating anywhere globally.
Telco Cuba is now able to offer mobile cell phone service, Voice over IP
(VoIP) services, and calling card services originating from the US to
any global point including the 11 Million residents of the island nation
of Cuba.
Furthermore Mr. William J. Sanchez states "We have successfully
completed the change of our trading symbol to 'QBAN' ; this change
solidifies our corporate plans on branding Telco Cuba as the leading
provider of telecom services to and in Cuba.
Earlier this quarter, during our first conference call, we spelled out a
roadmap that included several key milestones in our business plan. Our
CEO and President, William J Sanchez had this to say - "We are pleased
to announce that the FCC has granted Telco Cuba, Inc. the right to offer
international telecommunication services to US based residents and
customer to any destination in the world, including Cuba. This
milestone affords Telco Cuba the ability to start immediately acquiring
services with the results already having led to negotiations with a
leading mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) in The United States".
We will provide further updates on our business development advances
during our upcoming conference call to be held on August 3rd at 10:00AM EST.
The conference call will be listen-in only, but will include a Q&A
session comprising questions submitted by current or potential
shareholders. Interested parties may send their questions to
ir@Telcocuba.com until 9:00 AM Eastern Standard Time the day of the
call. Investors may also submit questions in real time via
Investorshub.com by directing the posting to the QBAN Board, subject to
time restrictions, Telco Cuba will answer some of the questions
submitted via IHUB during the call.
The call in number is 641-715-3580. Enter conference code 413-971 when
prompted by the system. The system is configured to accept up to 1000
callers. Please call early and reserve your spot on the call.
About TelcoCuba, Inc
Founded in 2001, Amgentech -- the parent company of TelcoCuba -- has
been providing telecommunication and Internet based solutions and
services for over 14 years. Amgentech has generated over 7 million
dollars in revenue. TelcoCuba is launching best of breed communication
services including, but not limited to cell phone service, VoIP, Calling
Cards in the US and between the US and Cuba. For more information visit
(http://www.telcocuba.com & http://pr.telcocuba.com)
Safe Harbor Act: Forward-Looking Statements are included within the
meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, and Section 21E of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements
regarding our expected future financial position, results of operations,
cash flows, financing plans, business strategy, products and services,
competitive positions, growth opportunities, plans and objectives of
management for future operations, including words such as "anticipate,"
"if," "believe," "plan," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "could,"
"should," "will," and other similar expressions are forward-looking
statements and involve risks, uncertainties and contingencies, many of
which are beyond our control, which may cause actual results,
performance, or achievements to differ materially from anticipated
results, performance, or achievements. We are under no obligation to
(and expressly disclaim any such obligation to) update or alter our
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise.
Contact:
Robert Rico
ir@telcocuba.com
+1-305-747-7647 Ext. 115
http://www.telcocuba.com
http://www.amgentech.com
SOURCE TelcoCuba, Inc.
Source: Telco Cuba, Inc. Receives The Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) International Section 214... -- HOLLYWOOD, Fla., July 29, 2015
/PRNewswire/ -- -
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/telco-cuba-inc-receives-the-federal-communications-commission-fcc--international-section-214-license-300120385.html
International Section 214 License
HOLLYWOOD, Fla., July 29, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- (OTCPK: QBAN) Telco Cuba,
Inc. – U.S. based mobile telecom and data connectivity service provider,
Telco Cuba announced today that it has been granted the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) International Section 214 license,
enabling Telco Cuba to provide telecommunication services originating
from The United States of America and terminating anywhere globally.
Telco Cuba is now able to offer mobile cell phone service, Voice over IP
(VoIP) services, and calling card services originating from the US to
any global point including the 11 Million residents of the island nation
of Cuba.
Furthermore Mr. William J. Sanchez states "We have successfully
completed the change of our trading symbol to 'QBAN' ; this change
solidifies our corporate plans on branding Telco Cuba as the leading
provider of telecom services to and in Cuba.
Earlier this quarter, during our first conference call, we spelled out a
roadmap that included several key milestones in our business plan. Our
CEO and President, William J Sanchez had this to say - "We are pleased
to announce that the FCC has granted Telco Cuba, Inc. the right to offer
international telecommunication services to US based residents and
customer to any destination in the world, including Cuba. This
milestone affords Telco Cuba the ability to start immediately acquiring
services with the results already having led to negotiations with a
leading mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) in The United States".
We will provide further updates on our business development advances
during our upcoming conference call to be held on August 3rd at 10:00AM EST.
The conference call will be listen-in only, but will include a Q&A
session comprising questions submitted by current or potential
shareholders. Interested parties may send their questions to
ir@Telcocuba.com until 9:00 AM Eastern Standard Time the day of the
call. Investors may also submit questions in real time via
Investorshub.com by directing the posting to the QBAN Board, subject to
time restrictions, Telco Cuba will answer some of the questions
submitted via IHUB during the call.
The call in number is 641-715-3580. Enter conference code 413-971 when
prompted by the system. The system is configured to accept up to 1000
callers. Please call early and reserve your spot on the call.
About TelcoCuba, Inc
Founded in 2001, Amgentech -- the parent company of TelcoCuba -- has
been providing telecommunication and Internet based solutions and
services for over 14 years. Amgentech has generated over 7 million
dollars in revenue. TelcoCuba is launching best of breed communication
services including, but not limited to cell phone service, VoIP, Calling
Cards in the US and between the US and Cuba. For more information visit
(http://www.telcocuba.com & http://pr.telcocuba.com)
Safe Harbor Act: Forward-Looking Statements are included within the
meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, and Section 21E of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements
regarding our expected future financial position, results of operations,
cash flows, financing plans, business strategy, products and services,
competitive positions, growth opportunities, plans and objectives of
management for future operations, including words such as "anticipate,"
"if," "believe," "plan," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "could,"
"should," "will," and other similar expressions are forward-looking
statements and involve risks, uncertainties and contingencies, many of
which are beyond our control, which may cause actual results,
performance, or achievements to differ materially from anticipated
results, performance, or achievements. We are under no obligation to
(and expressly disclaim any such obligation to) update or alter our
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise.
Contact:
Robert Rico
ir@telcocuba.com
+1-305-747-7647 Ext. 115
http://www.telcocuba.com
http://www.amgentech.com
SOURCE TelcoCuba, Inc.
Source: Telco Cuba, Inc. Receives The Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) International Section 214... -- HOLLYWOOD, Fla., July 29, 2015
/PRNewswire/ -- -
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/telco-cuba-inc-receives-the-federal-communications-commission-fcc--international-section-214-license-300120385.html
Wrong to take Cuba off trafficking blacklist
Activist: Wrong to take Cuba off trafficking blacklist
Wednesday, July 29, 2015 | Chad Groening
A Cuban-born anti-communist activist isn't surprised the U.S. State
Department has removed Cuba from a list of countries that fail to combat
modern-day slavery.
On Monday the State Department released the annual U.S. assessment of
how 188 governments around the world have performed in fighting human
trafficking. This year, the U.S. has taken Malaysia and Cuba off its
blacklist of violators.
Humberto Fontova fled Cuba in 1961 and has written several books on the
regime. He says literally every Cuban living on the communist-controlled
island is subject to human trafficking, even doctors.
"When they leave the country they don't do it on their own accord," he
tells OneNewsNow. "They go under coercion. The government forces them to
go. And they don't pay the doctors - they pay the Castro regime, which
keeps 90 percent of what they pay them. That is human trafficking. I'm
sorry if the Obama administration doesn't want to term it that way."
Fontova says he is not surprised the State Department took Cuba off the
list because it wanted to restore full diplomatic relations, including
the opening of a Cuban embassy in Washington.
"This was one of the demands of the Castro regime for the privilege of
setting up a spy center in Washington, DC," he says.
Source: Activist: Wrong to take Cuba off trafficking blacklist -
http://www.onenewsnow.com/persecution/2015/07/29/activist-wrong-to-take-cuba-off-trafficking-blacklist
Wednesday, July 29, 2015 | Chad Groening
A Cuban-born anti-communist activist isn't surprised the U.S. State
Department has removed Cuba from a list of countries that fail to combat
modern-day slavery.
On Monday the State Department released the annual U.S. assessment of
how 188 governments around the world have performed in fighting human
trafficking. This year, the U.S. has taken Malaysia and Cuba off its
blacklist of violators.
Humberto Fontova fled Cuba in 1961 and has written several books on the
regime. He says literally every Cuban living on the communist-controlled
island is subject to human trafficking, even doctors.
"When they leave the country they don't do it on their own accord," he
tells OneNewsNow. "They go under coercion. The government forces them to
go. And they don't pay the doctors - they pay the Castro regime, which
keeps 90 percent of what they pay them. That is human trafficking. I'm
sorry if the Obama administration doesn't want to term it that way."
Fontova says he is not surprised the State Department took Cuba off the
list because it wanted to restore full diplomatic relations, including
the opening of a Cuban embassy in Washington.
"This was one of the demands of the Castro regime for the privilege of
setting up a spy center in Washington, DC," he says.
Source: Activist: Wrong to take Cuba off trafficking blacklist -
http://www.onenewsnow.com/persecution/2015/07/29/activist-wrong-to-take-cuba-off-trafficking-blacklist
Sherritt CEO sees brighter future in Cuba
Sherritt CEO sees brighter future in Cuba
The Toronto miner reports weak Q2 results amid severe downturn in
nickel, oil
By: Lisa Wright Business Reporter, Published on Wed Jul 29 2015
Toronto-based miner Sherritt International Corp. is taking a beating as
nickel and oil prices plummet, but the chief executive sees a silver
lining for his company as U.S. and Cuba relations continue to thaw.
David Pathe, who delivered weak second-quarter results Wednesday, said
he visited the firm's operations in the island nation last week as the
U.S. reopened its embassy in Havana after 50 years under renewed
diplomatic ties.
"There's a tremendous amount of optimism in Cuba at the moment, and a
lot more interest in Cuba internationally," Pathe said in an interview.
"We've been in Cuba for over 20 years and it's a remarkably stable place
to do business," he said.
Sherritt produces approximately two-thirds of Cuba's oil and also owns a
50 per cent interest in the Moa nickel and cobalt joint venture with the
Cuban government, which includes mining, processing and refining operations.
However, as the Communist-ruled island's largest foreign investor by
far, Sherritt has struggled with "negative connotations" as the Canadian
miner befriended Fidel Castro and continued to extract nickel, cobalt
and oil there amid what he called a "crippling" economic embargo with
the U.S.
While things are opening up on the diplomatic side, Pathe said progress
is still slow on the bigger issues like ending the embargo and repealing
the Helms-Burton Act, which for 19 years has barred Sherritt directors
and executives including Pathe from doing business or even travelling in
the U.S.
"Both would be a big benefit to us," he told analysts on a conference call.
"I think it would change the way our assets are viewed and remove some
of the stigma that, from our experience, has been somewhat overblown,
and that has the potential to create new opportunities for us," he said.
He pointed to cost savings in terms of accessing U.S. suppliers and
being able to run American-owned Caterpillar equipment in the mine, as
it does at its Madagascar operations, and get access to the U.S. gulf
coast for Sherritt's oil business.
Meanwhile, the company's shares had plummeted 55 per cent in the last
year up to Tuesday's close, but got a boost of 16 per cent Wednesday as
the miner reported costs had fallen at global operations in the quarter,
and that they still have $400 million cash on the books.
Oil and base metal miners like Sherritt have been hit hard lately amid
over-supply and weaker demand from China, the world's largest consumer
of nickel.
But nickel, which is used to make stainless steel and other manufactured
items, has fallen to six-year lows and tumbled 40 per cent in the second
quarter while oil tanked 50 per cent.
Sherritt sold its Toronto headquarters and laid off 60 staff last fall,
and Pathe fended off a shareholder revolt aimed at ousting him and other
board members at its annual meeting in 2014.
"It's been a tough first half of the year in the commodity price, and a
tough last couple of weeks in particular…and it's been a tough time to
be a shareholder," Pathe told analysts.
He noted more than half the nickel mining industry is "under water" in
terms of the cash cost of production, and the situation "can't be
sustained much longer," adding he still believes in the metal's
long-term fundamentals which are bound to eventually boost the price.
Sherritt's adjusted net loss from continuing operations was $75.2
million, or 25 Canadian cents per share, in the three months ended June
30, up from a loss of $56.2 million, or 19 cents per share, a year earlier.
The company said its combined revenue fell about 12 per cent to $268.4
million, and expects total production of 78,000-82,000 tonnes of nickel
this year, down from a previous estimate of 80,000-86,000.
The company also cut the estimate for the Ambatovy mine in Madagascar,
in which it has a 40 per cent stake, to 45,000-48,000 tonnes from
47,000-52,000.
Source: Sherritt CEO sees brighter future in Cuba | Toronto Star -
http://www.thestar.com/business/economy/2015/07/29/sherritt-ceo-sees-brighter-future-in-cuba.html
The Toronto miner reports weak Q2 results amid severe downturn in
nickel, oil
By: Lisa Wright Business Reporter, Published on Wed Jul 29 2015
Toronto-based miner Sherritt International Corp. is taking a beating as
nickel and oil prices plummet, but the chief executive sees a silver
lining for his company as U.S. and Cuba relations continue to thaw.
David Pathe, who delivered weak second-quarter results Wednesday, said
he visited the firm's operations in the island nation last week as the
U.S. reopened its embassy in Havana after 50 years under renewed
diplomatic ties.
"There's a tremendous amount of optimism in Cuba at the moment, and a
lot more interest in Cuba internationally," Pathe said in an interview.
"We've been in Cuba for over 20 years and it's a remarkably stable place
to do business," he said.
Sherritt produces approximately two-thirds of Cuba's oil and also owns a
50 per cent interest in the Moa nickel and cobalt joint venture with the
Cuban government, which includes mining, processing and refining operations.
However, as the Communist-ruled island's largest foreign investor by
far, Sherritt has struggled with "negative connotations" as the Canadian
miner befriended Fidel Castro and continued to extract nickel, cobalt
and oil there amid what he called a "crippling" economic embargo with
the U.S.
While things are opening up on the diplomatic side, Pathe said progress
is still slow on the bigger issues like ending the embargo and repealing
the Helms-Burton Act, which for 19 years has barred Sherritt directors
and executives including Pathe from doing business or even travelling in
the U.S.
"Both would be a big benefit to us," he told analysts on a conference call.
"I think it would change the way our assets are viewed and remove some
of the stigma that, from our experience, has been somewhat overblown,
and that has the potential to create new opportunities for us," he said.
He pointed to cost savings in terms of accessing U.S. suppliers and
being able to run American-owned Caterpillar equipment in the mine, as
it does at its Madagascar operations, and get access to the U.S. gulf
coast for Sherritt's oil business.
Meanwhile, the company's shares had plummeted 55 per cent in the last
year up to Tuesday's close, but got a boost of 16 per cent Wednesday as
the miner reported costs had fallen at global operations in the quarter,
and that they still have $400 million cash on the books.
Oil and base metal miners like Sherritt have been hit hard lately amid
over-supply and weaker demand from China, the world's largest consumer
of nickel.
But nickel, which is used to make stainless steel and other manufactured
items, has fallen to six-year lows and tumbled 40 per cent in the second
quarter while oil tanked 50 per cent.
Sherritt sold its Toronto headquarters and laid off 60 staff last fall,
and Pathe fended off a shareholder revolt aimed at ousting him and other
board members at its annual meeting in 2014.
"It's been a tough first half of the year in the commodity price, and a
tough last couple of weeks in particular…and it's been a tough time to
be a shareholder," Pathe told analysts.
He noted more than half the nickel mining industry is "under water" in
terms of the cash cost of production, and the situation "can't be
sustained much longer," adding he still believes in the metal's
long-term fundamentals which are bound to eventually boost the price.
Sherritt's adjusted net loss from continuing operations was $75.2
million, or 25 Canadian cents per share, in the three months ended June
30, up from a loss of $56.2 million, or 19 cents per share, a year earlier.
The company said its combined revenue fell about 12 per cent to $268.4
million, and expects total production of 78,000-82,000 tonnes of nickel
this year, down from a previous estimate of 80,000-86,000.
The company also cut the estimate for the Ambatovy mine in Madagascar,
in which it has a 40 per cent stake, to 45,000-48,000 tonnes from
47,000-52,000.
Source: Sherritt CEO sees brighter future in Cuba | Toronto Star -
http://www.thestar.com/business/economy/2015/07/29/sherritt-ceo-sees-brighter-future-in-cuba.html
U.S. business slow to invest in Cuba; rules still evolving
U.S. business slow to invest in Cuba; rules still evolving
By Mimi Whitefield The Miami Herald
This article was published today at 2:06 a.m.
MIAMI -- Many barriers remain for U.S. businesses wishing to take
advantage of thawing relations between the United States and Cuba.
With a trade embargo still in effect, businesses are proceeding slowly
when it comes to the limited commercial opening toward Cuba outlined by
President Barack Obama as part of the U.S. rapprochement with Cuba.
Cuba is a new frontier for American business.
Because there hasn't been a semblance of a normal business relationship
in more than half a century, the United States was dealing more with the
theoretical than real-world experience when it wrote its new rules of
business engagement with Cuba earlier this year. Also, the rules were
written hurriedly.
Roberta Jacobson, assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere
affairs, calls the new rules "a work in progress."
"Cubans are getting used to it; our business people are getting used to
it," she said. "We are going to tweak. We may not have written them right."
Among the most visible deals to date are Stonegate Bank's announcement
last week that it had signed a correspondent banking agreement with
Cuba's Banco Internacional de Comercio -- a move that should make it
easier to pay for transactions -- and Airbnb's move into Cuba. It now
offers more than 2,000 listings in private homes that rent rooms to
travelers.
Yet to materialize are any major deals in agriculture or
telecommunications. U.S. rules announced in January allow American
companies to sell telecommunications and computer equipment and even
work with the Cuban government in ventures to improve access to the
Internet and telecommunications.
Even though Cuba has shortages of many building supplies and the new
U.S. rules allow shipments of construction materials and equipment to
Cuba's budding private sector, there have been no announcements by major
companies that they're shipping cement mix or sending enough supplies to
repaint Havana.
During a White House briefing last week with business people, academics
and others who have been supportive of the normalization process,
briefers said a revision and clarification of some banking and travel
rules would come out shortly. They also asked business executives to
keep offering feedback on the evolving rules.
Florida-based Stonegate is the first U.S. bank to engage with Cuba under
the regulations that came out in January.
But banks in general are very nervous about Cuba, said Ted Piccone, a
senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. "Part of it is the banking
culture is very conservative, but the banks also have seen that they can
be heavily penalized if they don't abide by the letter of the law."
Meanwhile, as U.S. business pioneers try to strike deals, they must also
contend with a Cuban system that doesn't necessarily mesh with U.S.
business practices, limited Internet service, and a Cuban bureaucracy
that often seems more interested in going slow than expediting business.
Beyond the sluggish bureaucracy, the government is testing the shifting
currents with caution.
Carlos Alzugaray, a retired Cuban diplomat, points out there are reasons
the government wants to go slow and not risk losing political control by
allowing too swift an economic transformation.
Cuban leader Raul Castro, he said, has undertaken three processes of
change at once: economic measures, a new relationship with the United
States, and a generational shift in political power as he retires in 2018.
All carry a degree of risk that could derail the government's goal of
"prosperous and sustainable socialism."
"They want to do things slowly, to keep things under control," said
Piccone. "There's also an ongoing battle between Raulistas [who are more
supportive of economic change] and Fidelistas for control, and that's
another reason that things are so slow."
To help companies try to overcome some of the obstacles in entering the
Cuban market, Burson-Marsteller, a public relations and communications
firm, recently introduced a Cuba consultancy team that will advise
clients on matters such as positioning themselves in the Cuban market,
how they should enter it, how to present their corporate presence in
Cuba and how to effectively communicate to various stakeholders about
their Cuba business.
For companies and industries that consider Cuba a longer-term investment
when the embargo is lifted, Burson-Marsteller will advise them on an
advocacy role to help bring about policy changes, said Ramiro Prudencio,
the company's Latin America president and chief executive.
"I think that for most companies, Cuba needs to be a long-term play --
unless they're in very specific industries," he said. But travel and
tourism will present "almost immediate opportunities."
Companies that want to do business in Cuba, he said, must be cognizant
of whether their venture is in sync with government development plans
and offers social and economic benefits to the Cuban people.
"We want to make sure companies are successful in Cuba," he said. "It's
about having the message right and the right policy. Cuba is not just
any market and it is not just any country."
Business on 07/30/2015
Source: U.S. business slow to invest in Cuba; rules still evolving -
http://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2015/jul/30/u-s-business-slow-to-invest-in-cuba-rul/
By Mimi Whitefield The Miami Herald
This article was published today at 2:06 a.m.
MIAMI -- Many barriers remain for U.S. businesses wishing to take
advantage of thawing relations between the United States and Cuba.
With a trade embargo still in effect, businesses are proceeding slowly
when it comes to the limited commercial opening toward Cuba outlined by
President Barack Obama as part of the U.S. rapprochement with Cuba.
Cuba is a new frontier for American business.
Because there hasn't been a semblance of a normal business relationship
in more than half a century, the United States was dealing more with the
theoretical than real-world experience when it wrote its new rules of
business engagement with Cuba earlier this year. Also, the rules were
written hurriedly.
Roberta Jacobson, assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere
affairs, calls the new rules "a work in progress."
"Cubans are getting used to it; our business people are getting used to
it," she said. "We are going to tweak. We may not have written them right."
Among the most visible deals to date are Stonegate Bank's announcement
last week that it had signed a correspondent banking agreement with
Cuba's Banco Internacional de Comercio -- a move that should make it
easier to pay for transactions -- and Airbnb's move into Cuba. It now
offers more than 2,000 listings in private homes that rent rooms to
travelers.
Yet to materialize are any major deals in agriculture or
telecommunications. U.S. rules announced in January allow American
companies to sell telecommunications and computer equipment and even
work with the Cuban government in ventures to improve access to the
Internet and telecommunications.
Even though Cuba has shortages of many building supplies and the new
U.S. rules allow shipments of construction materials and equipment to
Cuba's budding private sector, there have been no announcements by major
companies that they're shipping cement mix or sending enough supplies to
repaint Havana.
During a White House briefing last week with business people, academics
and others who have been supportive of the normalization process,
briefers said a revision and clarification of some banking and travel
rules would come out shortly. They also asked business executives to
keep offering feedback on the evolving rules.
Florida-based Stonegate is the first U.S. bank to engage with Cuba under
the regulations that came out in January.
But banks in general are very nervous about Cuba, said Ted Piccone, a
senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. "Part of it is the banking
culture is very conservative, but the banks also have seen that they can
be heavily penalized if they don't abide by the letter of the law."
Meanwhile, as U.S. business pioneers try to strike deals, they must also
contend with a Cuban system that doesn't necessarily mesh with U.S.
business practices, limited Internet service, and a Cuban bureaucracy
that often seems more interested in going slow than expediting business.
Beyond the sluggish bureaucracy, the government is testing the shifting
currents with caution.
Carlos Alzugaray, a retired Cuban diplomat, points out there are reasons
the government wants to go slow and not risk losing political control by
allowing too swift an economic transformation.
Cuban leader Raul Castro, he said, has undertaken three processes of
change at once: economic measures, a new relationship with the United
States, and a generational shift in political power as he retires in 2018.
All carry a degree of risk that could derail the government's goal of
"prosperous and sustainable socialism."
"They want to do things slowly, to keep things under control," said
Piccone. "There's also an ongoing battle between Raulistas [who are more
supportive of economic change] and Fidelistas for control, and that's
another reason that things are so slow."
To help companies try to overcome some of the obstacles in entering the
Cuban market, Burson-Marsteller, a public relations and communications
firm, recently introduced a Cuba consultancy team that will advise
clients on matters such as positioning themselves in the Cuban market,
how they should enter it, how to present their corporate presence in
Cuba and how to effectively communicate to various stakeholders about
their Cuba business.
For companies and industries that consider Cuba a longer-term investment
when the embargo is lifted, Burson-Marsteller will advise them on an
advocacy role to help bring about policy changes, said Ramiro Prudencio,
the company's Latin America president and chief executive.
"I think that for most companies, Cuba needs to be a long-term play --
unless they're in very specific industries," he said. But travel and
tourism will present "almost immediate opportunities."
Companies that want to do business in Cuba, he said, must be cognizant
of whether their venture is in sync with government development plans
and offers social and economic benefits to the Cuban people.
"We want to make sure companies are successful in Cuba," he said. "It's
about having the message right and the right policy. Cuba is not just
any market and it is not just any country."
Business on 07/30/2015
Source: U.S. business slow to invest in Cuba; rules still evolving -
http://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2015/jul/30/u-s-business-slow-to-invest-in-cuba-rul/
Despite Early Optimism, Trade With Cuba Dipping
Despite Early Optimism, Trade With Cuba Dipping
by Julián Aguilar July 30, 2015
Since the Obama administration's December announcement that it was
charging ahead with plans to re-establish ties with communist Cuba,
trade with the island nation has taken a peculiar turn: It's decreased —
by a lot.
That is significant for Texas, which has for years ranked among the top
10 U.S. states trading with Cuba under provisions of the Trade Sanctions
Reform and Export Enhancement Act of 2000, which allows companies to
sell certain goods for profit despite a general trade and travel embargo.
Through June, the United States collectively shipped about $83 million
in goods to Cuba, and is on pace for exporting about $166 million for
the calendar year. That's well short of the $291 million in goods
shipped in 2014, and well below the $348.7 million shipped in 2013.
That trend holds true for Texas; the Houston port has seen only 33
metric tons of goods leave its docks bound for Cuba through March of
this year, according to the New York-based U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic
Council. That's compared with 60 tons in 2014, 295 tons in 2013 and a
whopping 93,000 tons in 2012.
Some goods shipped from Texas aren't grown or processed here. But their
passage through Texas is still lucrative. According to figures from
Texas A&M University's Center for North American Studies, about 91 cents
in additional business activity was created for every dollar worth of
goods exported in 2008.
Discerning reasons for the dip, and forecasting what happens next as the
countries continue mending their relationship after more than 50 years
of tension, isn't easy, experts argue. If Cuba continues to trade and
garner support from foreign governments, specifically Venezuela,
engaging the U.S. might be less of a priority.
"As long as Cuba can depend on Venezuela for much of its oil imports and
foreign exchange, it's going to move cautiously," said John S. Kavulich,
president of the U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council. "Even though it
has decreased its support to Cuba, it hasn't stopped. How its
relationship with Venezuela goes will determine in great measure how
quickly it re-engages with the United States."
Kavulich added that Cuba won't transform into a hotbed of capitalism
where U.S. goods are as common. At least not immediately.
"There is a tremendous amount — it's breathtaking — the amount of
aspirational rhetoric chasing very little reality," he said. "You're not
going to be able to go to Hertz and rent an RV and drive down to
Santiago de Cuba. It's a process, it's not an action."
How things progress has more to do with Cuba's response to overtures
from the White House than the other way around.
"If the U.S. changes, then Cuba is going to do more, but the U.S. has
been changing and Cuba hasn't done any more, so I think there is a
disconnect," Kavulich said.
Others are more optimistic. Cynthia Thomas, president of TriDimension
Strategies, a Dallas-based consulting firm that focuses on the
Texas-Cuba trade relationship, believes trade is down because of simple
economics, not politics.
"Over the last few years, Cuba has been paying down its debts" to Japan,
Russia and Mexico, she said. "That has consumed a lot of their capital."
Cuba has also stopped importing American poultry after an avian flu
outbreak, Thomas said. According to Business Insider, Cuba previously
imported $148 million in chicken products annually. And the severe
drought affected cotton prices and Cuba's ability to import cotton from
Texas.
"There is nothing unique about international trade with Cuba versus
other countries," she said.
Thomas said that the Obama administration has already made changes that
could bolster Texas' trade with Cuba once the country is in better
economic shape. The administration has rolled out a payment process that
should make it easier for Cuba to buy U.S. goods, Thomas said.
Instead of securing a letter of credit — a guarantee from a bank that it
will pay for the costs of goods if a buyer cannot — purchasers can now
use the "cash against document" system. That means a buyer can wire
money directly, which makes it easier on the purchaser, Thomas said.
Thomas believes the real test will come when more Americans are able to
travel to Cuba on commercial flights. Charter flights are already
available, but airline giants like American Airlines and United Airlines
stated this month they are ready to begin commercial flights to Cuba
once they receive permission.
Travelers will visit and try local food and goods, she said, but they
will also long for familiar treats.
"They'll go to a snack counter and want their Lay's potato chips," she
said. She also said more travelers to Cuba would ultimately mean more
pressure on Washington to move quickly to re-establish ties.
"They expect a government state where machine guns are on every corner,"
she said. "That's not reality. [People] have a good time. And that is
one more advocate for knocking down the embargo."
Source: Despite Early Optimism, Trade With Cuba Dipping | The Texas
Tribune -
https://www.texastribune.org/2015/07/30/despite-early-optimism-trade-cuba-dipping/
by Julián Aguilar July 30, 2015
Since the Obama administration's December announcement that it was
charging ahead with plans to re-establish ties with communist Cuba,
trade with the island nation has taken a peculiar turn: It's decreased —
by a lot.
That is significant for Texas, which has for years ranked among the top
10 U.S. states trading with Cuba under provisions of the Trade Sanctions
Reform and Export Enhancement Act of 2000, which allows companies to
sell certain goods for profit despite a general trade and travel embargo.
Through June, the United States collectively shipped about $83 million
in goods to Cuba, and is on pace for exporting about $166 million for
the calendar year. That's well short of the $291 million in goods
shipped in 2014, and well below the $348.7 million shipped in 2013.
That trend holds true for Texas; the Houston port has seen only 33
metric tons of goods leave its docks bound for Cuba through March of
this year, according to the New York-based U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic
Council. That's compared with 60 tons in 2014, 295 tons in 2013 and a
whopping 93,000 tons in 2012.
Some goods shipped from Texas aren't grown or processed here. But their
passage through Texas is still lucrative. According to figures from
Texas A&M University's Center for North American Studies, about 91 cents
in additional business activity was created for every dollar worth of
goods exported in 2008.
Discerning reasons for the dip, and forecasting what happens next as the
countries continue mending their relationship after more than 50 years
of tension, isn't easy, experts argue. If Cuba continues to trade and
garner support from foreign governments, specifically Venezuela,
engaging the U.S. might be less of a priority.
"As long as Cuba can depend on Venezuela for much of its oil imports and
foreign exchange, it's going to move cautiously," said John S. Kavulich,
president of the U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council. "Even though it
has decreased its support to Cuba, it hasn't stopped. How its
relationship with Venezuela goes will determine in great measure how
quickly it re-engages with the United States."
Kavulich added that Cuba won't transform into a hotbed of capitalism
where U.S. goods are as common. At least not immediately.
"There is a tremendous amount — it's breathtaking — the amount of
aspirational rhetoric chasing very little reality," he said. "You're not
going to be able to go to Hertz and rent an RV and drive down to
Santiago de Cuba. It's a process, it's not an action."
How things progress has more to do with Cuba's response to overtures
from the White House than the other way around.
"If the U.S. changes, then Cuba is going to do more, but the U.S. has
been changing and Cuba hasn't done any more, so I think there is a
disconnect," Kavulich said.
Others are more optimistic. Cynthia Thomas, president of TriDimension
Strategies, a Dallas-based consulting firm that focuses on the
Texas-Cuba trade relationship, believes trade is down because of simple
economics, not politics.
"Over the last few years, Cuba has been paying down its debts" to Japan,
Russia and Mexico, she said. "That has consumed a lot of their capital."
Cuba has also stopped importing American poultry after an avian flu
outbreak, Thomas said. According to Business Insider, Cuba previously
imported $148 million in chicken products annually. And the severe
drought affected cotton prices and Cuba's ability to import cotton from
Texas.
"There is nothing unique about international trade with Cuba versus
other countries," she said.
Thomas said that the Obama administration has already made changes that
could bolster Texas' trade with Cuba once the country is in better
economic shape. The administration has rolled out a payment process that
should make it easier for Cuba to buy U.S. goods, Thomas said.
Instead of securing a letter of credit — a guarantee from a bank that it
will pay for the costs of goods if a buyer cannot — purchasers can now
use the "cash against document" system. That means a buyer can wire
money directly, which makes it easier on the purchaser, Thomas said.
Thomas believes the real test will come when more Americans are able to
travel to Cuba on commercial flights. Charter flights are already
available, but airline giants like American Airlines and United Airlines
stated this month they are ready to begin commercial flights to Cuba
once they receive permission.
Travelers will visit and try local food and goods, she said, but they
will also long for familiar treats.
"They'll go to a snack counter and want their Lay's potato chips," she
said. She also said more travelers to Cuba would ultimately mean more
pressure on Washington to move quickly to re-establish ties.
"They expect a government state where machine guns are on every corner,"
she said. "That's not reality. [People] have a good time. And that is
one more advocate for knocking down the embargo."
Source: Despite Early Optimism, Trade With Cuba Dipping | The Texas
Tribune -
https://www.texastribune.org/2015/07/30/despite-early-optimism-trade-cuba-dipping/
The Democratic Alternative for Cuba
The Democratic Alternative for Cuba
July 29, 2015
By Pedro Campos
HAVANA TIMES — Two paths are becoming clear to Cuba after the failure of
"State socialism": the authoritarian-capitalist one offered by the
current "reform process", sustained by an alliance between State
monopoly capitalism (dressed up as socialism) and foreign capital, under
the control of the same old government-State-Party, and the
all-inclusive democratic one, which I will try to summarize here, while
also exploring how we can reach it and what obstacles lie in the way.
The democratic way out, in order to be truly democratic, would have to
be inclusive. It would entail a process aimed at democratizing and
socializing the country's politics and economy which would open these
spheres to the participation of all Cubans on the island and abroad,
impel the development of all forms of production and the creation of the
conditions needed for a new type of democratic constitution, the rule of
law and a new, multi-party electoral law.
This process would need to be sustained by a new social contract, one
that would provide individual and collective undertakings broad
financing possibilities, confront all of the repercussions stemming from
the serious property issues created over more than fifty years of "State
socialism", on the basis of compensation, cooperation and independent
arbitration, eliminate all State monopolies over markets, prohibit the
development of private monopolies and establish fiscal policies to
incentivize production.
It would particularly require the implementation of local, participative
budgets, such that the bulk of taxes collected remain at the lower
levels and can be handled to address community interests, as a guarantee
of development.
The democratic socialist program encompasses very few points but, with a
view to establishing a consensus and pulling society out of its current
stagnation, we are subordinating all remaining points to a general,
democratic strategy that will later allow us to better defend our
positions and make them a reality.
Let it again be made clear that we reject any attempt at arbitrarily
imposing on people the free individual or collective forms of
self-managed production we support. That said, we do not deny we hope
these forms of production will, of their own merit, prove better than
the forms of salaried exploitation now in existence and, as such,
encourage their development and any financial backing offered them.
As we understand that private capital still has plenty of ground to
cover within Cuba's economy and that its most progressive
representatives could contribute to development efforts, we have no
objections to its participation in the process, under laws that
guarantee wages, vacation time and social security benefits, as well as
the creation of independent trade unions and others that will defend the
rights of wage laborers.
This way out of the current crisis only appears possible on the basis of
dialogue, negotiation and an atmosphere of national consensus and
harmony, where everyone can place the interests of the nation in the
foreground, and where the people constitute the one, sovereign
decision-maker. This involves the release of those who have been
detained for political reasons and a number of fundamental, individual
guarantees.
Independent civil society – the one that opts for non-violence and
dialogue –, progressive and nationalist sectors of the bourgeoisie in
Cuba and abroad and the wide democratic Left within Cuban society and
the State will all contribute to this democratic process, to varying
degrees and with no shortages of disagreements among them.
There are points of agreement across their demands that should be
brought to the foreground, without thereby abandoning their respective
identities. These strengths could be used to advance many actions and
policies, to the point, even, of organizing a broad, nationwide
democratic front.
The success of this alternative will depend on the ability of democratic
forces – all democratic forces, regardless of their political leanings,
whether they are in Cuba or abroad or within the government – to make
their programs reach the population, earn its support and create the
needed alliances.
Today, the democratic alternative has the fertile soil it needs to
develop it never had before, precisely because of the change in US
policy which neutralizes all of the stifling philosophy of the besieged
fortress and eliminates pretexts for political repression and the lack
of democracy and liberties of every sort. The United States' new Cuba
policy can eliminate all of the obstacles standing in the way of
international trade, a step required for development.
This is the most important historical juncture since the revolution of
1959, an opportunity to bring about the democratic changes the country
needs and will allow all political tendencies that favor such changes to
work together.
There are no democracy gages we can use to identify how likely these
forces are to prevail, but we could say that, despite how isolated the
different actors are, the lack of means and resources to have an impact
on society and the limitations imposed by the bureaucratic system, these
forces, working together, could became a decisive majority in an
atmosphere of tolerance and fundamental freedoms, through their
identification with the interests of the people.
The prevailing system in Cuba was sustained by two major pillars:
foreign aid and opposition to US imperialism. The first fell by the
wayside with the collapse of the Soviet Union and the "socialist bloc,"
shoes Venezuela never did manage to fill. The US executive has
re-established diplomatic relations with the Cuban government, but many
of the laws that make up the blockade-embargo are still in place and
Cuban-Americans in Congress favor them, giving the forces within Cuba's
military that cling to the past an excuse not to budge. Quite simply,
they play into each other's hands.
The leaders of the Cuban military, government and Communist Party.
Photo: granma.cu
The small clique of original revolutionaries that controls the
government opposes this democratic alternative and uses the "reform
process" as the spear-head of the political and military apparatus that
administer the country, to prevent the free development of all non-State
forms of production that do not rely on joint or direct foreign
investment. It gives no signs of being in favor of democratization and
continues to repress dissenting thoughts, sometimes employing violence.
This group knows that its State wage model has failed and is promoting
changes, but it is very much afraid that these will make it lose its
power and that they will later be judged for all the wrong they've done
for over half a century in the name of socialism. They do not realize
that history has already judged them and condemned them to retirement.
This verdict could however change if they stubbornly stick to their
positions and continue to repress alternatives.
In the complex situation we have today, we cannot deny that Raul Castro
and his clique have reacted positively to a rapprochement with the
United States, even though their chief motivation is the lifting of
sanctions that will allow them to tap sources of money and investments
up north. We also cannot deny that his administration, as centralized
and bureaucratic as his brothers, incapable of overcome the serious
problems faced by Cuban society, has at least modified a number of
absurd regulations and opened up a handful of small spaces for economic
activities outside the State.
Everything indicates that, if there are differences at the high echelons
of power regarding the scope of the changes and the policy of
rapprochement with the United States, all of the elite has the same
prejudices with respect to the crucial democratization of society and
agree that repressive policies must be implemented against dissenting
thought, as a means of guaranteeing the power in the hands of the
bureaucratic elite, its descendants and loyal subjects.
The military officials who rule the country and could have more
pragmatic stances could develop other initiatives in a freer context,
without the pressures of the embargo-blockade or from internal groups
that continue to support the old US policies. Such a situation could
lead them to understand that they can be part of the future if they are
able to share power with the workers and the people, in conjunction with
diverse democratic forces.
The democratic alternative also runs into the "vendetta" mentality of
the more radical groups in the émigré community and some on the island
who are opposed to any dialogue with the government, groups that insist
that the "Castroist" elite must first be swept away and that the United
States ought to keep the blockade-embargo in place, place obstacles on
the road to the normalization of relations and seek a regime change
through political and economic stifling.
This, while standing in the way of the methods and aims of the peaceful
and democratic alternative, reaffirms the intransigent sectors of the
Stalinist elite in their stance, and these sectors must be given an
option – otherwise, they will continue to cling to their positions.
Do these groups want democracy for themselves only, and a new
dictatorship for the rest? Democracy, like freedom, is either for
everyone or it is not true democracy. Those who oppose the democratic
path, those who support violence and policies that exclude others, end
up isolating themselves.
Those who ask for "justice first" seem to forget that horrendous crimes
were also perpetrated in the struggle against Castro-communism and that
people demand justice for these actions as well.
Should we try to overcome the problems that weigh on the Cuban people
and keep development and happiness out of reach for them, or do we all
start settling accounts, reliving the past, covering Cuban soil with
blood once again, continuing the interminable cycle of violence?
Should we be driven by a thirst of justice or vengeance? Wouldn't it be
nobler, and entirely possible, to try and work for peace under justice,
hand in hand with forgiveness, through methods such as dialogue and
negotiation, and bury the hatchet and the eye-for-an-eye mentality once
and for all?
That violence stems from the political system based on the "dictatorship
of the proletariat" is not something we put in question. But let us try
not to play into their hand with discourses and policies similar to theirs.
It is time for understanding to reach the core of Cuban society
(including the émigré community), in the same way the governments of
Cuba and the United States have done through dialogue, putting aside
their profound differences. The Pope, who encouraged the rapprochement
between the United States and Cuban government, could contribute to
internal talks.
Espacio Abierto ("Open Space"), a Cuban civil society group, has just
advanced a proposal for a debate to include everyone, including
government authorities. It would be a serious mistake to reject or
ignore this proposal. We hope that, sooner rather than later, the sense
shown by the Cuban government in its talks with the United States will
prevail also within Cuban society.
Source: The Democratic Alternative for Cuba - Havana Times.org -
http://www.havanatimes.org/?p=112961
July 29, 2015
By Pedro Campos
HAVANA TIMES — Two paths are becoming clear to Cuba after the failure of
"State socialism": the authoritarian-capitalist one offered by the
current "reform process", sustained by an alliance between State
monopoly capitalism (dressed up as socialism) and foreign capital, under
the control of the same old government-State-Party, and the
all-inclusive democratic one, which I will try to summarize here, while
also exploring how we can reach it and what obstacles lie in the way.
The democratic way out, in order to be truly democratic, would have to
be inclusive. It would entail a process aimed at democratizing and
socializing the country's politics and economy which would open these
spheres to the participation of all Cubans on the island and abroad,
impel the development of all forms of production and the creation of the
conditions needed for a new type of democratic constitution, the rule of
law and a new, multi-party electoral law.
This process would need to be sustained by a new social contract, one
that would provide individual and collective undertakings broad
financing possibilities, confront all of the repercussions stemming from
the serious property issues created over more than fifty years of "State
socialism", on the basis of compensation, cooperation and independent
arbitration, eliminate all State monopolies over markets, prohibit the
development of private monopolies and establish fiscal policies to
incentivize production.
It would particularly require the implementation of local, participative
budgets, such that the bulk of taxes collected remain at the lower
levels and can be handled to address community interests, as a guarantee
of development.
The democratic socialist program encompasses very few points but, with a
view to establishing a consensus and pulling society out of its current
stagnation, we are subordinating all remaining points to a general,
democratic strategy that will later allow us to better defend our
positions and make them a reality.
Let it again be made clear that we reject any attempt at arbitrarily
imposing on people the free individual or collective forms of
self-managed production we support. That said, we do not deny we hope
these forms of production will, of their own merit, prove better than
the forms of salaried exploitation now in existence and, as such,
encourage their development and any financial backing offered them.
As we understand that private capital still has plenty of ground to
cover within Cuba's economy and that its most progressive
representatives could contribute to development efforts, we have no
objections to its participation in the process, under laws that
guarantee wages, vacation time and social security benefits, as well as
the creation of independent trade unions and others that will defend the
rights of wage laborers.
This way out of the current crisis only appears possible on the basis of
dialogue, negotiation and an atmosphere of national consensus and
harmony, where everyone can place the interests of the nation in the
foreground, and where the people constitute the one, sovereign
decision-maker. This involves the release of those who have been
detained for political reasons and a number of fundamental, individual
guarantees.
Independent civil society – the one that opts for non-violence and
dialogue –, progressive and nationalist sectors of the bourgeoisie in
Cuba and abroad and the wide democratic Left within Cuban society and
the State will all contribute to this democratic process, to varying
degrees and with no shortages of disagreements among them.
There are points of agreement across their demands that should be
brought to the foreground, without thereby abandoning their respective
identities. These strengths could be used to advance many actions and
policies, to the point, even, of organizing a broad, nationwide
democratic front.
The success of this alternative will depend on the ability of democratic
forces – all democratic forces, regardless of their political leanings,
whether they are in Cuba or abroad or within the government – to make
their programs reach the population, earn its support and create the
needed alliances.
Today, the democratic alternative has the fertile soil it needs to
develop it never had before, precisely because of the change in US
policy which neutralizes all of the stifling philosophy of the besieged
fortress and eliminates pretexts for political repression and the lack
of democracy and liberties of every sort. The United States' new Cuba
policy can eliminate all of the obstacles standing in the way of
international trade, a step required for development.
This is the most important historical juncture since the revolution of
1959, an opportunity to bring about the democratic changes the country
needs and will allow all political tendencies that favor such changes to
work together.
There are no democracy gages we can use to identify how likely these
forces are to prevail, but we could say that, despite how isolated the
different actors are, the lack of means and resources to have an impact
on society and the limitations imposed by the bureaucratic system, these
forces, working together, could became a decisive majority in an
atmosphere of tolerance and fundamental freedoms, through their
identification with the interests of the people.
The prevailing system in Cuba was sustained by two major pillars:
foreign aid and opposition to US imperialism. The first fell by the
wayside with the collapse of the Soviet Union and the "socialist bloc,"
shoes Venezuela never did manage to fill. The US executive has
re-established diplomatic relations with the Cuban government, but many
of the laws that make up the blockade-embargo are still in place and
Cuban-Americans in Congress favor them, giving the forces within Cuba's
military that cling to the past an excuse not to budge. Quite simply,
they play into each other's hands.
The leaders of the Cuban military, government and Communist Party.
Photo: granma.cu
The small clique of original revolutionaries that controls the
government opposes this democratic alternative and uses the "reform
process" as the spear-head of the political and military apparatus that
administer the country, to prevent the free development of all non-State
forms of production that do not rely on joint or direct foreign
investment. It gives no signs of being in favor of democratization and
continues to repress dissenting thoughts, sometimes employing violence.
This group knows that its State wage model has failed and is promoting
changes, but it is very much afraid that these will make it lose its
power and that they will later be judged for all the wrong they've done
for over half a century in the name of socialism. They do not realize
that history has already judged them and condemned them to retirement.
This verdict could however change if they stubbornly stick to their
positions and continue to repress alternatives.
In the complex situation we have today, we cannot deny that Raul Castro
and his clique have reacted positively to a rapprochement with the
United States, even though their chief motivation is the lifting of
sanctions that will allow them to tap sources of money and investments
up north. We also cannot deny that his administration, as centralized
and bureaucratic as his brothers, incapable of overcome the serious
problems faced by Cuban society, has at least modified a number of
absurd regulations and opened up a handful of small spaces for economic
activities outside the State.
Everything indicates that, if there are differences at the high echelons
of power regarding the scope of the changes and the policy of
rapprochement with the United States, all of the elite has the same
prejudices with respect to the crucial democratization of society and
agree that repressive policies must be implemented against dissenting
thought, as a means of guaranteeing the power in the hands of the
bureaucratic elite, its descendants and loyal subjects.
The military officials who rule the country and could have more
pragmatic stances could develop other initiatives in a freer context,
without the pressures of the embargo-blockade or from internal groups
that continue to support the old US policies. Such a situation could
lead them to understand that they can be part of the future if they are
able to share power with the workers and the people, in conjunction with
diverse democratic forces.
The democratic alternative also runs into the "vendetta" mentality of
the more radical groups in the émigré community and some on the island
who are opposed to any dialogue with the government, groups that insist
that the "Castroist" elite must first be swept away and that the United
States ought to keep the blockade-embargo in place, place obstacles on
the road to the normalization of relations and seek a regime change
through political and economic stifling.
This, while standing in the way of the methods and aims of the peaceful
and democratic alternative, reaffirms the intransigent sectors of the
Stalinist elite in their stance, and these sectors must be given an
option – otherwise, they will continue to cling to their positions.
Do these groups want democracy for themselves only, and a new
dictatorship for the rest? Democracy, like freedom, is either for
everyone or it is not true democracy. Those who oppose the democratic
path, those who support violence and policies that exclude others, end
up isolating themselves.
Those who ask for "justice first" seem to forget that horrendous crimes
were also perpetrated in the struggle against Castro-communism and that
people demand justice for these actions as well.
Should we try to overcome the problems that weigh on the Cuban people
and keep development and happiness out of reach for them, or do we all
start settling accounts, reliving the past, covering Cuban soil with
blood once again, continuing the interminable cycle of violence?
Should we be driven by a thirst of justice or vengeance? Wouldn't it be
nobler, and entirely possible, to try and work for peace under justice,
hand in hand with forgiveness, through methods such as dialogue and
negotiation, and bury the hatchet and the eye-for-an-eye mentality once
and for all?
That violence stems from the political system based on the "dictatorship
of the proletariat" is not something we put in question. But let us try
not to play into their hand with discourses and policies similar to theirs.
It is time for understanding to reach the core of Cuban society
(including the émigré community), in the same way the governments of
Cuba and the United States have done through dialogue, putting aside
their profound differences. The Pope, who encouraged the rapprochement
between the United States and Cuban government, could contribute to
internal talks.
Espacio Abierto ("Open Space"), a Cuban civil society group, has just
advanced a proposal for a debate to include everyone, including
government authorities. It would be a serious mistake to reject or
ignore this proposal. We hope that, sooner rather than later, the sense
shown by the Cuban government in its talks with the United States will
prevail also within Cuban society.
Source: The Democratic Alternative for Cuba - Havana Times.org -
http://www.havanatimes.org/?p=112961
Obama should tell Latin Americans what he told Africans
Obama should tell Latin Americans what he told Africans
BY ANDRES OPPENHEIMER
aoppenheimer@MiamiHerald.com
During his trip to Africa earlier this week, President Barack Obama gave
a powerful speech asking the region's long-entrenched leaders to end
corruption, respect freedom of the press and stop changing the
constitution to remain in power indefinitely. I wonder why he doesn't
make the same speech in Latin America.
During a July 28 speech to the African Union at its headquarters in
Addis Ababa, Ethiopa, Obama told African leaders that "Nothing will
unlock Africa's economic potential more than ending the cancer of
corruption."
"Corruption exists all over the world, including in the United States,"
he added. "But here in Africa, corruption drains billions of dollars
from economies that can't afford to lose billions of dollars — that's
money that could be used to create jobs and build hospitals and schools."
After his call on countries to take actions against corruption, Obama
spent much of his speech calling on governments to stop harassing
independent media, and asking leaders not to stay in power indefinitely.
Several of the African Union's 54 member-countries have leaders who have
been in power for a decade, or longer.
"We all know what the ingredients of real democracy are: they include
free and fair elections, but also freedom of speech and the press,
freedom of assembly," Obama said. "These rights are universal. They're
written into African constitutions."
"Yet at this very moment, these same freedoms are denied to many
Africans," he went on. "When journalists are put behind bars for doing
their jobs, or activists are threatened as governments crack down on
civil society, then you may have democracy in name, but not in substance."
In what was the most daring part of his speech, Obama said that
"Africa's democratic progress is also at risk when leaders refuse to
step aside when their terms end."
Mixing his stern message with humor, he reminded the audience that he is
nearing the end of his second term, and that he loves his job, but that
under the U.S. Constitution he can't run again.
"I actually think I'm a pretty good President. I think if I ran I could
win," he joked. "But I can't.....The law is the law.... And no one
person is above the law. Not even the president."
He concluded, "When a leader tries to change the rules in the middle of
the game just to stay in office, it risks instability and strife... And
sometimes you'll hear leaders say, well, I'm the only person who can
hold this nation together. If that's true, then that leader has failed
to truly build their nation."
My opinion: It was a phenomenal speech, which Obama should also make in
Latin America. It would demand no extra work: He would just have to copy
and paste it, and replace the word "Africa" for "Latin America."
In Latin America, just like in Africa, corruption is rampant, freedom of
the press is routinely repressed, and current or previous presidents of
Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Colombia and several other
countries have in recent years changed their constitutions to remain in
power — or allow their appointees to do it for them — indefinitely.
Cuba, with which Obama has just reestablished diplomatic relations and
where Secretary of State John Kerry is scheduled to preside over the
flag-raising ceremony at the U.S. Embassy in Havana on Aug. 14, is an
hereditary military dictatorship run by a general. There has not been a
free election or an independent TV station in Cuba in more than five
decades.
Obama probably doesn't dare make his African Union speech in Latin
America because much more U.S. trade and investments are at stake there.
He did refer to these issues during the recent Summit of the Americas in
Panama, but not nearly as bluntly as he did in Addis Ababa this week.
Granted, if he told these things to Latin American leaders, the region's
populist demagogues would immediately accuse him of meddling in their
internal affairs in order to allegedly pursue sinister "imperialist" plans.
But after several years of corrupt leaders who hide behind nationalist
demagoguery to justify their pursuit of absolute powers, many people in
several Latin American autocracies want more rule of law, and more
democracy.
To stress his point, Obama would just need to repeat what he said in
Africa: that countries don't need strong leaders, but strong
institutions. And that if a leader claims to be the only one who can
hold his nation together, the leader has failed to truly build that nation.
Source: Andres Oppenheimer: Obama should tell Latin Americans what he
told Africans | Miami Herald -
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/news-columns-blogs/andres-oppenheimer/article29477938.html
BY ANDRES OPPENHEIMER
aoppenheimer@MiamiHerald.com
During his trip to Africa earlier this week, President Barack Obama gave
a powerful speech asking the region's long-entrenched leaders to end
corruption, respect freedom of the press and stop changing the
constitution to remain in power indefinitely. I wonder why he doesn't
make the same speech in Latin America.
During a July 28 speech to the African Union at its headquarters in
Addis Ababa, Ethiopa, Obama told African leaders that "Nothing will
unlock Africa's economic potential more than ending the cancer of
corruption."
"Corruption exists all over the world, including in the United States,"
he added. "But here in Africa, corruption drains billions of dollars
from economies that can't afford to lose billions of dollars — that's
money that could be used to create jobs and build hospitals and schools."
After his call on countries to take actions against corruption, Obama
spent much of his speech calling on governments to stop harassing
independent media, and asking leaders not to stay in power indefinitely.
Several of the African Union's 54 member-countries have leaders who have
been in power for a decade, or longer.
"We all know what the ingredients of real democracy are: they include
free and fair elections, but also freedom of speech and the press,
freedom of assembly," Obama said. "These rights are universal. They're
written into African constitutions."
"Yet at this very moment, these same freedoms are denied to many
Africans," he went on. "When journalists are put behind bars for doing
their jobs, or activists are threatened as governments crack down on
civil society, then you may have democracy in name, but not in substance."
In what was the most daring part of his speech, Obama said that
"Africa's democratic progress is also at risk when leaders refuse to
step aside when their terms end."
Mixing his stern message with humor, he reminded the audience that he is
nearing the end of his second term, and that he loves his job, but that
under the U.S. Constitution he can't run again.
"I actually think I'm a pretty good President. I think if I ran I could
win," he joked. "But I can't.....The law is the law.... And no one
person is above the law. Not even the president."
He concluded, "When a leader tries to change the rules in the middle of
the game just to stay in office, it risks instability and strife... And
sometimes you'll hear leaders say, well, I'm the only person who can
hold this nation together. If that's true, then that leader has failed
to truly build their nation."
My opinion: It was a phenomenal speech, which Obama should also make in
Latin America. It would demand no extra work: He would just have to copy
and paste it, and replace the word "Africa" for "Latin America."
In Latin America, just like in Africa, corruption is rampant, freedom of
the press is routinely repressed, and current or previous presidents of
Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Colombia and several other
countries have in recent years changed their constitutions to remain in
power — or allow their appointees to do it for them — indefinitely.
Cuba, with which Obama has just reestablished diplomatic relations and
where Secretary of State John Kerry is scheduled to preside over the
flag-raising ceremony at the U.S. Embassy in Havana on Aug. 14, is an
hereditary military dictatorship run by a general. There has not been a
free election or an independent TV station in Cuba in more than five
decades.
Obama probably doesn't dare make his African Union speech in Latin
America because much more U.S. trade and investments are at stake there.
He did refer to these issues during the recent Summit of the Americas in
Panama, but not nearly as bluntly as he did in Addis Ababa this week.
Granted, if he told these things to Latin American leaders, the region's
populist demagogues would immediately accuse him of meddling in their
internal affairs in order to allegedly pursue sinister "imperialist" plans.
But after several years of corrupt leaders who hide behind nationalist
demagoguery to justify their pursuit of absolute powers, many people in
several Latin American autocracies want more rule of law, and more
democracy.
To stress his point, Obama would just need to repeat what he said in
Africa: that countries don't need strong leaders, but strong
institutions. And that if a leader claims to be the only one who can
hold his nation together, the leader has failed to truly build that nation.
Source: Andres Oppenheimer: Obama should tell Latin Americans what he
told Africans | Miami Herald -
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/news-columns-blogs/andres-oppenheimer/article29477938.html
Hillary Clinton to call for lifting Cuba embargo in Miami
Hillary Clinton to call for lifting Cuba embargo in Miami
BY AMY SHERMAN
asherman@MiamiHerald.com
Hillary Clinton will use Friday, her first day of public appearances in
Florida as a presidential candidate, to declare her allegiance to
President Barack Obama's Cuba policy in the hometown of Republican
rivals who oppose it, Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio.
In a speech at Florida International University, Clinton will call for
lifting the U.S. trade embargo.
"She will highlight that Republican arguments against increased
engagement are part of failed policies of the past and contend that we
must look to the future in order to advance a core set of values and
interests to engage with Cubans and address human rights abuses," her
campaign said in a statement.
Much like her speech on immigration reform in Las Vegas, in which she
tried to portray herself as even more progressive than Obama, her speech
at FIU will be Clinton's first chance to double down on the president's
move in December to normalize U.S.-Cuba diplomatic relations. The 11
a.m. speech will follow her address to the National Urban League, a
civil-rights organization, in Fort Lauderdale earlier Friday.
For the majority of voters in Florida and elsewhere, Cuba isn't one of
the top issues on which they will cast their vote for president.
However, Clinton's stance on Cuba gives her a chance to drive a wedge
between herself and the leading contenders in the GOP field — including
Rubio and Bush.
Some recent polls show that the vast majority of voters, even in
Florida, support normalizing relations with the island after decades of
isolation. That allows Clinton to argue that Bush, Rubio and many of the
other GOP candidates are out of touch with mainstream Americans.
"Hillary's position on Cuba predates the president's position," said
Miami pollster Fernand Amandi, who has done polls about Cuba policy in
Florida. "She came out for eliminating the embargo well before new
policy change announced in December last year. She often commented on
the need to reevaluate and reengage the issue of U.S. policy toward Cuba
but always with the end goal of bringing democracy and a transition to
democratic government to island."
In June, Bendixen & Amandi International did a poll with the Tarrance
Group of 1,400 Hispanic voters nationwide. It showed that for 46 percent
of voters, the fact that a candidate supports the new policy of
normalization would have no impact on their vote. But for those who did
factor that into that their vote, 34 percent said they were more likely
to support that candidate, compared to 14 percent who said the opposite.
Generally the same trend held true for Florida voters, with 32 percent
more likely to support the candidate, compared to 19 percent less
likely. (Similar numbers were found among voters in Colorado, Nevada and
North Carolina.)
The poll showed clear support among Democrats and independents for
normalizing relations with Cuba, while Republicans nationwide were
evenly split.
Among Cubans nationwide, 40 percent said they too were more likely to
support a candidate who supports normalization, while 26 percent were
opposed and the remainder said it wasn't a factor or didn't know.
However, Mauricio Claver-Carone, an opponent of lifting sanctions and
co-founder and director of the U.S.-Cuba Democracy PAC, pointed to an
Associated Press poll in July that showed that while nearly
three-fourths of Americans think the United States should have
diplomatic ties with Cuba, they're not sure how far to go in lifting
sanctions. The nationwide poll showed 58 percent of Americans approve of
Obama's handling of the U.S. relationship with Havana, but they were
nearly evenly split about what to do about sanctions.
Claver-Carone said that he would remind Clinton of two facts that show
how her position on Cuba could hurt her on Election Day.
"Every single Cuban American elected anywhere in the U.S. — councilman,
member of Congress, legislature, you name it — all oppose Obama's
policy," he told the Miami Herald. "There has never been any statewide
official that supports lifting sanctions that has ever been elected in
the state of Florida, including Obama who campaigned twice both times on
support for the embargo. She is being walked down a political plank on
this one."
In her 2014 book Hard Choices, Clinton wrote that near the end of her
tenure as secretary of state, she recommended that Obama review the
embargo — a decision that ultimately lies with Congress. She wrote that
the embargo "wasn't achieving its goals, and it was holding back our
broader agenda across Latin America. After 20 years of observing and
dealing with the U.S.-Cuba relationship, I thought we should shift the
onus onto the Castros to explain why they remained undemocratic and
abusive."
In a speech to the Council on Foreign Relations in June 2014, Clinton
said that she had concluded "that the embargo is Castro's best friend.
It provides Castro an excuse for everything. Why do we still have to be
harassing, you know, the mothers of the imprisoned? Well, because
America's behind it. Why do we have to, you know, prevent the kind of
relationships that we would like to see Cuba engage in opening up and
being more forward looking? Well, because we can't — you know, America
is embargoing us.... We've been in a corner for too long."
But Clinton often omits her husband's role in the embargo. In 1996,
President Bill Clinton strengthened the embargo by signing the
Helms-Burton law, which states that the embargo will only be lifted if
Cuba holds free and fair elections, frees political prisoners and allows
for a free press and labor unions. He signed that bill after two
Brothers to the Rescue planes were shot down in the Florida Straits by
Cuban MiGs.
During her speech at FIU, Clinton is expected to address her views on
the Helms-Burton law.
For years, Hillary Clinton talked about the need for democracy before
changing the policy toward Cuba, including during her first presidential
race.
In July 2007, she bashed Obama for saying he would meet with Cuban
leader Fidel Castro and Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez and called his
suggestion "irresponsible and frankly naive."
"Until there is some recognition on the part of whoever is in charge of
the Cuban government that they have to move toward democracy and freedom
for the Cuban people, it will be very difficult for us to change our
policy," she said at a December 2007 debate in Iowa.
Earlier this month, when Obama announced the opening of respective
embassies with Cuba, Clinton wrote on Twitter: "New US Embassy in Havana
helps us engage Cuban people & build on efforts to support positive
change. Good step for US & Cuban people."
In May, Clinton talked about her support for Obama's Cuba policy during
a fundraiser at the Coral Gables home of Nilda Milton, whose late
husband, José, was a developer.
"She said if we want change in Cuba we have to be for openness," said
former U.S. Rep. Joe Garcia, D-Miami, who attended the event. "She was
very supportive of the president's Dec. 17th statement, and I think she
leaned into it."
Both Rubio and Bush have repeatedly criticized the Obama
administration's stance on normalizing relations.
"Hillary Clinton was adamantly against easing restrictions with Cuba in
2000 and 2008, going so far as to confirm she would not meet with Raul
Castro until there was evidence of political change," Emily Benavides, a
Bush spokeswoman, said Wednesday. "President Obama's concessions to
Castro have not resulted in more democracy or freedom for the Cuban people."
Rubio, who has taught political science at FIU in the past, has
campaigned on his parents' journey as Cuban immigrants. His campaign
said Wednesday that Clinton is "making another grave mistake."
"Unilateral concessions to the Castros will only strengthen a brutal,
anti-American regime 90 miles from our shore," the campaign said.
McClatchy reporter Lesley Clark and Miami Herald reporter Patricia
Mazzei contributed to this article.
Source: Hillary Clinton to call for lifting Cuba embargo in Miami |
Miami Herald -
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/politics-government/elections-2016/article29343811.html
BY AMY SHERMAN
asherman@MiamiHerald.com
Hillary Clinton will use Friday, her first day of public appearances in
Florida as a presidential candidate, to declare her allegiance to
President Barack Obama's Cuba policy in the hometown of Republican
rivals who oppose it, Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio.
In a speech at Florida International University, Clinton will call for
lifting the U.S. trade embargo.
"She will highlight that Republican arguments against increased
engagement are part of failed policies of the past and contend that we
must look to the future in order to advance a core set of values and
interests to engage with Cubans and address human rights abuses," her
campaign said in a statement.
Much like her speech on immigration reform in Las Vegas, in which she
tried to portray herself as even more progressive than Obama, her speech
at FIU will be Clinton's first chance to double down on the president's
move in December to normalize U.S.-Cuba diplomatic relations. The 11
a.m. speech will follow her address to the National Urban League, a
civil-rights organization, in Fort Lauderdale earlier Friday.
For the majority of voters in Florida and elsewhere, Cuba isn't one of
the top issues on which they will cast their vote for president.
However, Clinton's stance on Cuba gives her a chance to drive a wedge
between herself and the leading contenders in the GOP field — including
Rubio and Bush.
Some recent polls show that the vast majority of voters, even in
Florida, support normalizing relations with the island after decades of
isolation. That allows Clinton to argue that Bush, Rubio and many of the
other GOP candidates are out of touch with mainstream Americans.
"Hillary's position on Cuba predates the president's position," said
Miami pollster Fernand Amandi, who has done polls about Cuba policy in
Florida. "She came out for eliminating the embargo well before new
policy change announced in December last year. She often commented on
the need to reevaluate and reengage the issue of U.S. policy toward Cuba
but always with the end goal of bringing democracy and a transition to
democratic government to island."
In June, Bendixen & Amandi International did a poll with the Tarrance
Group of 1,400 Hispanic voters nationwide. It showed that for 46 percent
of voters, the fact that a candidate supports the new policy of
normalization would have no impact on their vote. But for those who did
factor that into that their vote, 34 percent said they were more likely
to support that candidate, compared to 14 percent who said the opposite.
Generally the same trend held true for Florida voters, with 32 percent
more likely to support the candidate, compared to 19 percent less
likely. (Similar numbers were found among voters in Colorado, Nevada and
North Carolina.)
The poll showed clear support among Democrats and independents for
normalizing relations with Cuba, while Republicans nationwide were
evenly split.
Among Cubans nationwide, 40 percent said they too were more likely to
support a candidate who supports normalization, while 26 percent were
opposed and the remainder said it wasn't a factor or didn't know.
However, Mauricio Claver-Carone, an opponent of lifting sanctions and
co-founder and director of the U.S.-Cuba Democracy PAC, pointed to an
Associated Press poll in July that showed that while nearly
three-fourths of Americans think the United States should have
diplomatic ties with Cuba, they're not sure how far to go in lifting
sanctions. The nationwide poll showed 58 percent of Americans approve of
Obama's handling of the U.S. relationship with Havana, but they were
nearly evenly split about what to do about sanctions.
Claver-Carone said that he would remind Clinton of two facts that show
how her position on Cuba could hurt her on Election Day.
"Every single Cuban American elected anywhere in the U.S. — councilman,
member of Congress, legislature, you name it — all oppose Obama's
policy," he told the Miami Herald. "There has never been any statewide
official that supports lifting sanctions that has ever been elected in
the state of Florida, including Obama who campaigned twice both times on
support for the embargo. She is being walked down a political plank on
this one."
In her 2014 book Hard Choices, Clinton wrote that near the end of her
tenure as secretary of state, she recommended that Obama review the
embargo — a decision that ultimately lies with Congress. She wrote that
the embargo "wasn't achieving its goals, and it was holding back our
broader agenda across Latin America. After 20 years of observing and
dealing with the U.S.-Cuba relationship, I thought we should shift the
onus onto the Castros to explain why they remained undemocratic and
abusive."
In a speech to the Council on Foreign Relations in June 2014, Clinton
said that she had concluded "that the embargo is Castro's best friend.
It provides Castro an excuse for everything. Why do we still have to be
harassing, you know, the mothers of the imprisoned? Well, because
America's behind it. Why do we have to, you know, prevent the kind of
relationships that we would like to see Cuba engage in opening up and
being more forward looking? Well, because we can't — you know, America
is embargoing us.... We've been in a corner for too long."
But Clinton often omits her husband's role in the embargo. In 1996,
President Bill Clinton strengthened the embargo by signing the
Helms-Burton law, which states that the embargo will only be lifted if
Cuba holds free and fair elections, frees political prisoners and allows
for a free press and labor unions. He signed that bill after two
Brothers to the Rescue planes were shot down in the Florida Straits by
Cuban MiGs.
During her speech at FIU, Clinton is expected to address her views on
the Helms-Burton law.
For years, Hillary Clinton talked about the need for democracy before
changing the policy toward Cuba, including during her first presidential
race.
In July 2007, she bashed Obama for saying he would meet with Cuban
leader Fidel Castro and Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez and called his
suggestion "irresponsible and frankly naive."
"Until there is some recognition on the part of whoever is in charge of
the Cuban government that they have to move toward democracy and freedom
for the Cuban people, it will be very difficult for us to change our
policy," she said at a December 2007 debate in Iowa.
Earlier this month, when Obama announced the opening of respective
embassies with Cuba, Clinton wrote on Twitter: "New US Embassy in Havana
helps us engage Cuban people & build on efforts to support positive
change. Good step for US & Cuban people."
In May, Clinton talked about her support for Obama's Cuba policy during
a fundraiser at the Coral Gables home of Nilda Milton, whose late
husband, José, was a developer.
"She said if we want change in Cuba we have to be for openness," said
former U.S. Rep. Joe Garcia, D-Miami, who attended the event. "She was
very supportive of the president's Dec. 17th statement, and I think she
leaned into it."
Both Rubio and Bush have repeatedly criticized the Obama
administration's stance on normalizing relations.
"Hillary Clinton was adamantly against easing restrictions with Cuba in
2000 and 2008, going so far as to confirm she would not meet with Raul
Castro until there was evidence of political change," Emily Benavides, a
Bush spokeswoman, said Wednesday. "President Obama's concessions to
Castro have not resulted in more democracy or freedom for the Cuban people."
Rubio, who has taught political science at FIU in the past, has
campaigned on his parents' journey as Cuban immigrants. His campaign
said Wednesday that Clinton is "making another grave mistake."
"Unilateral concessions to the Castros will only strengthen a brutal,
anti-American regime 90 miles from our shore," the campaign said.
McClatchy reporter Lesley Clark and Miami Herald reporter Patricia
Mazzei contributed to this article.
Source: Hillary Clinton to call for lifting Cuba embargo in Miami |
Miami Herald -
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/politics-government/elections-2016/article29343811.html
The Politics of Prevention - Cholera in Cuba
The Politics of Prevention: Cholera in Cuba
[30-07-2015 01:02:47]
Cuba Transition Project
(www.miscelaneasdecuba.net).- Even before the scheduled opening of the
US Embassy on July 20, 2015, there were advertisements, blog posts,
tweets, and news feeds welcoming U.S. residents to Cuba for cultural,
religious or educational opportunities. Cuba remains a popular
destination for Canadian and Western European tourists with its rich
cultural arts, gracious hosts and Caribbean beaches. However, a growing
interest in U.S. approved trips must consider Cuba's lack of safe
potable water, sanitation and sewage issues along with housing
challenges. This is important because while it is unreported, cholera
transmission exists within Cuba.
Cuba's lack of transparency in health outbreak reporting is in question
again. Laboratory confirmed cases continue to be shared with the
international community about tourists returning to Canada, Latin
America, and European countries after taking home more than sun and fun
from a Cuban vacation. Cuba consistently asserts that the cholera
outbreak of 2012 was quickly controlled within the country.
Where is the United States government on this issue today?
While a U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) cholera
watch in Cuba has recently been removed from their website, (1) there is
still evidence that cholera is transmitted there. CDC travel notices
consists of three levels:
A "watch" level 1 informs travelers to use usual precautions, an "alert"
level 2 calls for enhanced precautions and a "warning" level 3 advises
travelers to avoid nonessential travel to an area where the risk is
high. These travel notices are important because the CDC notification
system is widely used by travelers as well as clinicians for up-to-date
international travel information.
Since 2013 there have been cases of confirmed cholera after visits to
Cuba. (2) In January 2015 the Canadian International Health Regulation
reported a case of a returning traveler, (3) as well as Pan American
Health Organization (PAHO) on their Epidemiologic Update Report (4)
documented this as the only case of cholera in Cuba for 2015. This
assumes only travelers and no locals have been infected. It is more
likely that the Cuban government does not share this information with
the international community, and is only compelled to cooperate after
scientific proof is disseminated.
In June 2015 the United Kingdom reported a traveler who participated in
an all-inclusive resort stay in Varadero and spent two days in Havana
before getting sick and returned home with cholera. According to the
International Society for Infectious Disease, through their Program for
Monitoring Emerging Diseases (ProMed- mail) posting on July 3, 2015, the
patient indicated other family members were well. However, "several
other people staying in his hotel (not necessarily in the same tour
group) had reported severe gastroenteritis symptoms with a similar
period of onset," suggesting this may not be the only case. Pro-Med
seeks to share this information and advise others of the confirmed
cholera in Cuba and for health professionals to consider such a
diagnosis with travelers returning with diarrhea. (5)
The question is not whether cholera is a risk to locals and visitors.
Rather, the issue is why has the CDC removed the notification from its
website when outside country evidence continues to show cholera exists
within Cuba.
Are we left to speculate that the promotion of diplomatic relations- in
an attempt to not question Cuba's position on reporting disease
outbreaks as required by World Health Organization International Health
Regulations- is more important than the prevention and promotion of
health security? Let's not play politics with what we know is a best
practice in prevention. Give people access to reliable information so
they are well informed of their potential risks. Only then can good
decisions be made to prevent cholera-or for that matter dengue,
chikungunya or possibly zika virus (new mosquito born virus to reach the
Caribbean) when traveling to Cuba.
Notes
1) Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), "Travel Notices-
Cholera in Cuba,"
http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/notices/watch/cholera-cuba, accessed July
14, 2015.
2) M Mascarello, M L Deianam C Maurel, C Lucarelli , I Luzzi R Luzzati,
"Cholera with Severe Renal Failure in An Italian Tourist Returning from
Cuba," Eurosurveillance, July 2013. Volume 18, Issue 35, August 29,
2013. http://www.eurosurveillance.org/ViewArticle.aspx?ArticleId=20572.
3) Public Health Agency for Canada, Travel Health Notice: Cholera in
Cuba, Dominican Republic, Haiti and Mexico, updated March 20, 2015
http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/tmp-pmv/notices-avis/notices-avis-eng.php?id=111.
4) PAHO Epidemiologic Update. "Cholera in The Americas," June 24, 2015
http://www.paho.org/hq/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_view&Itemid=270&gid=30752&lang=en
5) ProMed- Mail. "Cholera, Diarrhea and dysentery update (24):
Americas," Archive Number: 20150703.3480336July 3, 2015
http://www.promedmail.org.
_________________________________________________
*Sherri L. Porcelain teaches global health in world affairs at the
University of Miami where she is also a Senior Research Associate at the
Institute for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies.
Source: The Politics of Prevention: Cholera in Cuba - Misceláneas de
Cuba -
http://www.miscelaneasdecuba.net/web/Article/Index/55b95b973a682e133c7fde64#.VboOKfmqqko
[30-07-2015 01:02:47]
Cuba Transition Project
(www.miscelaneasdecuba.net).- Even before the scheduled opening of the
US Embassy on July 20, 2015, there were advertisements, blog posts,
tweets, and news feeds welcoming U.S. residents to Cuba for cultural,
religious or educational opportunities. Cuba remains a popular
destination for Canadian and Western European tourists with its rich
cultural arts, gracious hosts and Caribbean beaches. However, a growing
interest in U.S. approved trips must consider Cuba's lack of safe
potable water, sanitation and sewage issues along with housing
challenges. This is important because while it is unreported, cholera
transmission exists within Cuba.
Cuba's lack of transparency in health outbreak reporting is in question
again. Laboratory confirmed cases continue to be shared with the
international community about tourists returning to Canada, Latin
America, and European countries after taking home more than sun and fun
from a Cuban vacation. Cuba consistently asserts that the cholera
outbreak of 2012 was quickly controlled within the country.
Where is the United States government on this issue today?
While a U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) cholera
watch in Cuba has recently been removed from their website, (1) there is
still evidence that cholera is transmitted there. CDC travel notices
consists of three levels:
A "watch" level 1 informs travelers to use usual precautions, an "alert"
level 2 calls for enhanced precautions and a "warning" level 3 advises
travelers to avoid nonessential travel to an area where the risk is
high. These travel notices are important because the CDC notification
system is widely used by travelers as well as clinicians for up-to-date
international travel information.
Since 2013 there have been cases of confirmed cholera after visits to
Cuba. (2) In January 2015 the Canadian International Health Regulation
reported a case of a returning traveler, (3) as well as Pan American
Health Organization (PAHO) on their Epidemiologic Update Report (4)
documented this as the only case of cholera in Cuba for 2015. This
assumes only travelers and no locals have been infected. It is more
likely that the Cuban government does not share this information with
the international community, and is only compelled to cooperate after
scientific proof is disseminated.
In June 2015 the United Kingdom reported a traveler who participated in
an all-inclusive resort stay in Varadero and spent two days in Havana
before getting sick and returned home with cholera. According to the
International Society for Infectious Disease, through their Program for
Monitoring Emerging Diseases (ProMed- mail) posting on July 3, 2015, the
patient indicated other family members were well. However, "several
other people staying in his hotel (not necessarily in the same tour
group) had reported severe gastroenteritis symptoms with a similar
period of onset," suggesting this may not be the only case. Pro-Med
seeks to share this information and advise others of the confirmed
cholera in Cuba and for health professionals to consider such a
diagnosis with travelers returning with diarrhea. (5)
The question is not whether cholera is a risk to locals and visitors.
Rather, the issue is why has the CDC removed the notification from its
website when outside country evidence continues to show cholera exists
within Cuba.
Are we left to speculate that the promotion of diplomatic relations- in
an attempt to not question Cuba's position on reporting disease
outbreaks as required by World Health Organization International Health
Regulations- is more important than the prevention and promotion of
health security? Let's not play politics with what we know is a best
practice in prevention. Give people access to reliable information so
they are well informed of their potential risks. Only then can good
decisions be made to prevent cholera-or for that matter dengue,
chikungunya or possibly zika virus (new mosquito born virus to reach the
Caribbean) when traveling to Cuba.
Notes
1) Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), "Travel Notices-
Cholera in Cuba,"
http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/notices/watch/cholera-cuba, accessed July
14, 2015.
2) M Mascarello, M L Deianam C Maurel, C Lucarelli , I Luzzi R Luzzati,
"Cholera with Severe Renal Failure in An Italian Tourist Returning from
Cuba," Eurosurveillance, July 2013. Volume 18, Issue 35, August 29,
2013. http://www.eurosurveillance.org/ViewArticle.aspx?ArticleId=20572.
3) Public Health Agency for Canada, Travel Health Notice: Cholera in
Cuba, Dominican Republic, Haiti and Mexico, updated March 20, 2015
http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/tmp-pmv/notices-avis/notices-avis-eng.php?id=111.
4) PAHO Epidemiologic Update. "Cholera in The Americas," June 24, 2015
http://www.paho.org/hq/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_view&Itemid=270&gid=30752&lang=en
5) ProMed- Mail. "Cholera, Diarrhea and dysentery update (24):
Americas," Archive Number: 20150703.3480336July 3, 2015
http://www.promedmail.org.
_________________________________________________
*Sherri L. Porcelain teaches global health in world affairs at the
University of Miami where she is also a Senior Research Associate at the
Institute for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies.
Source: The Politics of Prevention: Cholera in Cuba - Misceláneas de
Cuba -
http://www.miscelaneasdecuba.net/web/Article/Index/55b95b973a682e133c7fde64#.VboOKfmqqko
Wednesday, July 29, 2015
Dozens of Activists Detained in Havana Following the Ladies in White March
Dozens of Activists Detained in Havana Following the Ladies in White
March / Diario de Cuba, Angel Moya
Posted on July 29, 2015
Diario de Cuba, Angel Moya, Havana, 26 July 2015 – Some 60 activists
were arrested this past Sunday in Havana following the customary Sunday
march of the Ladies in White, reported government opponents on social
media. The arrests took place within the context of an act of
repudiation described by the opponents as "violent," and were carried
out by "civilian mobs," tweeted Ailer María González Mena.
The Ladies' Sunday march was preceded by the arrests of several of the
women, along with independent journalists, dissident sources were
reporting as of midday.
The women, as usual, attended mass at St. Rita's Church, and later met
at Mahatma Gandhi Park, from where they began their march along Fifth
Avenue.
During the meeting they paid homage to the deceased opponents Oswaldo
Payá and Harold Cepero, who died under mysterious circumstances three
years ago last week.
Former political prisoner Ángel Moya posted on his Twitter account that
the Ladies Oilyn Hernández and María R. Rodríguez were arrested, as well
as blogger Agustín López. Other activists had their residences
surrounded by State Security agents.
Activists had predicted there would be a major police presence in the area.*
*Translator's Notes: *26 July is the date commemorated by the Cuban
government as the start of the Revolution
Translated by: Alicia Barraqué Ellison
Source: Dozens of Activists Detained in Havana Following the Ladies in
White March / Diario de Cuba, Angel Moya | Translating Cuba -
http://translatingcuba.com/dozens-of-activists-detained-angel-moya/
March / Diario de Cuba, Angel Moya
Posted on July 29, 2015
Diario de Cuba, Angel Moya, Havana, 26 July 2015 – Some 60 activists
were arrested this past Sunday in Havana following the customary Sunday
march of the Ladies in White, reported government opponents on social
media. The arrests took place within the context of an act of
repudiation described by the opponents as "violent," and were carried
out by "civilian mobs," tweeted Ailer María González Mena.
The Ladies' Sunday march was preceded by the arrests of several of the
women, along with independent journalists, dissident sources were
reporting as of midday.
The women, as usual, attended mass at St. Rita's Church, and later met
at Mahatma Gandhi Park, from where they began their march along Fifth
Avenue.
During the meeting they paid homage to the deceased opponents Oswaldo
Payá and Harold Cepero, who died under mysterious circumstances three
years ago last week.
Former political prisoner Ángel Moya posted on his Twitter account that
the Ladies Oilyn Hernández and María R. Rodríguez were arrested, as well
as blogger Agustín López. Other activists had their residences
surrounded by State Security agents.
Activists had predicted there would be a major police presence in the area.*
*Translator's Notes: *26 July is the date commemorated by the Cuban
government as the start of the Revolution
Translated by: Alicia Barraqué Ellison
Source: Dozens of Activists Detained in Havana Following the Ladies in
White March / Diario de Cuba, Angel Moya | Translating Cuba -
http://translatingcuba.com/dozens-of-activists-detained-angel-moya/
The Revolutionary Mass is Held at Dawn
The Revolutionary Mass is Held at Dawn / 14ymedio, 26 July 2015
Posted on July 28, 2015
14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez, Havana, 26 July 2015 — The liturgy does not
change. The anniversary event for the Day of National Rebellion took
place this Sunday in front of the Moncada Barracks. A script where each
detail is repeated year after year, like a rite empty of emotion and
surprises. The only novelty on this occasion has been the hour chosen
for the start. At 5:12 in the morning National TV began the broadcast of
the event from a plaza in darkness with an orator yawning in the dawn.
The second secretary of the Communist Party, Jose Ramon Ventura, was
charged with the annual speech for the 26th of July. Any study of the
television audience would reveal that the only viewers of the small
screen at this hour were the insomniacs looking for something to
entertain them and the journalists chasing headlines. Both nocturnal
creatures ended up disappointed. There was no entertainment nor news.
And of course, the event would not be complete without the "Young
Pioneer" girl on the verge of tears hysterically spewing out
well-rehearsed slogans. Nor the reenactment of the assault on the
barracks, 62 years ago, acted out by teenagers who only know the version
of history imposed on them by the gentlemen seated in the front row. The
only excitement was hearing their youthful voices crying "Down with the
dictatorship!" The applause, almost syncopated, completed the spectacle.
The artistic gala, with its roughly gesturing men dancers and languid
women, added to the historical cult. A dance style widely used at
official events that mixex socialist realism with the kitsch of a circus
act. In the words of the playwright and film director Juan Carlos
Cremata, another of "the thousands of public events where masses of
money is squandered and bad taste, ineffectiveness, falsehood and
madness are encouraged."
No announcements occurred during the "Revolutionary Mass." Not even on
addressing the theme of the reestablishment of relations with the United
States did Machado Ventura go beyond what has already been repeated ad
nauseam. The process will be "long and complex," the functionary recited
like a weary oration. Conspicuous for its absence in his words was any
allusion to John Kerry's upcoming visit to Cuba and the opening ceremony
for the American embassy in Havana.
For its part, the speech of Lazaro Exposito Canto, first secretary of
the provincial committee of the Communist Party in Santiago de Cuba,
slid along the path of triumphalism. He boasted of the territory's
economic results, in an uncritical and obviously fake way. There was no
lack of commitment to the founders of the cult, when he affirmed that
"Santiaguans have never failed the Party nor the direction of the
Revolution, because in Santiago, dear Fidel and Raul, always, absolutely
always, you will be victorious," without explaining that it would be a
"victory" like that of those terrible early morning hours of 26 July
1953, on the feast day of Saint Anne.
Only one gesture departed from the script. Raul Castro, at the last
second, grabbed the microphone and shouted, "Let Santiago always be
Santiago!" A tired "amen" that few heard because they had already turned
off the TV.
Source: The Revolutionary Mass is Held at Dawn / 14ymedio, 26 July 2015
| Translating Cuba -
http://translatingcuba.com/the-revolutionary-mass-is-held-at-dawn-14ymedio-26-july-2015/
Posted on July 28, 2015
14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez, Havana, 26 July 2015 — The liturgy does not
change. The anniversary event for the Day of National Rebellion took
place this Sunday in front of the Moncada Barracks. A script where each
detail is repeated year after year, like a rite empty of emotion and
surprises. The only novelty on this occasion has been the hour chosen
for the start. At 5:12 in the morning National TV began the broadcast of
the event from a plaza in darkness with an orator yawning in the dawn.
The second secretary of the Communist Party, Jose Ramon Ventura, was
charged with the annual speech for the 26th of July. Any study of the
television audience would reveal that the only viewers of the small
screen at this hour were the insomniacs looking for something to
entertain them and the journalists chasing headlines. Both nocturnal
creatures ended up disappointed. There was no entertainment nor news.
And of course, the event would not be complete without the "Young
Pioneer" girl on the verge of tears hysterically spewing out
well-rehearsed slogans. Nor the reenactment of the assault on the
barracks, 62 years ago, acted out by teenagers who only know the version
of history imposed on them by the gentlemen seated in the front row. The
only excitement was hearing their youthful voices crying "Down with the
dictatorship!" The applause, almost syncopated, completed the spectacle.
The artistic gala, with its roughly gesturing men dancers and languid
women, added to the historical cult. A dance style widely used at
official events that mixex socialist realism with the kitsch of a circus
act. In the words of the playwright and film director Juan Carlos
Cremata, another of "the thousands of public events where masses of
money is squandered and bad taste, ineffectiveness, falsehood and
madness are encouraged."
No announcements occurred during the "Revolutionary Mass." Not even on
addressing the theme of the reestablishment of relations with the United
States did Machado Ventura go beyond what has already been repeated ad
nauseam. The process will be "long and complex," the functionary recited
like a weary oration. Conspicuous for its absence in his words was any
allusion to John Kerry's upcoming visit to Cuba and the opening ceremony
for the American embassy in Havana.
For its part, the speech of Lazaro Exposito Canto, first secretary of
the provincial committee of the Communist Party in Santiago de Cuba,
slid along the path of triumphalism. He boasted of the territory's
economic results, in an uncritical and obviously fake way. There was no
lack of commitment to the founders of the cult, when he affirmed that
"Santiaguans have never failed the Party nor the direction of the
Revolution, because in Santiago, dear Fidel and Raul, always, absolutely
always, you will be victorious," without explaining that it would be a
"victory" like that of those terrible early morning hours of 26 July
1953, on the feast day of Saint Anne.
Only one gesture departed from the script. Raul Castro, at the last
second, grabbed the microphone and shouted, "Let Santiago always be
Santiago!" A tired "amen" that few heard because they had already turned
off the TV.
Source: The Revolutionary Mass is Held at Dawn / 14ymedio, 26 July 2015
| Translating Cuba -
http://translatingcuba.com/the-revolutionary-mass-is-held-at-dawn-14ymedio-26-july-2015/
New Embassy for an Old Dictatorship
New Embassy for an Old Dictatorship / Miriam Celaya
Posted on July 28, 2015
Cubanet, Miriam Celaya, Havana, 22 July 2015 — The reopening of the
Cuban embassy in Washington finally took place amid extravagant fanfare,
and, judging by the profuse media coverage, with catchy headlines and
photos on the front pages of almost all the newspapers, it seemed that
there was nothing more relevant taking place in the world.
The (re)opening of the Cuban embassy was the recipient of movie star
treatment in some of the news media: photo galleries with pictures of
before and after, instant ones — not as offensive — of the first opening
of the building during the Cuban Republican era, a construction worker,
proudly posing outside the newly renovated headquarters, showing off his
Che Guevara arm tattoo, an indoor plaque to be unveiled at the time of
the opening, and the flag hoisted on the mast; just like all flags at
embassies around the world … Undoubtedly, the Island's proverbial vanity
was on a high.
A large official delegation traveled from Cuba, at public expense, to
attend the merriment that joyfully celebrated the Castros' capitulation
and which – with that skill for euphemisms — the government discourse
coined as a "victory of the Revolution." These included several
representatives of the government "civil society" who offered the
embarrassing spectacle of rallies of repudiation orchestrated during the
last Summit of the Americas in Panama, who now were awarded a trip of
encouragement to the Empire of Evil which provides so many goods.
Not to mention the national news report that aired on Cuban TV which,
for the first time in 56 years, turned into a surprising tribute to the
northern nation, with laudatory references to the beauty of its
landscapes, its natural wealth, its robust economy, its productivity,
its strong cultural heritage and the values of its people. If TV viewers
had not been able to develop a natural defense against cynicism over
decades, they would have convulsed. Combat veterans of the long war
against the imperialist enemy have definitely lost their job content.
The opening of embassies have been termed "historical" and they are,
indeed, after more than 50 years of confrontations and broken relations.
However, beyond the pompous adjectives and the symbolic event of the
hasty restoration of the old building that (until recently) was the
Office of Cuban Interests in (until just yesterday) the enemy capital,
few are asking these questions: "What will really change for Cubans
"abroad" and "in Cuba"? How positively will the lives of the common
citizen reflect this metamorphosis?
Media comments have not been few about the alleged expectations that
have surfaced among the people in Cuba with the opening of both nations'
embassies. Obviously, there is no consensus on the criteria of those who
have been questioned about the matter and all who stand for the same
interests. For example, artists and academics who benefit from cultural
exchange programs are optimistic, and so are those who have relatives
living in the United States and look at the opening of the Cuban embassy
in Washington as a chance for the viability of immigrant entry permits.
But as "normalization" makes its strides in diplomatic circles, there is
concern that US visas will eventually be limited. There are those who
are convinced that there has been a drastic reduction in the number of
visas issued by the United States Interests Section in Havana. Whether
this is true or hypothetical, what is real is that the more tangible
expectative of the controversial Obama-Castro romance has to do with the
wishes for trips and not with the hope that Cuba's internal situation
will show an improvement.
On the other hand, among those wishing to leave Cuba, there is a growing
concern about the possible repeal or amendment of Cuban Adjustment Act,
which has unleashed a new stampede in the form of illegal migration of
Cubans, both by sea and through the borders, especially from several
Latin American countries. Every week, dozens have been intercepted in
the Straits of Florida and at the borders of Central America and Mexico.
I think there is no better survey on expectations of the negotiations
than that permanent exodus.
Meanwhile, nothing has changed significantly or hints at any change in
Cuba. Although it could be argued that the general opinion of the Cuban
people is for the approval of restored relations, nobody seems to expect
any easing that will expand the economic, political and social freedoms
of Cubans. In any case, the media show of diplomacy and related plethora
of celebratory smiles, handshakes and mojitos will not put food on the
table, much less point to calm the hunger for freedom that continues to
spread, as another quiet epidemic, among Cuba's best sons.
Even if the logic now drawn from the agendas of official dialogues
points at the embargo as a priority –increasingly more symbolic than
realistic — emigration, compensation for the expropriation of properties
in the early years of the Revolution or a naval base whose occupation or
return will not really mean anything to most Cubans; it is becoming
increasingly clear that it is time to load the dice about such a crucial
issue as human rights, beginning with inclusion of demands for
recognition and participation of the independent civil society and the
establishment of a national dialogue that reflects the aspirations of
all of us for Cuba's present and future. As long as that does not take
place, the much flaunted "new" Cuban embassy in Washington will be just
a mere scenario for the puppet show from the Plaza de la Revolución.
Translated by Norma Whiting
Source: New Embassy for an Old Dictatorship / Miriam Celaya |
Translating Cuba -
http://translatingcuba.com/new-embassy-for-an-old-dictatorship-miriam-celaya/
Posted on July 28, 2015
Cubanet, Miriam Celaya, Havana, 22 July 2015 — The reopening of the
Cuban embassy in Washington finally took place amid extravagant fanfare,
and, judging by the profuse media coverage, with catchy headlines and
photos on the front pages of almost all the newspapers, it seemed that
there was nothing more relevant taking place in the world.
The (re)opening of the Cuban embassy was the recipient of movie star
treatment in some of the news media: photo galleries with pictures of
before and after, instant ones — not as offensive — of the first opening
of the building during the Cuban Republican era, a construction worker,
proudly posing outside the newly renovated headquarters, showing off his
Che Guevara arm tattoo, an indoor plaque to be unveiled at the time of
the opening, and the flag hoisted on the mast; just like all flags at
embassies around the world … Undoubtedly, the Island's proverbial vanity
was on a high.
A large official delegation traveled from Cuba, at public expense, to
attend the merriment that joyfully celebrated the Castros' capitulation
and which – with that skill for euphemisms — the government discourse
coined as a "victory of the Revolution." These included several
representatives of the government "civil society" who offered the
embarrassing spectacle of rallies of repudiation orchestrated during the
last Summit of the Americas in Panama, who now were awarded a trip of
encouragement to the Empire of Evil which provides so many goods.
Not to mention the national news report that aired on Cuban TV which,
for the first time in 56 years, turned into a surprising tribute to the
northern nation, with laudatory references to the beauty of its
landscapes, its natural wealth, its robust economy, its productivity,
its strong cultural heritage and the values of its people. If TV viewers
had not been able to develop a natural defense against cynicism over
decades, they would have convulsed. Combat veterans of the long war
against the imperialist enemy have definitely lost their job content.
The opening of embassies have been termed "historical" and they are,
indeed, after more than 50 years of confrontations and broken relations.
However, beyond the pompous adjectives and the symbolic event of the
hasty restoration of the old building that (until recently) was the
Office of Cuban Interests in (until just yesterday) the enemy capital,
few are asking these questions: "What will really change for Cubans
"abroad" and "in Cuba"? How positively will the lives of the common
citizen reflect this metamorphosis?
Media comments have not been few about the alleged expectations that
have surfaced among the people in Cuba with the opening of both nations'
embassies. Obviously, there is no consensus on the criteria of those who
have been questioned about the matter and all who stand for the same
interests. For example, artists and academics who benefit from cultural
exchange programs are optimistic, and so are those who have relatives
living in the United States and look at the opening of the Cuban embassy
in Washington as a chance for the viability of immigrant entry permits.
But as "normalization" makes its strides in diplomatic circles, there is
concern that US visas will eventually be limited. There are those who
are convinced that there has been a drastic reduction in the number of
visas issued by the United States Interests Section in Havana. Whether
this is true or hypothetical, what is real is that the more tangible
expectative of the controversial Obama-Castro romance has to do with the
wishes for trips and not with the hope that Cuba's internal situation
will show an improvement.
On the other hand, among those wishing to leave Cuba, there is a growing
concern about the possible repeal or amendment of Cuban Adjustment Act,
which has unleashed a new stampede in the form of illegal migration of
Cubans, both by sea and through the borders, especially from several
Latin American countries. Every week, dozens have been intercepted in
the Straits of Florida and at the borders of Central America and Mexico.
I think there is no better survey on expectations of the negotiations
than that permanent exodus.
Meanwhile, nothing has changed significantly or hints at any change in
Cuba. Although it could be argued that the general opinion of the Cuban
people is for the approval of restored relations, nobody seems to expect
any easing that will expand the economic, political and social freedoms
of Cubans. In any case, the media show of diplomacy and related plethora
of celebratory smiles, handshakes and mojitos will not put food on the
table, much less point to calm the hunger for freedom that continues to
spread, as another quiet epidemic, among Cuba's best sons.
Even if the logic now drawn from the agendas of official dialogues
points at the embargo as a priority –increasingly more symbolic than
realistic — emigration, compensation for the expropriation of properties
in the early years of the Revolution or a naval base whose occupation or
return will not really mean anything to most Cubans; it is becoming
increasingly clear that it is time to load the dice about such a crucial
issue as human rights, beginning with inclusion of demands for
recognition and participation of the independent civil society and the
establishment of a national dialogue that reflects the aspirations of
all of us for Cuba's present and future. As long as that does not take
place, the much flaunted "new" Cuban embassy in Washington will be just
a mere scenario for the puppet show from the Plaza de la Revolución.
Translated by Norma Whiting
Source: New Embassy for an Old Dictatorship / Miriam Celaya |
Translating Cuba -
http://translatingcuba.com/new-embassy-for-an-old-dictatorship-miriam-celaya/
Cuba-USA Embassies and Average Cubans
Cuba-USA: Embassies and Average Cubans / Ivan Garcia
Posted on July 28, 2015
Ivan Garcia, 19 July 2015 — Norge imagines himself sipping Cuban coffee
at the Versailles restaurant in Miami on July 20 as officials of the
Castro regime in white guayaberas and Americans in jackets and ties
listen to their national anthems being played and watch flags being
hoisted at their respective embassies in Washington and Havana.
For a couple of months he has been planning an illegal escape from the
northern coast of the island with a group of friends. Days before
setting off to sea in a metal boat outfitted with a diesel engine, Norge
consults his Santeria priestess to see if luck is on his side.
The woman throws several snails onto a wooden board and says, "Now is
the time." The rafters then accelerate their plans.
"Once diplomatic relations are reestablished between Cuba and the United
States, the Cuban Adjustment Act's days will be numbered. I don't have
family in the yuma* and it isn't getting any easier here. As usual,
things keep going downhill, so I hope to be playing dominos in Miami on
July 20," Norge says optimistically.
He and his friends have played their last cards. "Some sold their cars
and other valuables to raise money so we could build the safest boat
possible. We've gotten GPS and some members of the group also have
maritime experience," he notes.
No sooner had President Obama and General Castro concluded their
respective speeches on December 17, 2014 in which they announced their
decision to reestablish diplomatic relations than Cubans who had been
thinking about emigrating, legally or illegally, to the yuma began
speeding up their plans.
If you talk to people who have been waiting since dawn in a park across
the street from the future U.S. embassy in Vedado for a consular
interview, you will find that the new diplomatic landscape has made them
more dubious than happy.
A significant number of Cubans are planning to leave permanently or are
applying for temporary visas before the United States turns off the spigot.
"I can already see it coming. For every ten people interviewed for
tourist visas, nine are turned down. I think that, after relations are
restored on July 20, they'll only approve family reunification trips.
Temporary visas will be reserved for government officials and
dissidents," claims Servando who, in spite of being twice denied a visa
to visit his daughter, keeps on trying.
The numbers speak for themselves. According to the U.S. Immigration
Service almost nineteen million Cubans have entered the country by sea
or overland from Mexico since the beginning of the fiscal year on
October 1, a figure equivalent to the total for the previous year. Since
the diplomatic thaw was announced, the figure is two-thirds that.
The increase in the number of undocumented Cubans arriving in the United
States due to the resumption of diplomatic relations is so high that
social service agencies in Florida cannot cope. They are near collapse,
with two month-long waiting lists, as press reports indicate.
This situation is hindering resettlement of people in other states as
well as delaying work permits and emergency financial relief. Newcomers
fear the resumption of diplomatic relations at the ambassadorial level
will put an end to immigration laws favorable to Cubans.
Analysts have said that the steps taken by the Obama administration do
not alert the Cuban Adjustment Act, which is not in danger and which
cannot simply be repealed by a presidential decree.
In essence it is what is referred to as a public law (Public Law
89-7320). It was passed by the 89th Congress and has the status of a
federal statute. In contrast to so-called private laws, it deals with
issues of general interest and can only be amended, revised or revoked
by the Congress of the United States.
Several Cuban-American politicians have called for it to be repealed or
at least amended to reflect current realities. A significant number of
Cubans granted protection under the Cuban Adjustment Act have been
visiting the island in recent months on a kind of spree.
Curiously, their views coincide with those of the aged military regime.
Cuba is the only country on the planet which seeks repeal of a law whose
outcome would adversely impact its citizens' emigration prospects and
federal protections.
If the prospects are troubling for those with dreams of emigrating to
the United States, for new private-sector entrepreneurs the political
shift of two nations caught up in their own Cold War looks promising.
Onelio, the owner of a four-car fleet of cars and jeeps used as
collective taxis, believes the reestablishment of diplomatic relations
represents a golden business opportunity.
"If the government wants people to live better, then things have to
change. First they have to lift the internal embargo on small business
owners and stop being afraid that Cubans might make a lot of money. Then
they will have to come up with a strategy to make Obama's proposals
effective so that the people can benefit from them. If they keep singing
the same old tune (outdated rhetoric), the mask will fall and the world
will see who is really responsible for poverty in Cuba, "says Onelio.
The majority of the population applauds the new political script. "It's
better to live in peace and harmony," says a Havana taxi driver. "People
are tired of the scary rhetoric against the United States. The Americans
are our neighbors and have always been seen as an example by the average
Cuban, both before the revolution and now. The rest is cheap political
jockeying."
Afro-Cubans move at a different pace compared to their nation's leaders.
Seven months after the historical accord, the island's population
aspires to more than a name change for the U.S. Interests Section.
"People want to see concrete things," notes Rosario. "More food, the
city and its housing renovated, improvements in transport, broadband
internet, inexpensive international phone calls, cheaper airline tickets
and for private business people to be able to import directly from the
United States. None of that is happening. We don't want more blather; we
want to see advances."
Even the dissident community is divided. One group supports the new
policies while another believes too much has been given up without
getting anything from an autocratic regime clinging to the past.
Cuba's ruler live in another galaxy. They have a sense of vertigo. They
plan on taking things slow so as not to lose control.
For now, the benefits of change exist only in the analyses and the
conjectures of academics, politicians and journalists. Therefore, the
plans of those such as Norge, who are fleeing the country on makeshift
rafts, are taking on added urgency. "God willing, I will watch the
embassy ceremonies on television. From Miami. "
Ivan Garcia
*Translator' note: Cuban slang for the United States.
Source: Cuba-USA: Embassies and Average Cubans / Ivan Garcia |
Translating Cuba -
http://translatingcuba.com/cuba-usa-embassies-and-average-cubans-ivan-garcia/
Posted on July 28, 2015
Ivan Garcia, 19 July 2015 — Norge imagines himself sipping Cuban coffee
at the Versailles restaurant in Miami on July 20 as officials of the
Castro regime in white guayaberas and Americans in jackets and ties
listen to their national anthems being played and watch flags being
hoisted at their respective embassies in Washington and Havana.
For a couple of months he has been planning an illegal escape from the
northern coast of the island with a group of friends. Days before
setting off to sea in a metal boat outfitted with a diesel engine, Norge
consults his Santeria priestess to see if luck is on his side.
The woman throws several snails onto a wooden board and says, "Now is
the time." The rafters then accelerate their plans.
"Once diplomatic relations are reestablished between Cuba and the United
States, the Cuban Adjustment Act's days will be numbered. I don't have
family in the yuma* and it isn't getting any easier here. As usual,
things keep going downhill, so I hope to be playing dominos in Miami on
July 20," Norge says optimistically.
He and his friends have played their last cards. "Some sold their cars
and other valuables to raise money so we could build the safest boat
possible. We've gotten GPS and some members of the group also have
maritime experience," he notes.
No sooner had President Obama and General Castro concluded their
respective speeches on December 17, 2014 in which they announced their
decision to reestablish diplomatic relations than Cubans who had been
thinking about emigrating, legally or illegally, to the yuma began
speeding up their plans.
If you talk to people who have been waiting since dawn in a park across
the street from the future U.S. embassy in Vedado for a consular
interview, you will find that the new diplomatic landscape has made them
more dubious than happy.
A significant number of Cubans are planning to leave permanently or are
applying for temporary visas before the United States turns off the spigot.
"I can already see it coming. For every ten people interviewed for
tourist visas, nine are turned down. I think that, after relations are
restored on July 20, they'll only approve family reunification trips.
Temporary visas will be reserved for government officials and
dissidents," claims Servando who, in spite of being twice denied a visa
to visit his daughter, keeps on trying.
The numbers speak for themselves. According to the U.S. Immigration
Service almost nineteen million Cubans have entered the country by sea
or overland from Mexico since the beginning of the fiscal year on
October 1, a figure equivalent to the total for the previous year. Since
the diplomatic thaw was announced, the figure is two-thirds that.
The increase in the number of undocumented Cubans arriving in the United
States due to the resumption of diplomatic relations is so high that
social service agencies in Florida cannot cope. They are near collapse,
with two month-long waiting lists, as press reports indicate.
This situation is hindering resettlement of people in other states as
well as delaying work permits and emergency financial relief. Newcomers
fear the resumption of diplomatic relations at the ambassadorial level
will put an end to immigration laws favorable to Cubans.
Analysts have said that the steps taken by the Obama administration do
not alert the Cuban Adjustment Act, which is not in danger and which
cannot simply be repealed by a presidential decree.
In essence it is what is referred to as a public law (Public Law
89-7320). It was passed by the 89th Congress and has the status of a
federal statute. In contrast to so-called private laws, it deals with
issues of general interest and can only be amended, revised or revoked
by the Congress of the United States.
Several Cuban-American politicians have called for it to be repealed or
at least amended to reflect current realities. A significant number of
Cubans granted protection under the Cuban Adjustment Act have been
visiting the island in recent months on a kind of spree.
Curiously, their views coincide with those of the aged military regime.
Cuba is the only country on the planet which seeks repeal of a law whose
outcome would adversely impact its citizens' emigration prospects and
federal protections.
If the prospects are troubling for those with dreams of emigrating to
the United States, for new private-sector entrepreneurs the political
shift of two nations caught up in their own Cold War looks promising.
Onelio, the owner of a four-car fleet of cars and jeeps used as
collective taxis, believes the reestablishment of diplomatic relations
represents a golden business opportunity.
"If the government wants people to live better, then things have to
change. First they have to lift the internal embargo on small business
owners and stop being afraid that Cubans might make a lot of money. Then
they will have to come up with a strategy to make Obama's proposals
effective so that the people can benefit from them. If they keep singing
the same old tune (outdated rhetoric), the mask will fall and the world
will see who is really responsible for poverty in Cuba, "says Onelio.
The majority of the population applauds the new political script. "It's
better to live in peace and harmony," says a Havana taxi driver. "People
are tired of the scary rhetoric against the United States. The Americans
are our neighbors and have always been seen as an example by the average
Cuban, both before the revolution and now. The rest is cheap political
jockeying."
Afro-Cubans move at a different pace compared to their nation's leaders.
Seven months after the historical accord, the island's population
aspires to more than a name change for the U.S. Interests Section.
"People want to see concrete things," notes Rosario. "More food, the
city and its housing renovated, improvements in transport, broadband
internet, inexpensive international phone calls, cheaper airline tickets
and for private business people to be able to import directly from the
United States. None of that is happening. We don't want more blather; we
want to see advances."
Even the dissident community is divided. One group supports the new
policies while another believes too much has been given up without
getting anything from an autocratic regime clinging to the past.
Cuba's ruler live in another galaxy. They have a sense of vertigo. They
plan on taking things slow so as not to lose control.
For now, the benefits of change exist only in the analyses and the
conjectures of academics, politicians and journalists. Therefore, the
plans of those such as Norge, who are fleeing the country on makeshift
rafts, are taking on added urgency. "God willing, I will watch the
embassy ceremonies on television. From Miami. "
Ivan Garcia
*Translator' note: Cuban slang for the United States.
Source: Cuba-USA: Embassies and Average Cubans / Ivan Garcia |
Translating Cuba -
http://translatingcuba.com/cuba-usa-embassies-and-average-cubans-ivan-garcia/
Havana’s Pools -That Blue Water Yonder
Havana's Pools: That Blue Water Yonder / 14ymedio, Rosa Lopez
Posted on July 29, 2015
14ymedio, Rosa Lopez, Havana, 21 July 2015 — Now 67 years of age, Juan
Carlos recalls how when he was a kid he climbed up on a roof and from
there spied on the pool of an adjacent exclusive Havana hotel. He was
fascinated by what he saw, but Juan Carlos' family's financial
limitations kept him from enjoying all that magnificence. The slogan
"The People Have a Right to Sports" had firmly taken root by his teens
and early adult years. Consequently, Juan Carlos got to splash around in
several pools, and for free. However, his memories of those blue waters
now come back to haunt him. Today, all the pools near Juan Carlos are
either in a state of total ruin or way beyond his budget.
Currently retired, Juan Carlos insists that "access to pools in July and
August should be a human right." When summer heat waves make Cubans
sweat so profusely, "there's nothing better then taking a dip to cool
off," he says, with a confident half-smile.
After touring those places in Havana where kids once frolicked loudly as
others pirouetted before plunging in, it is obvious that pools are no
longer affordable to all. Public pools are the most dilapidated. The
lack of chlorine, paint, failing pumps, and lack of maintenance has led
to all the "Closed" notices appearing on many of the capital's pools.
Whoever walks under the blazing sun up the street leading to the
University of Havana's Calixto Garcia Hospital would undoubtedly be
upset when coming upon the faded blue paint on what used to be the
University Stadium's Swimming Pool. Lying there empty, deserted for no
reason, rests the place where once upon a time students practiced their
strokes, and where swimming meets between the University's departments
were held.
The same thing has happened to El Pontón, a sports and recreation center
on the corner of Oquendo and Manglar Streets in Downtown Havana. El
Pontón used to house two pools, one for laps and the other for diving.
The latter had a thirty-foot-high diving platform. Yet all that remains
of these pools is an enormous pit full of trash through which the
floodwaters in this low-lying area are drained off.
"This was once full of kids," recalled an elderly man who was trying to
do his morning exercises in the midst of overgrown weeds on a field
which many years ago was a baseball diamond. "A lot of us from the area
would bring our kids here so that they would learn to swim," he
remembers. "I now have a fifteen-year-old granddaughter. If she falls in
the water she'd drown. She's never had the chance to swim in a pool, not
even to just learn how to float.
On the list of destruction on which appears El Pontón, one can also find
the José Martí Stadium, located on the Avenue of the Presidents just a
few yards from the Malecón. Youngsters now use the empty pool for soccer
matches. It is also not uncommon on some nights for couples to use this
pool for lovemaking under the twinkling stars. "The only thing missing
in this pool is an avocado plant growing right in the middle of it.
Maybe when that happens they'll finally realize they need to fix it,"
complained Fidelio, a resident of nearby "E" Street, who goes for a run
on the stadium's dilapidated track every morning.
A few blocks from the José Martí Stadium stands the Havana Riviera
Hotel, opened in 1957 with twenty floors and 352 guest rooms. This
enormous hotel has a pool that can be enjoyed even by those who are not
guests. Admission costs 15 CUC for adults and ten for children, with a
snack included that is actually eighty percent of the total price. Juan
Carlos would have to not touch one single cent of his pension for a
whole two months in order to enjoy such a luxury.
Notwithstanding all the bad news, our retiree is not giving up. He asked
a friend with Internet access to find him a private pool. Three days
later he was handed a list with more than fifty options, almost all of
them in the more upscale districts of Vedado, Miramar, and Casino
Deportivo. "This one is the pool I told you about!" Juan Carlos
exclaimed, with the same eagerness that as a youngster he felt when
first spied on those distant blue pool waters from a rooftop. However,
now he cannot afford to enjoy it.
Aside from offering dining services and lodging in their homes, numerous
families also advertise the use of a pool as an added attraction. These
houses are usually rented out for "fiestas de quince" (15-year-old
girls' birthday parties), weddings, or for the arrival of an émigré
relative whose family wants to welcome him in one central location where
they can all enjoy a relatively lavish get-together. In Havana's most
centrally located neighborhoods, enjoying a day of dips in a pool, with
a couple of beverages included, and perhaps a light lunch, costs no less
than ten CUC per person.
After touring all the pools he swam in his youth but that now lay in
ruins, Juan Carlos also had to rule out the hotel and private home
offers. The excessive prices are a reality he cannot ignore.
Nevertheless, a friend lent him a 67-inch diameter inflatable pool. Last
weekend he set it up on his balcony, filled it with a few buckets of
water, and sat in it with a bottle of Cuban Bucanero beer in hand. He
looked like a teenager. The next day, Juan Carlos was informed that a
neighbor had snitched on him to the police for "excessive use of water
from their building's tank."
Translated by José Badué
Source: Havana's Pools: That Blue Water Yonder / 14ymedio, Rosa Lopez |
Translating Cuba -
http://translatingcuba.com/havanas-pools-that-blue-water-yonder-14ymedio-rosa-lopez/
Posted on July 29, 2015
14ymedio, Rosa Lopez, Havana, 21 July 2015 — Now 67 years of age, Juan
Carlos recalls how when he was a kid he climbed up on a roof and from
there spied on the pool of an adjacent exclusive Havana hotel. He was
fascinated by what he saw, but Juan Carlos' family's financial
limitations kept him from enjoying all that magnificence. The slogan
"The People Have a Right to Sports" had firmly taken root by his teens
and early adult years. Consequently, Juan Carlos got to splash around in
several pools, and for free. However, his memories of those blue waters
now come back to haunt him. Today, all the pools near Juan Carlos are
either in a state of total ruin or way beyond his budget.
Currently retired, Juan Carlos insists that "access to pools in July and
August should be a human right." When summer heat waves make Cubans
sweat so profusely, "there's nothing better then taking a dip to cool
off," he says, with a confident half-smile.
After touring those places in Havana where kids once frolicked loudly as
others pirouetted before plunging in, it is obvious that pools are no
longer affordable to all. Public pools are the most dilapidated. The
lack of chlorine, paint, failing pumps, and lack of maintenance has led
to all the "Closed" notices appearing on many of the capital's pools.
Whoever walks under the blazing sun up the street leading to the
University of Havana's Calixto Garcia Hospital would undoubtedly be
upset when coming upon the faded blue paint on what used to be the
University Stadium's Swimming Pool. Lying there empty, deserted for no
reason, rests the place where once upon a time students practiced their
strokes, and where swimming meets between the University's departments
were held.
The same thing has happened to El Pontón, a sports and recreation center
on the corner of Oquendo and Manglar Streets in Downtown Havana. El
Pontón used to house two pools, one for laps and the other for diving.
The latter had a thirty-foot-high diving platform. Yet all that remains
of these pools is an enormous pit full of trash through which the
floodwaters in this low-lying area are drained off.
"This was once full of kids," recalled an elderly man who was trying to
do his morning exercises in the midst of overgrown weeds on a field
which many years ago was a baseball diamond. "A lot of us from the area
would bring our kids here so that they would learn to swim," he
remembers. "I now have a fifteen-year-old granddaughter. If she falls in
the water she'd drown. She's never had the chance to swim in a pool, not
even to just learn how to float.
On the list of destruction on which appears El Pontón, one can also find
the José Martí Stadium, located on the Avenue of the Presidents just a
few yards from the Malecón. Youngsters now use the empty pool for soccer
matches. It is also not uncommon on some nights for couples to use this
pool for lovemaking under the twinkling stars. "The only thing missing
in this pool is an avocado plant growing right in the middle of it.
Maybe when that happens they'll finally realize they need to fix it,"
complained Fidelio, a resident of nearby "E" Street, who goes for a run
on the stadium's dilapidated track every morning.
A few blocks from the José Martí Stadium stands the Havana Riviera
Hotel, opened in 1957 with twenty floors and 352 guest rooms. This
enormous hotel has a pool that can be enjoyed even by those who are not
guests. Admission costs 15 CUC for adults and ten for children, with a
snack included that is actually eighty percent of the total price. Juan
Carlos would have to not touch one single cent of his pension for a
whole two months in order to enjoy such a luxury.
Notwithstanding all the bad news, our retiree is not giving up. He asked
a friend with Internet access to find him a private pool. Three days
later he was handed a list with more than fifty options, almost all of
them in the more upscale districts of Vedado, Miramar, and Casino
Deportivo. "This one is the pool I told you about!" Juan Carlos
exclaimed, with the same eagerness that as a youngster he felt when
first spied on those distant blue pool waters from a rooftop. However,
now he cannot afford to enjoy it.
Aside from offering dining services and lodging in their homes, numerous
families also advertise the use of a pool as an added attraction. These
houses are usually rented out for "fiestas de quince" (15-year-old
girls' birthday parties), weddings, or for the arrival of an émigré
relative whose family wants to welcome him in one central location where
they can all enjoy a relatively lavish get-together. In Havana's most
centrally located neighborhoods, enjoying a day of dips in a pool, with
a couple of beverages included, and perhaps a light lunch, costs no less
than ten CUC per person.
After touring all the pools he swam in his youth but that now lay in
ruins, Juan Carlos also had to rule out the hotel and private home
offers. The excessive prices are a reality he cannot ignore.
Nevertheless, a friend lent him a 67-inch diameter inflatable pool. Last
weekend he set it up on his balcony, filled it with a few buckets of
water, and sat in it with a bottle of Cuban Bucanero beer in hand. He
looked like a teenager. The next day, Juan Carlos was informed that a
neighbor had snitched on him to the police for "excessive use of water
from their building's tank."
Translated by José Badué
Source: Havana's Pools: That Blue Water Yonder / 14ymedio, Rosa Lopez |
Translating Cuba -
http://translatingcuba.com/havanas-pools-that-blue-water-yonder-14ymedio-rosa-lopez/
Eight undocumented Cubans apprehended in Mona Island
Eight undocumented Cubans apprehended in Mona Island
Published on July 29, 2015
AGUADILLA, Puerto Rico -- US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) border
patrol agents apprehended eight undocumented immigrants from Cuba, after
they landed on Tuesday morning in Mona Island, an uninhabited US
territory located approximately 42 miles west of Puerto Rico.
With this group, a total of 47 Cuban nationals have been smuggled during
the month of July into Mona Island.
Park Rangers from the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and
Environmental Resources (DRNA, for its Spanish acronym) contacted the
Border Patrol Station, indicating the landing of eight undocumented
immigrants, all males, which claimed to be Cuban nationals.
A CBP Office of Air and Marine UH-60M Blackhawk helicopter transferred
the group this morning from Mona to the Border Patrol Station in
Aguadilla for immigration processing.
"Migrants continue to put their lives at unnecessary risk by venturing
into Mona Island not knowing the multiple hazards within that area,"
stated Ramiro Cerrillo, Ramey Sector Chief Patrol Agent. "We reiterate
our warning of the perils of making such a dangerous journey."
Smugglers in the Dominican Republic strategically navigate to and use
Mona Island as a drop off point for migrants who must then be recovered
from Mona and transported to Puerto Rico by CBP or USCG air or marine
assets.
The US administration's recent announcement regarding Cuba does not
signify a change in the current immigration policy toward Cuba, under
the 1995 amendment of the Cuban Adjustment Act of 1966.
During this fiscal year 2015 (which runs from October 1 to September
30), the Ramey Border Patrol Sector has apprehended 488 undocumented
migrants; 238 Cubans, 104 Dominicans, and 146 Haitians.
After admissibility processing at the Border Patrol Station, Cuban
nationals will receive a Notice to Appear (NTA) before an immigration
judge, for further proceedings under the Cuban Migration Agreement of
1995 and the Cuban Adjustment Act of 1966.
Source: Eight undocumented Cubans apprehended in Mona Island | Caribbean
News Now -
http://www.caribbeannewsnow.com/topstory-Eight-undocumented-Cubans-apprehended-in-Mona-Island-27068.html
Published on July 29, 2015
AGUADILLA, Puerto Rico -- US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) border
patrol agents apprehended eight undocumented immigrants from Cuba, after
they landed on Tuesday morning in Mona Island, an uninhabited US
territory located approximately 42 miles west of Puerto Rico.
With this group, a total of 47 Cuban nationals have been smuggled during
the month of July into Mona Island.
Park Rangers from the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and
Environmental Resources (DRNA, for its Spanish acronym) contacted the
Border Patrol Station, indicating the landing of eight undocumented
immigrants, all males, which claimed to be Cuban nationals.
A CBP Office of Air and Marine UH-60M Blackhawk helicopter transferred
the group this morning from Mona to the Border Patrol Station in
Aguadilla for immigration processing.
"Migrants continue to put their lives at unnecessary risk by venturing
into Mona Island not knowing the multiple hazards within that area,"
stated Ramiro Cerrillo, Ramey Sector Chief Patrol Agent. "We reiterate
our warning of the perils of making such a dangerous journey."
Smugglers in the Dominican Republic strategically navigate to and use
Mona Island as a drop off point for migrants who must then be recovered
from Mona and transported to Puerto Rico by CBP or USCG air or marine
assets.
The US administration's recent announcement regarding Cuba does not
signify a change in the current immigration policy toward Cuba, under
the 1995 amendment of the Cuban Adjustment Act of 1966.
During this fiscal year 2015 (which runs from October 1 to September
30), the Ramey Border Patrol Sector has apprehended 488 undocumented
migrants; 238 Cubans, 104 Dominicans, and 146 Haitians.
After admissibility processing at the Border Patrol Station, Cuban
nationals will receive a Notice to Appear (NTA) before an immigration
judge, for further proceedings under the Cuban Migration Agreement of
1995 and the Cuban Adjustment Act of 1966.
Source: Eight undocumented Cubans apprehended in Mona Island | Caribbean
News Now -
http://www.caribbeannewsnow.com/topstory-Eight-undocumented-Cubans-apprehended-in-Mona-Island-27068.html
Yet another cruise line announces plans for Cuba sailings
Yet another cruise line announces plans for Cuba sailings
Gene Sloan, USA TODAY 12:28 p.m. EDT July 28, 2015
Add Pearl Seas Cruises to the list of companies touting voyages to Cuba.
The small-ship line on Monday announced plans for seven- to 10-night
sailings to the island nation out of Florida in spring 2016.
The trips will take place on the line's 210-passenger Pearl Mist and
include stops in such Cuban ports as Havana, Cienfuegos and Santiago de
Cuba. Itineraries on both the southern and northern coasts of Cuba are
in the works.
Pearl Seas says the sailings will be structured as "people-to-people"
exchanges that are allowed under the USA's five-decade-old embargo of
Cuba. General leisure travel from the USA to Cuba including traditional
cruises still is banned.
Pearl Seas says the voyages still must be approved by the Office of
Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Treasury and the U.S. Department of
Commerce as well as the Cuban government.
The announcement comes just two weeks after tour giant Globus and
small-ship line Haimark announced plans to market people-to-people
Cuba cruises starting in January and February, respectively. Globus is
selling cruise tours out of Miami that include a week on a
960-passenger, Cuba-based ship operated by Celestyal Cruises. Haimark is
selling sailings out of Miami on its 210-passenger Saint Laurent.
Cruise giant Carnival Corp.'s new fathom brand also recently announced
plans to offer people-to-people cruises to the country on
its 710-passenger Adonia starting in May, and tour company International
Expeditions is starting people-to-people cruises to Cuba in December on
a chartered, 48-passenger vessel.
Like Pearl Seas, Haimark is awaiting U.S. and Cuban government approval
for its trips. Carnival Corp. has U.S. government approval but still is
awaiting Cuban approval. Globus and International Expeditions already
have all necessary approvals.
The cruise sellers are entering an increasingly crowded field of
companies offering people-to-people tours to Cuba. Just last month,
package tour giant Apple Vacations announced it would add such trips
this fall, joining a growing number of land-based tour companies
offering Cuba tours.
Under U.S. government rules, people-to-people trips to Cuba must focus
on educational exchanges between U.S. travelers and Cubans, and they
typically feature a full-time schedule of interactions with Cuban
musicians, artists, business owners and other locals. They aren't
tourist-oriented, and breaking away from the group for self-directed
exploring or skipping an activity isn't allowed.
Source: Yet another cruise line announces plans for Cuba sailings -
http://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/cruises/cruiselog/2015/07/28/cuba-cruise-pearl-seas/30774081/
Gene Sloan, USA TODAY 12:28 p.m. EDT July 28, 2015
Add Pearl Seas Cruises to the list of companies touting voyages to Cuba.
The small-ship line on Monday announced plans for seven- to 10-night
sailings to the island nation out of Florida in spring 2016.
The trips will take place on the line's 210-passenger Pearl Mist and
include stops in such Cuban ports as Havana, Cienfuegos and Santiago de
Cuba. Itineraries on both the southern and northern coasts of Cuba are
in the works.
Pearl Seas says the sailings will be structured as "people-to-people"
exchanges that are allowed under the USA's five-decade-old embargo of
Cuba. General leisure travel from the USA to Cuba including traditional
cruises still is banned.
Pearl Seas says the voyages still must be approved by the Office of
Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Treasury and the U.S. Department of
Commerce as well as the Cuban government.
The announcement comes just two weeks after tour giant Globus and
small-ship line Haimark announced plans to market people-to-people
Cuba cruises starting in January and February, respectively. Globus is
selling cruise tours out of Miami that include a week on a
960-passenger, Cuba-based ship operated by Celestyal Cruises. Haimark is
selling sailings out of Miami on its 210-passenger Saint Laurent.
Cruise giant Carnival Corp.'s new fathom brand also recently announced
plans to offer people-to-people cruises to the country on
its 710-passenger Adonia starting in May, and tour company International
Expeditions is starting people-to-people cruises to Cuba in December on
a chartered, 48-passenger vessel.
Like Pearl Seas, Haimark is awaiting U.S. and Cuban government approval
for its trips. Carnival Corp. has U.S. government approval but still is
awaiting Cuban approval. Globus and International Expeditions already
have all necessary approvals.
The cruise sellers are entering an increasingly crowded field of
companies offering people-to-people tours to Cuba. Just last month,
package tour giant Apple Vacations announced it would add such trips
this fall, joining a growing number of land-based tour companies
offering Cuba tours.
Under U.S. government rules, people-to-people trips to Cuba must focus
on educational exchanges between U.S. travelers and Cubans, and they
typically feature a full-time schedule of interactions with Cuban
musicians, artists, business owners and other locals. They aren't
tourist-oriented, and breaking away from the group for self-directed
exploring or skipping an activity isn't allowed.
Source: Yet another cruise line announces plans for Cuba sailings -
http://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/cruises/cruiselog/2015/07/28/cuba-cruise-pearl-seas/30774081/
GOP House member files bill to end U.S. embargo on Cuba
GOP House member files bill to end U.S. embargo on Cuba
Alan Gomez, USA TODAY 8:04 a.m. EDT July 28, 2015
A bill to eliminate the 55-year-old U.S. embargo on Cuba will be
introduced Tuesday by an unlikely member of Congress: a Republican in
the House of Representatives.
Rep. Tom Emmer, who narrowly lost the Minnesota governor's race in 2010
before winning a House seat in 2014, is scheduled to file the "Cuba
Trade Act of 2015" that removes the long-standing restrictions on
American businesses from trading with Cuba and American citizens
from travelling there. Emmer said he decided to pursue a full repeal of
the embargo after a trip to Cuba in June, when he met with Cuban
government officials and everyday citizens.
"I understand there's a lot of pain on both sides of this issue that
goes back many decades, something that a kid from Minnesota is not going
to necessarily be able to understand," Emmer said. "But I believe this
is in the best interests of the Cuban people. This isn't about the Cuban
government — it's about people on the street looking for more
opportunity and to improve their quality of life."
Ever since President Obama announced in December that he would
reestablish diplomatic relations with the one-time Cold War foe,
Congress has responded by trying to tweak the embargo, which is
established in U.S. law and can only be changed by an act of
Congress. Democrats in the Senate, with some Republican support, have
been trying to ease trade and travel to the island. Republicans in the
House have fought back, proposing a series of additional restrictions to
bolster the embargo.
House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, has been clear that his chamber will
not address the embargo until he sees significant changes in Cuba. Under
current law, the embargo cannot be removed until several changes take
place in Cuba, including a transition to a democratic government and
improvements in the country's human rights record. Since none of that
has happened, Boehner said in May that his chamber would not reexamine
the embargo until "the Cuban people enjoy freedom, and not one second
sooner."
Emmer saw firsthand what a challenge he's facing as he briefed
Republican leadership and Cuban-American members of the House about his
bill over the past week. "I didn't expect everybody to be thrilled," he
said with a laugh.
But Steven Law, senior adviser to Engage Cuba, a group pushing for
normalized relations with Cuba, said most of that reaction was simply
political instinct in the face of another example of Obama using his
executive powers to fundamentally alter U.S. policy.
"A lot of Republicans started out with the reflexive view that if Obama
was behind it, there's something wrong with it," said Law. "But I think
that's changing."
Law is no liberal — he is the president and CEO of the American
Crossroads super PAC that supports Republican candidates and previously
worked in the administration of President George W. Bush. He said the
Cuba question can eventually cut across party lines with help from
traditionally-conservative groups pushing for more access to Cuba, from
the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to libertarians.
"A lot of these members are hearing from constituents that it's a new
day and we need a new policy to respond to those changes," he said.
Groups plan to use the August congressional recess to push that
argument. Marc Hanson, senior associate for Cuba at the Washington
Office on Latin America, said they plan to rally support for Emmer's
bill through various August events.
"What's going to ultimately happen is this will start the conversation
within the Republican caucus," Hanson said.
That conversation will be a short one, according to Mauricio
Claver-Carone, executive director of the U.S.-Cuba Democracy PAC, which
has opposed Obama's opening with Cuba. Claver-Carone pointed to recent
votes conducted on the House floor on amendments to appropriations bills
that created tighter sanctions against Cuba. In one case, Republicans
won with a 120-vote majority.
"If anyone is trying to imply that somehow, within a couple of months,
61 members of the House of Representatives are going to flip, I think
they have an unpleasant surprise coming," he said.
Follow @alangomez on Twitter
Source: GOP House member files bill to end U.S. embargo on Cuba -
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2015/07/27/gop-house-member-files-bill-end-us-embargo-cuba/30736855/
Alan Gomez, USA TODAY 8:04 a.m. EDT July 28, 2015
A bill to eliminate the 55-year-old U.S. embargo on Cuba will be
introduced Tuesday by an unlikely member of Congress: a Republican in
the House of Representatives.
Rep. Tom Emmer, who narrowly lost the Minnesota governor's race in 2010
before winning a House seat in 2014, is scheduled to file the "Cuba
Trade Act of 2015" that removes the long-standing restrictions on
American businesses from trading with Cuba and American citizens
from travelling there. Emmer said he decided to pursue a full repeal of
the embargo after a trip to Cuba in June, when he met with Cuban
government officials and everyday citizens.
"I understand there's a lot of pain on both sides of this issue that
goes back many decades, something that a kid from Minnesota is not going
to necessarily be able to understand," Emmer said. "But I believe this
is in the best interests of the Cuban people. This isn't about the Cuban
government — it's about people on the street looking for more
opportunity and to improve their quality of life."
Ever since President Obama announced in December that he would
reestablish diplomatic relations with the one-time Cold War foe,
Congress has responded by trying to tweak the embargo, which is
established in U.S. law and can only be changed by an act of
Congress. Democrats in the Senate, with some Republican support, have
been trying to ease trade and travel to the island. Republicans in the
House have fought back, proposing a series of additional restrictions to
bolster the embargo.
House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, has been clear that his chamber will
not address the embargo until he sees significant changes in Cuba. Under
current law, the embargo cannot be removed until several changes take
place in Cuba, including a transition to a democratic government and
improvements in the country's human rights record. Since none of that
has happened, Boehner said in May that his chamber would not reexamine
the embargo until "the Cuban people enjoy freedom, and not one second
sooner."
Emmer saw firsthand what a challenge he's facing as he briefed
Republican leadership and Cuban-American members of the House about his
bill over the past week. "I didn't expect everybody to be thrilled," he
said with a laugh.
But Steven Law, senior adviser to Engage Cuba, a group pushing for
normalized relations with Cuba, said most of that reaction was simply
political instinct in the face of another example of Obama using his
executive powers to fundamentally alter U.S. policy.
"A lot of Republicans started out with the reflexive view that if Obama
was behind it, there's something wrong with it," said Law. "But I think
that's changing."
Law is no liberal — he is the president and CEO of the American
Crossroads super PAC that supports Republican candidates and previously
worked in the administration of President George W. Bush. He said the
Cuba question can eventually cut across party lines with help from
traditionally-conservative groups pushing for more access to Cuba, from
the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to libertarians.
"A lot of these members are hearing from constituents that it's a new
day and we need a new policy to respond to those changes," he said.
Groups plan to use the August congressional recess to push that
argument. Marc Hanson, senior associate for Cuba at the Washington
Office on Latin America, said they plan to rally support for Emmer's
bill through various August events.
"What's going to ultimately happen is this will start the conversation
within the Republican caucus," Hanson said.
That conversation will be a short one, according to Mauricio
Claver-Carone, executive director of the U.S.-Cuba Democracy PAC, which
has opposed Obama's opening with Cuba. Claver-Carone pointed to recent
votes conducted on the House floor on amendments to appropriations bills
that created tighter sanctions against Cuba. In one case, Republicans
won with a 120-vote majority.
"If anyone is trying to imply that somehow, within a couple of months,
61 members of the House of Representatives are going to flip, I think
they have an unpleasant surprise coming," he said.
Follow @alangomez on Twitter
Source: GOP House member files bill to end U.S. embargo on Cuba -
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2015/07/27/gop-house-member-files-bill-end-us-embargo-cuba/30736855/
Investing in Cuba Renewable Energy
Investing in Cuba Renewable Energy
The #1 Reason to Invest in Cuba
Written by Jeff Siegel
Posted July 28, 2015
Sunday marked the 62-year anniversary of the day Fidel Castro sparked
the Cuban revolution.
In Cuba, it's called Día de la Rebeldía Nacional, or Day of the National
Rebellion.
In the U.S., most folks don't take too kindly to references of national
rebellions when they facilitate dictatorships and communist rule.
Though on the flip side, I don't ever remember my high school history
teacher criticizing the violent dictatorship of the overthrown Cuban
president Fulgencio Batista or mentioning the 20,000 or so people who
were tortured and executed during his reign from 1952-1959.
In any event, I'm not here today to celebrate or criticize foreign
government officials or political philosophies, particularly since I
live in a country that is run by tyrants and thieves. President Obama
and our elected officials are no angels.
However, I am looking forward to a new non-violent rebellion that's
taking place right now. And it's one that will pave the way for peace
and prosperity — a good thing for compassionate human beings and
investors that like to align their values with their investments.
¡Dos Oportunidades!
As I've written in the past, investing in Cuba is an exercise in
profitable, ethical investing.
Smart investments made in this stunningly beautiful Caribbean island
offer two important opportunities:
1. The opportunity to get in on the ground floor of new deals that will
facilitate wealth creation for both U.S. investors and the good people
of Cuba.
2. The opportunity to be a part of a peaceful solution to a 62-year-old
dispute that has separated families, sparked violent confrontations, and
wasted a lot of taxpayer dollars.
Now, when it comes to investing in Cuba, I see a handful of great
opportunities: tourism, infrastructure, telecom, agriculture, and
energy. But the latter is where I see some of the best long-term plays.
Fortune Favors the Daring
There are few greater locations for renewable energy than the Caribbean.
Blessed with superior solar resources and steady winds, most Caribbean
islands can generate nearly all of their power needs with renewables.
Throw in some energy efficiency and conservation measures along with
some battery storage, and it's really not out of the question to end the
incredibly inconvenient and highly inefficient reliance on oil — which
has long monopolized the energy economies of the Caribbean.
Today, about 96% of Cuba's power generation comes from imported fossil
fuels. President Raúl Castro has been very vocal about moving away from
this reliance that leaves the nation vulnerable to massive price swings
and, of course, foreign energy supplies.
With free and inexhaustible supplies of solar and wind, it's
understandable that Castro called to get 24% of the island's power from
renewable resources by 2030. He did this last year and has continued to
be a strong supporter of transitioning Cuba's energy mix to one that is
more sustainable, both from an economic and environmental point of view.
Of course, with the opportunity for U.S. companies to invest in
renewable energy development in Cuba, 24% renewables is not really a
lofty goal, and it's one that would likely be surpassed within 10 years.
Due to massive cost declines in solar and wind technologies, coupled
with the fact that much less needs to be invested in infrastructure if
solar and wind resources are utilized in a decentralized manner,
renewable energy is pretty much a no-brainer.
That's not to say Cuba will be totally run on renewables.
Truth is, Cuba is also looking to convert some of its older oil-burning
plants to natural gas. And it's no coincidence that one of only eight
recently approved LNG export permits in the U.S. was for a facility in
Martin County, FL, which is about 100 miles north of Miami.
Yet again, from a long-term perspective, investment dollars would be
better spent on energy efficiency, renewables, and battery back-up. But
I don't dictate these solutions — I merely report on them and, of
course, profit from them. And regardless of how much progress is made on
the natural gas front, there's no denying that there's huge opportunity
for renewable energy development with Cuba.
As relations improve, I suspect we're going to see more companies like
SolarCity (NASDAQ: SCTY) and SunEdison (NYSE: SUNE) setting up shop in
Cuba, utilizing creative financing mechanisms that will allow the people
of Cuba to use solar at a cost that will be within reach. And this will
enable these companies to generate additional revenue.
I also wouldn't be surprised to find GE (NYSE: GE) looking to take
advantage of Cuba's vibrant offshore wind resources in an effort to help
power the island nation.
These, of course, are also just the major players. There will be smaller
bit players that could present opportunities to take part in private
deals as well — some of which I'm sniffing around for right now.
Bottom line: While there remains significant risk this early in the
game, it's a risk I'm willing to take. Fortune favors the daring, and
I'm sure as hell not sitting on the sidelines while the daring get
first-mover advantage.
To a new way of life and a new generation of wealth...
Jeff Siegel
@JeffSiegel on Twitter
Jeff is the managing editor of Energy and Capital and contributing
analyst for the Energy Investor, an independent investment research
service focusing primarily on stocks in the oil & gas, modern energy and
infrastructure markets.
Source: Investing in Cuba Renewable Energy -
http://www.wealthdaily.com/articles/investing-in-cuba-renewable-energy/6196
The #1 Reason to Invest in Cuba
Written by Jeff Siegel
Posted July 28, 2015
Sunday marked the 62-year anniversary of the day Fidel Castro sparked
the Cuban revolution.
In Cuba, it's called Día de la Rebeldía Nacional, or Day of the National
Rebellion.
In the U.S., most folks don't take too kindly to references of national
rebellions when they facilitate dictatorships and communist rule.
Though on the flip side, I don't ever remember my high school history
teacher criticizing the violent dictatorship of the overthrown Cuban
president Fulgencio Batista or mentioning the 20,000 or so people who
were tortured and executed during his reign from 1952-1959.
In any event, I'm not here today to celebrate or criticize foreign
government officials or political philosophies, particularly since I
live in a country that is run by tyrants and thieves. President Obama
and our elected officials are no angels.
However, I am looking forward to a new non-violent rebellion that's
taking place right now. And it's one that will pave the way for peace
and prosperity — a good thing for compassionate human beings and
investors that like to align their values with their investments.
¡Dos Oportunidades!
As I've written in the past, investing in Cuba is an exercise in
profitable, ethical investing.
Smart investments made in this stunningly beautiful Caribbean island
offer two important opportunities:
1. The opportunity to get in on the ground floor of new deals that will
facilitate wealth creation for both U.S. investors and the good people
of Cuba.
2. The opportunity to be a part of a peaceful solution to a 62-year-old
dispute that has separated families, sparked violent confrontations, and
wasted a lot of taxpayer dollars.
Now, when it comes to investing in Cuba, I see a handful of great
opportunities: tourism, infrastructure, telecom, agriculture, and
energy. But the latter is where I see some of the best long-term plays.
Fortune Favors the Daring
There are few greater locations for renewable energy than the Caribbean.
Blessed with superior solar resources and steady winds, most Caribbean
islands can generate nearly all of their power needs with renewables.
Throw in some energy efficiency and conservation measures along with
some battery storage, and it's really not out of the question to end the
incredibly inconvenient and highly inefficient reliance on oil — which
has long monopolized the energy economies of the Caribbean.
Today, about 96% of Cuba's power generation comes from imported fossil
fuels. President Raúl Castro has been very vocal about moving away from
this reliance that leaves the nation vulnerable to massive price swings
and, of course, foreign energy supplies.
With free and inexhaustible supplies of solar and wind, it's
understandable that Castro called to get 24% of the island's power from
renewable resources by 2030. He did this last year and has continued to
be a strong supporter of transitioning Cuba's energy mix to one that is
more sustainable, both from an economic and environmental point of view.
Of course, with the opportunity for U.S. companies to invest in
renewable energy development in Cuba, 24% renewables is not really a
lofty goal, and it's one that would likely be surpassed within 10 years.
Due to massive cost declines in solar and wind technologies, coupled
with the fact that much less needs to be invested in infrastructure if
solar and wind resources are utilized in a decentralized manner,
renewable energy is pretty much a no-brainer.
That's not to say Cuba will be totally run on renewables.
Truth is, Cuba is also looking to convert some of its older oil-burning
plants to natural gas. And it's no coincidence that one of only eight
recently approved LNG export permits in the U.S. was for a facility in
Martin County, FL, which is about 100 miles north of Miami.
Yet again, from a long-term perspective, investment dollars would be
better spent on energy efficiency, renewables, and battery back-up. But
I don't dictate these solutions — I merely report on them and, of
course, profit from them. And regardless of how much progress is made on
the natural gas front, there's no denying that there's huge opportunity
for renewable energy development with Cuba.
As relations improve, I suspect we're going to see more companies like
SolarCity (NASDAQ: SCTY) and SunEdison (NYSE: SUNE) setting up shop in
Cuba, utilizing creative financing mechanisms that will allow the people
of Cuba to use solar at a cost that will be within reach. And this will
enable these companies to generate additional revenue.
I also wouldn't be surprised to find GE (NYSE: GE) looking to take
advantage of Cuba's vibrant offshore wind resources in an effort to help
power the island nation.
These, of course, are also just the major players. There will be smaller
bit players that could present opportunities to take part in private
deals as well — some of which I'm sniffing around for right now.
Bottom line: While there remains significant risk this early in the
game, it's a risk I'm willing to take. Fortune favors the daring, and
I'm sure as hell not sitting on the sidelines while the daring get
first-mover advantage.
To a new way of life and a new generation of wealth...
Jeff Siegel
@JeffSiegel on Twitter
Jeff is the managing editor of Energy and Capital and contributing
analyst for the Energy Investor, an independent investment research
service focusing primarily on stocks in the oil & gas, modern energy and
infrastructure markets.
Source: Investing in Cuba Renewable Energy -
http://www.wealthdaily.com/articles/investing-in-cuba-renewable-energy/6196
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
