Translating Cuba – English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island

The Cuban Regime Targets Doraykis Delgado and the Two Creators of ‘Despingovery Channel’

Eight people detained after participating in a pot-banging protest on August 3 in Calabazar, Havana, are being held incommunicado at the El Vivac detention center.

Protest that took place in Alamar, Havana, last July 7, in which Doraykis Delgado González participated. / Screenshot

14ymedio, Madrid, August 18, 2026 – The legal organization Cubalex has issued an alert about Doraykis Delgado González, imprisoned at the El Guatao women’s prison in Havana, for participating in a demonstration a month and a half ago. Accused of “defamation of institutions and organizations and of heroes and martyrs,” the NGO reports, she is being held in provisional detention, without the right to bail, and the authorities have rejected the request to change the precautionary measure.

“Her situation is especially concerning because she suffers from hemophilia and requires specialized medical monitoring and care,” Cubalex also indicates. Delgado González, known as Koky, is the mother of an 8-year-old boy and a 7-year-old girl, who “since her imprisonment have been left in the care of neighbors while their father works, as they have no other relatives who can look after them.”

Detained last July 7, the woman had participated in a demonstration over the lengthy blackouts, at the taxi base in Zone 14 of Alamar, in the eastern part of the capital, which she herself recounted in a live broadcast. In it, she said, “We expressed our feelings,” because “we’ve had enough, we’re now tired.” And she continued: “Government and Party officials came with the Police, with those henchmen, to repress us, but their act fell apart, because they found that we were peacefully demanding our rights.”

“People, Cuba’s freedom is in our hands, not in anyone else’s hands. There is no savior there”

After keeping the street closed for more than three hours, she recounted, “Oh, what a surprise, at 7:15 they restored electricity to Zone 14. The only thing they came to do was deploy patrol cars to intimidate and mistreat us.” In her post, Delgado González recounted that the officers insulted them with foul language, and snapped, “that’s enough misbehaving.” “You want to see how badly behaved I really am?”, the woman replied. “I came into this world to be happy, not for anyone to come and put pressure on me; I don’t have a pressure-cooker complex.” She also warned: “These people don’t understand unless you do it the hard way. They’re masochists. When they cut it again, we’re going to come back and do the same thing.”

The woman urged people not to stay in their homes “waiting for a miracle,” declaring: “People, Cuba’s freedom is in our hands, not in anyone else’s hands. There is no savior there.” We owe it, she insisted, “to the political prisoners, to those who have been forced to leave this country, to those who have been killed, and to all those children continue reading

and bedridden people who cannot raise their voices but can no longer endure it.”

Cubalex states that keeping Delgado González in provisional detention “for participating in a peaceful protest not only violates her rights and increases the risks to her health, but also seriously affects her children,” in addition to “intimidating other people so that they do not take to the streets to demand their rights.” For this reason, they demand her “immediate release.”

“He did not commit any kind of crime; he did not steal; he did not throw stones; he did not break anything”

A case similar to Koky’s, Martí Noticias recalls, is that of Lumey Guzmán Fernández, also a resident of Alamar, who was detained on July 9 after posting videos in which she denounced the power cuts and called on neighbors to demonstrate.

The Cuban-American newspaper also reports that at least eight people are being held incommunicado at the El Vivac detention center in Havana following a protest against the endless power outages on August 3.

One of them is activist Pedro Lázaro Gutiérrez Collado, son of Luis Jesús Gutiérrez Campos, a delegate of the Movimiento Opositores por una Nueva República. In statements to Martí Noticias, the dissident said: “He did not commit any kind of crime; he did not steal; he did not throw stones; he did not break anything.”

The Cuban regime, meanwhile, has also rejected the precautionary measure requested for Eduardo Ceballos Pérez, creator of the satirical social media program Despingovery Channel and in prison since last June 1. His mother, Marieta Pérez Alfaro, pleaded in a post this Monday: “If Eddy Ceballos has no criminal record, there is no real risk of flight that would make sentencing difficult. There is no risk that he will interfere with the evidence; he poses no danger to third parties. Why must the provisional detention measure imposed at the beginning of the proceedings be maintained?”

“What is the military secret that lies in an abandoned area, officially disabled since 2025, that has no boundaries, signage, or security?”

The woman was referring to the video for which Ceballos ended up detained, in which he documented an abandoned military installation with Soviet missiles from the 1960s, radars, bunkers and disused weaponry. “What is the military secret that lies in an abandoned area, officially disabled since 2025, that has no boundaries, signage, or security and is routinely used as a playground by children from the area?” Pérez wondered.

For the same humorous publication, the cameraman for Despingovery Channel, Cristian Rodríguez, was also detained, with both accused of espionage, a crime for which they could receive a sentence of up to 30 years. “I do not understand why the criminal case and the precautionary measure remain unchanged,” Pérez Alfaro continued. “If a man’s suffering and a family’s pain are not important in the legal sphere, what should matter is the fact that such a serious crime as espionage is being charged against Eddy Ceballos and Cristian Rodríguez without evidence that confirms it to this day”.

In an interview with 14ymedio, Ceballos’s wife, Daniela Escarra, with whom he has a young daughter, stated that his detention has the sole objective of “generating fear and silencing influencers on the Island.”

Translated by Regina Anavy
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Cuban Agents Used Uniforms of Athletes from Other Countries to Infiltrate in the Dominican Republic

‘Diario Libre’reports that some were identified by Dominican security personnel when they were pursuing athletes who were trying to leave the Island delegation.

La reincidencia de los agentes cubanos llevó a los organismos dominicanos a establecer un protocolo especial de seguridad ante lo que consideraron “una injerencia”. / Facebook/Embajada Cuba RD

14ymedio, Madrid, August 18, 2026 / Cuban state security agents infiltrated sports facilities in the Dominican Republic during the 2026 Santo Domingo Central American and Caribbean Games to monitor the Island’s athletes and prevent further defections, according to an investigation published Tuesday by Diario Libre.

According to the Dominican newspaper, some of the agents even wore uniforms of athletes from other countries to gain access to the venues and approach Cuban competitors without arousing suspicion. The operation was detected by Dominican security agencies, which removed several of those involved from the facilities.

The infiltration by Cuban security forces intensified during the first part of the competition, when two defections had already occurred: Moisés David Torres Puig, on the same day as the opening of the Games; and rower Leah Daniela Almeida, a bronze medalist.

One of the incidents occurred during an indoor competition at Parque del Este. Dominican military personnel detected Cuban agents pursuing athletes from the Island who were trying to leave the delegation. In response, security at the venue temporarily closed the doors and began identifying the people inside.

Dominican military personnel detected Cuban agents pursuing athletes from the Island who were trying to leave the delegation

The authorities checked the accreditations against the Games’ database, which included more than 7,000 athletes and about 3,000 coaches and delegation members. According to Diario Libre, this was how Cuban citizens who were not accredited to perform security duties in the country were identified, and the authorities expelled them from the venue.

The Dominican newspaper reports that another similar incident occurred that same day at an outdoor stadium. The repeated presence of the Cuban agents led Dominican authorities to establish a special security protocol in response to what they considered “interference.”

Diario Libre was unable to determine whether the agents who were detected were arrested or whether continue reading

Dominican authorities initiated any judicial proceedings against them.

The report takes on significance after the Government of the Dominican Republic ordered nine members of the Cuban diplomatic mission and their relatives to leave the country, without explaining the reasons for the measure. Cuba’s Foreign Ministry described it as “an act of subordination” by Santo Domingo to Washington’s policy toward the Island and said that its diplomats had acted in accordance with the Vienna Convention and that there was no reason to justify their expulsion.

The information revealed Tuesday by ‘Diario Libre’ is consistent with testimony obtained by ’14ymedio’ from one of the five Cuban athletes who abandoned the delegation during the Games

The Dominican newspaper El Día had reported that the Cuban officials expelled by the Government of Luis Abinader were allegedly carrying out intelligence activities by taking advantage of their diplomatic accreditations, but according to that version, the expulsion was not related to the athletes’ defections and was simply a coincidence.

However, the information revealed Tuesday by Diario Libre is consistent with testimony obtained by 14ymedio from one of the five Cuban athletes who abandoned the delegation during the Games. The athlete said he had been warned that the Cuban authorities were trying to locate him and was advised not to connect to social media to avoid being found.

“I do believe 100% that it is because of our case,” the athlete said. “They wanted to kidnap us in a country where they have no right to do that.”

The five athletes who abandoned the delegation were fencers Adán Núñez and Hershey Daniela de la Cruz; softball team’s center fielder Yasmani Álvarez; rower Leah Daniela Almeida, a bronze medalist; and field hockey team’s goalkeeper Moisés David Torres Puig.

Cuba’s sports delegations have maintained controls for decades aimed at preventing their members from leaving official teams during international competitions

Cuba’s sports delegations have maintained controls for decades aimed at preventing their members from leaving official teams during international competitions. In June 2022, during the U-23 Baseball Pan American Championship in Aguascalientes, Mexico, Cuban authorities asked the Police for help locating baseball players Alfredo Fadraga and Yosvany Ávalos, who had left the team camp. Both were located and returned to the delegation, which subsequently sent them back to Cuba.

A month later, during a futsal tournament in Guatemala, the Cuban delegation informed local authorities that three players were missing in an effort to prevent them from leaving the country.

At the 2023 Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile, at least seven Cuban athletes also abandoned the delegation and reported that delegation officials were withholding their passports to make potential defections more difficult. Chilean authorities did not participate in operations to return them and said that the athletes could legally remain in the country while their visas were valid.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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Without Giving Details on the Sentences, an Official Report in Cuba Registers 49 Femicide Trials in 2025

Adolescent pregnancy, starting at age 10, remains at a high level and is considered a “serious social and health problem”

“Behavior by skin color corresponds to the structure of the Cuban population, white women remain the majority” / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Madrid, August 18, 2026 / A total of 49 femicides were tried on the island during 2025. This is indicated by the National Statistics and Information Office (Onei), in a document released this Monday through the Cuban Observatory on Gender Equality (Ocig), which does not specify when the killings occurred.

The figure provided by the official body is, in its own words, that of “female persons aged 15 and older who were victims of murder at the hands of their partners, ex-partners, or other persons for gender-related reasons, known through judicial proceedings tried in the year 2025.” This represents, as the Ocig boasts, “a slight decrease” in the number of murder victims known through judicial proceedings compared to both the previous year (76) and 2023 (60).

For 2025, the platform Alas Tensas recorded 48 femicides, and 14ymedio – which does not consider murders in robberies or other random circumstances to be gender-related – recorded 42. The fact that the official body reports no victims for Matanzas, Villa Clara, Cienfuegos, Sancti Spíritus, Guantánamo, and Isla de la Juventud reaffirms that those 49 reported killings may have occurred in previous years: at least in the first four provinces, according to independent media data, femicides did in fact occur last year.

Some 46.9% of the total number of women, the Ocig report states – the office has been operating since 2023 – were “victims of their ex-partner,” and in 89.7% of cases “the act took place in the home.”

By province, Havana had the most cases (12), and its rate (1.54 per 100,000 women) rises slightly above the average of 1.19/100,000. The highest rate by far is found in Mayabeque, with 4.37/100,000 and 6 victims, followed by Ciego de Ávila, with 2.55/100,000 and 4 women killed, and Camagüey, with 2.16/100,000.

Some 46.9% of the total number of women, the Ocig report states – the office has been operating since 2023 – were “victims of their ex-partner,” and in 89.7% of cases “the act took place in the home.” Of the total, 32 had minor children, who were left motherless, totaling 54 children. 75.5%, the report continues, “had no employment ties.”

The age group with the highest concentration of victims is 22 to 44 years old (38), and by type of area, more cases occur in urban areas (33) than in rural areas (16). Lastly, the Ocig notes: “Behavior by skin color corresponds to the structure of the Cuban population, white women remain the majority. None of the victims had any type of disability at the time of death.”

Furthermore, as also reported in the same document, the adolescent pregnancy rate in Cuba remained at its highest level – between 1.3 in 2021 and 1.4 per 1,000 girls in 2025 – in the youngest age group (10 to 14 years old). That indicator’s trend for continue reading

the 15-to-19 age group did decline over that period, from 48.5 to 43.2 per 1,000.

“This is a challenge that limits the full development of girls and adolescents and that involves all of us as a society”

For the youngest adolescents (10-14 years old), the highest rates by province were recorded in Mayabeque (2.2 per thousand), Guantánamo (2), Granma and Holguín (both with 1.9), followed by Camagüey (1.8), Pinar del Río (1.7), Las Tunas and Sancti Spíritus (1.4 each).

The Ocig presents the figures with a note: “This is a challenge that limits the full development of girls and adolescents and that involves all of us as a society. Let us care for and educate so as to build a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every birth is without risk, and every young person achieves their full development.”
18% of the total number of adolescent pregnancies in Cuba involve girls under 14 years old, according to official data published by the Ministry of Public Health.

The Deputy Minister of Public Health, Reinol García Moreiro, described the data as worrying. He stressed that births to mothers under 15 years old are on the rise: there were 381 in 2021, while in 2022 and 2023 there were 397 and 419, respectively.

He also warned about unions between adults and minors as one of the main causes of this problem.

Adolescent pregnancy in Cuba is considered a “serious social and health problem” by the authorities, with close to 18-19% of total births coming from mothers between 15 and 19 years old.

Translated by GH.

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Boat With 19 Cubans Aboard Remains Missing a Week After Leaving Pinar Del Río

Among the passengers, who were headed to Mexico, are seven minors, including two-year-old twins

Images of some of the missing rafters, shared by relatives. / Mario Vallejo/Facebook / Mario Vallejo/Facebook

14ymedio, Madrid, August 18, 2026 / At least 19 Cubans, including 7 minors, remain missing a week after setting out on a boat from Pinar del Río. The alarm was raised a few days ago by relatives of the rafters, who had had no word from them since their departure on August 11 at around two in the afternoon, and who asked for help from the authorities or from anyone who might know whether they had been assisted by the coast guard, a pleasure boat, or fishermen.

Broadcaster Mario Vallejo made an appeal on his social media, in a post to which he attached images captured by the rafters themselves aboard the vessel.

According to a report published this Monday by Martí Noticias, Mexico’s Secretariat of the Navy, through the Standing Guard of the Fifth Naval Region (RN 5), headquartered in Isla Mujeres (Quintana Roo), has not yet located the vessel. “The search-and-rescue naval stations within the jurisdiction have been placed on alert by RN 5, pending further information about the case,” an official from the agency told the Cuban-American newspaper. He also stated that “the port captaincies and all search-and-rescue naval stations are aware of the vessel.”

“It was a boat that was in good shape, but an engine broke down and then they ran out of gas more than halfway through the trip because it spilled”

The agent, who did not give his name, was asked by Martí Noticias whether helicopters were being used in the search, and replied: “They have not been deployed; that is up to the naval command to decide.”

In Cancún, where the rafters are presumed to have been headed, some relatives are waiting, such as Yunaidy Martínez Ramírez, a native of Havana. “My entire family is on that boat,” she told Martí Noticias. Her husband and their three young children are among the missing. She gave that outlet some details about the crossing and expressed her fear: “It was a boat that was in good shape, but an engine broke down and then continue reading

they ran out of gas more than halfway through the trip because it spilled. The boatman said they would try to sail under sail… They brought food, but after so many days I’m afraid they may have nothing left.” That communication suggests that the boat was, in fact, not a makeshift vessel, since they had radio contact.

Among the passengers are also the twins Leosdel and Leosniel, only two years old, along with their mother, Yusimy Garrobo Leiva, 35, residents of Vertientes, Camagüey.

Martínez Ramírez denounced to Martí Noticias the slowness of the Mexican authorities’ response: “The Navy always tells me the same thing: that they are searching without results. In the first few days they kept passing me from one office to another. The twins’ father and I had to go directly to the main base; if we don’t call, they tell us nothing. They have helicopters and ships to search by air and sea; they should be searching faster. I’m desperate, going out of my mind, about to go look for them myself.”

Martí Noticias recalls a similar case that occurred on August 8, when a boat that also set out from Pinar del Río bound for Cancún sank near Las Martinas after suffering a breakdown. The disaster claimed the lives of young Leodannis Sánchez, 17, and his partner Osmaikel, 19.

After a long stretch with little news of rafters, on August 13 at least a dozen Cuban migrants came ashore at Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park in Key West, Florida. They were traveling in a boat they had stolen from the state-run company Marina Marlin Tarará, and are now in the custody of U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Translated by GH.

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With Prices of $20 to $50 per Bucket, Cimex Sells Cuban-Made Paint in Foreign Currency

The state-run store in Matanzas offers all the colors needed for the city’s peeling façades; all that is missing are the customers.

La Casa del Pintor store, popularly known as El Fuego, in the city of Matanzas. / 14ymedio

Julio César Contreras, Matanzas, August 17, 2026 – The saleswoman extends her arm toward shelves packed with buckets of paint as if she were displaying a collection of valuable pieces. White, black, terracotta, yellow. At La Casa del Pintor store, popularly known as El Fuego, in the city of Matanzas, there are enough colors to imagine a city different from the one waiting just outside the door: peeling façades, walls eaten away by dampness, and homes that have not seen a paintbrush in years. The establishment, belonging to the Cimex Corporation, linked to the military conglomerate Gaesa, looks more like a paint museum than a store intended to sell it.

“We accept payment in cash dollars and by bank transfer,” the employee explains, somewhat surprised by the arrival of a customer, when serving buyers should be part of her routine. “I can guarantee the product’s excellent quality and good coverage,” she adds. She later admits, however, that she herself has not been able to buy a bucket, even to give the façade of her home a single coat.

The explanation lies in some small stickers placed on the shelves. Prices range from $20 to $50, depending on the color and size of the container. A figure that helps explain why, during the eight hours the store remains open, the premises are practically empty.

The establishment, belonging to the Cimex corporation, linked to Gaesa, looks more like a paint museum than a store intended to sell it. / 14ymedio

“Those who have been able to buy it have confirmed to me that it adheres very well to the walls. I would have to put together four salaries just to try the cheapest one,” the worker laments.

There is something surreal about the scene. Dozens of perfectly aligned buckets, with their red lids and intact labels, wait for customers who almost never arrive. Outside, Matanzas displays a very different palette: the gray of crumbling plaster, the green of dampness, and that indefinable shade that walls acquire after years without maintenance.

Customers are also not allowed to open the containers to check the product before taking it home. They must rely on the lot number, expiration date, and information on the label. “It’s a shame that, being a product made in Cuba, it is sold in U.S. dollars,” comments a customer who continue reading

, surprisingly, arrives in the middle of the morning.

From the street, El Fuego looks like a store intended for the newly wealthy, although inside, the air conditioning can do little during blackouts. The door remains open, but many passersby do not even turn their heads. They know in advance that what is sold behind the glass is not intended for their wallets.

“Those who have been able to buy it have confirmed to me that it adheres very well to the walls. I would have to put together four salaries just to try the cheapest one”

“Certainly, it is a lack of respect toward the population, especially in this La Marina neighborhood, which is falling to pieces,” complains Argelio, a local resident. “Only people who have family abroad or those who run big businesses can buy there. Meanwhile, the poor have to continue living with walls blackened by grime.”

A 67-year-old retiree from the state Commerce sector, Argelio points out another peculiarity. Less than two blocks away, vinyl paint is sold at a private business. “The other day I was curious enough to take a look, and they have almost the same colors in both places. The difference is that the private seller charges 3,500 pesos per liter and, as you would expect, they add something to it so that the product goes further.”

He also criticizes the fact that a store specializing in paint does not have different types of brushes or other accessories needed to complete the job. The irony goes so far that it was the saleswoman herself who told him where he could find cheaper paint.

“Since I live on my pension, I don’t have the money to indulge in painting my house with products sold in dollars,” he admits. Nevertheless, he says that if he could afford it, he would prefer to buy the sealed container at El Fuego rather than take a chance on discounted or adulterated products that are abundant on the informal market.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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Meteorologists Warn of the Effects of El Niño on Cuba

The phenomenon could cause effects on the island such as high temperatures, drought and the risk of a cyclone

House destroyed by Hurricane Melissa, in November 2025, in the town of Guamá, Santiago de Cuba. / EFE/Ernesto Mastrascusa

EFE (via 14ymedio), Havana, August 17, 2026 / Cuba’s Institute of Meteorology (Insmet) warns that this year the presence of the El Niño climate phenomenon could cause effects such as high temperatures, drought and the risk of a cyclone affecting the island.

Known as El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), it is an interaction between ocean and atmosphere that occurs when surface temperatures in the eastern and central equatorial Pacific rise above their usual values, explains an article published this Sunday on the state-run site Cubadebate.

Among the possible effects associated with El Niño, Cuban specialists foresee a summer with high temperatures and a lack of rainfall due to a combination of atmospheric and oceanic factors that could favor the occurrence of meteorological drought and water stress in the country. In addition, they point out that under El Niño conditions, which will extend until the end of 2026, cyclonic activity in the Atlantic basin usually decreases, but its influence does not eliminate the risk of a cyclone’s impact.

Insmet’s forecast anticipates a cyclone season “less active than normal” and estimates a 40% probability that Cuba will be directly affected by at least one hurricane during the current cycle, which runs until November 30.

In the case of tropical storms, the probability of a direct impact rises to 75%

Meanwhile, in the case of tropical storms, the probability of a direct impact rises to 75%.

According to the forecast, up to eleven tropical cyclones are expected to form, eight of them developing in the Atlantic Ocean basin, two in the Caribbean Sea and one in the Gulf of Mexico.

Five of the cyclones are anticipated to potentially reach hurricane strength, and two would be classified as major hurricanes (category 3 or higher on the Saffir-Simpson scale).

Among the hurricanes that have affected Cuba in recent years are Melissa (2025), Oscar and Rafael (2024) and Ian (2022).

Cuba has still not fully recovered from the devastation caused by the impact of Melissa in the eastern provinces of Guantánamo, Granma, Holguín and Santiago de Cuba – with winds of 200 kilometers per hour and rainfall of up to 400 millimeters in some parts of the country.

Its impact caused no fatalities, but did cause extensive material damage to more than 116,000 homes, as well as 600 state medical facilities, more than 2,000 educational centers, some 100,000 hectares of crops, and transportation, telecommunications, electricity and water supply infrastructure.

Translated by GH

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José Martí, ‘Persona Non Grata’ in the Galician Village of Fidel Castro’s Father

The socialist mayor of Láncara conveys the feelings of local residents: “Martí was one of the organizers of the war of independence, in which nearly 50,000 Spanish soldiers died”

Unveiling of the bust of José Martí in Láncara (Lugo, Galicia), in the presence of, among others, Cuba’s ambassador to Spain, Marcelino Medina, and consul Ingrid Izquierdo. / Cuban Consulate in Galicia

14ymedio, Madrid, August 17, 2026 / The mayor of Láncara, in the Galician province of Lugo, has asked Cuban consul Ingrid Izquierdo to remove the bust of José Martí installed next to the house where Ángel Castro – Fidel Castro’s father – was born, which was unveiled last Thursday to mark the centenary of the birth of the leader of the Cuban Revolution.

In a letter published Saturday on his social media, the mayor, socialist Darío Piñeiro, conveys to the representative of the island in the Cantabrian region “the deep unease and indignation” of local residents toward the newly unveiled statue.

According to his letter, the monument is perceived by the public “not as a diplomatic symbol, but as a direct insult to ordinary people, reviving tensions, divisions, and a climate of confrontation that harks back to dark times such as the Cuban war.” For this reason, he calls for its “immediate removal.”

“No symbol in our municipality should be a source of discord, provocation, or offense to the local population, regardless of whether it stands within the boundaries of private property,” the mayor states. He continues: “The community has made clear its demand that this space be free of an element that generates hostility and widespread rejection. Our city’s public or private space cannot become a stage for grievance or a reminder of old wars that wound the sensibilities of our people.”

“I find it regrettable that around 300 people are celebrating the centenary of Fidel Castro’s birth while the Cuban people are starving”

Piñeiro warns in the letter that “should a satisfactory response or the removal of the piece not be obtained, the Town Council will proceed, as a corresponding measure, to the immediate removal of continue reading

the monument of similar characteristics located on municipal public land,” referring to another statue of Martí located in the village of A Pobra de San Xiao, which belongs to the same municipality of Láncara.

In the same post where he made his letter public, the mayor adds a comment in quotation marks – without clarifying whether it is his own opinion or that of a fellow citizen – which reads: “I find it regrettable that around 300 people are celebrating the centenary of Fidel Castro’s birth while the Cuban people are starving. I sincerely believe they lack sensitivity and dignity.”

The same text goes on to say that “José Martí was one of the organizers of the war of independence between Cuba and Spain, in which nearly 50,000 Spanish soldiers died, among them many Galicians and residents of Láncara. I do not find it acceptable that the families of those soldiers have to see a bust of the executioner of their relatives on a daily basis.” Fidel Castro’s own father took part in that war after enlisting in the Spanish Army.

“Martí was the intellectual author of Moncada, as Fidel himself stated, and remains the ethical and political wellspring of the Cuban Revolution”

And he ends with a third point: “I ask that you be consistent with your ideals: I cannot understand how someone who identifies as a communist and opposes private property in his own country can own property in Spain, which he could well have donated to the Town Council or to the Val de Láncara cultural association. It is contradictory to be a communist in Cuba and a capitalist in Spain, all the more so given that the transfer or sale of the house was made to a group of businessmen. Do they merely claim to be communists, or are they only communists when it suits or benefits them?”

Piñeiro himself confirmed to the local press that he will send the letter to the Cuban Consulate for Galicia, Asturias, and Cantabria, headquartered in Santiago de Compostela, this Tuesday, since Monday is a local holiday.

The bust next to Ángel Castro’s house is a donation from the Láncara-Cuba Friendship Association, and was indeed unveiled on August 13 in a massive event led by the association’s president, Antonio Sobrado; the island’s ambassador to Spain, Marcelino Medina; and consul Izquierdo. The authorities of the Láncara Town Council, governed by the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party, did not attend, however.

“Martí was the intellectual author of Moncada, as Fidel himself stated, and remains the ethical and political wellspring of the Cuban Revolution. To honor Martí and Fidel today is to reaffirm the continuity of a deeply humanist, pro-independence, and Latin Americanist line of thought, one that continues to inspire those who believe in a more just world,” were the words of Ambassador Medina when the statue was unveiled.

“Cuba’s government must reassess its strategy for becoming part of world trade and open the doors that would allow it to do so”

Castroite media covered the event in detail, with extensive criticism of the United States’ “genocidal blockade” of the island and songs by Silvio Rodríguez. At the same event, the Friendship Medal of the Cuban Institute for Friendship with the Peoples (Icap) was awarded to Ángel García Seoane, mayor of Oleiros (A Coruña) for the past 23 years on behalf of the independent party Alternativa dos Veciños.

García Seoane heaped praise on Fidel Castro and closed his speech with a “Homeland or death, we shall overcome,” but he also said that “Cuba cannot keep bleeding out through the departure of its youth” and that “the course must be changed while preserving the values of the revolution.” In a statement carried by El Español, he asserted: “Cuba’s government must reassess its strategy for becoming part of world trade and open the doors that would allow it to do so.”

The house where Ángel Castro was born, now converted into the Center for the Interpretation of Galician Emigration, was the “epicenter” of tributes in Spain to Fidel Castro for his centenary. Unveiled by Mariela Castro, daughter of Raúl Castro, on July 28, 2022, the building was visited by the leader of the Cuban Revolution in 1992, accompanied on that occasion by then-president of Galicia Manuel Fraga, a former Francoist minister.

Translated by GH

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‘The Game is Over’ for Small Businesses in Matanzas, Cuba

Amid increasingly expensive merchandise, impoverished customers, and price caps, many private businesses are operating on razor-thin margins or surviving thanks to remittances.

“People are buying the bare essentials to survive.” / 14ymedio / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Julio César Contreras, Matanzas, August 16, 2026 — When the armchairs disappeared from the porch and Milagros replaced them with two wooden shelves, she thought she had found a way to shore up the family finances without leaving home. In Pueblo Nuevo, Matanzas, where the steady flow of neighbors ensures constant attention to any storefront, she began with sweets, cleaning products, and some basic goods. Seven years later, the shelves are still there, but the initial optimism has shrunk almost at the same rate as her customers’ purchases.

“My sister, who lives abroad, gave me an initial contribution of $200, which in 2019 was enough to open a small business,” she recalls. Now, after years behind the counter, Milagros is torn between continuing and temporarily closing. “For quite some time now, I’ve barely managed to recover what I invested in buying merchandise.”

The scene is repeated throughout Matanzas. Porches converted into cafés, garages transformed into shops, and windows protected by bars that serve as counters display soft drinks, packages of cookies, canned goods, and jars of mayonnaise. The merchandise is there, but customers arrive only in dribs and drabs. Some ask about prices and walk away; others buy just one thing.

“The prices of all products in the MSMEs that import goods are constantly rising.” / 14ymedio

Milagros explains the arithmetic that is suffocating her. “The prices of all products in the MSMEs that import goods are constantly rising. A package of spaghetti, for example, now costs me 100 pesos more than it did last month, which means 50 pesos less in profit.” On top of that, there is an increasingly impoverished customer base. “People are buying the bare essentials to survive. Before buying cookies, parents have to put at least a boiled egg on their children’s plates.”

The recent pricing policy has added another dose of uncertainty. In June, the Government eliminated the nationwide price caps that had been imposed since 2024 on five imported food products, including chicken and cooking oil, after admitting that the measure had failed to contain inflation and had contributed to shortages. However, in Matanzas, authorities have once again tightened the screws on continue reading

small businesses and reintroduced maximum prices. Local inspections have also multiplied, with threats of fines of up to 60,000 pesos and even closure for those who refuse electronic payments. The offensive has gone so far as to introduce a slogan for inspectors: “Territorial inspection, a weapon of the Revolution!”

For merchants like Milagros, every new regulation ultimately collides with an elementary reality: authorities can limit her selling price, but no one guarantees how much she will be able to pay for merchandise tomorrow. Sales at her small business, even with inflation, are “well below 5,000 pesos a day,” less than eight dollars. After the pandemic, she had to let go of the employee she had hired. “The good thing is that since I’m at home, I don’t have to pay rent.”

“For quite some time now, I’ve barely managed to recover what I invested in buying merchandise.” / 14ymedio

A few streets away, Mariano knows that other expense well. He is 71 and has been selling merchandise since the days when “street hustler” was a phrase uttered with official disdain. “I’ve never had as much trouble as I do now getting merchandise,” he says.

In his shop, some products seem to be waiting indefinitely for a buyer. Mariano tries to lower prices until they are barely above the minimum profit, but he knows that food is what sells best. He has considered taking advantage of a good refrigerator to sell meat products and eggs, although the power outages turn any investment in refrigeration into a dangerous gamble. “I’ve thought a lot about how to get out of this situation, and the truth is that the dominoes are closed.”

For the past three months, Mariano has been paying his employee with part of the money his son sends him from the United States. The business, conceived to generate income, now survives thanks to a remittance. The garage rental alone costs him 30,000 pesos a month. Perfumes, deodorants, and other items remain stuck on the shelves, capital tied up in goods that cannot be converted back into cash.

In the porches of Pueblo Nuevo, improvised counters can still be found behind balustrades and bars. / 14ymedio

“If it weren’t for the fact that my pension isn’t enough even to get through a week, I would sell whatever is left, including the display cases, and go home to rest,” he confesses.

In the doorways of Pueblo Nuevo, improvised counters can still be found behind balustrades and bars. There are cans carefully lined up, bread hanging in transparent bags, and small signs for electronic payments, which are often there simply to satisfy inspectors. What is scarce is the customer capable of sustaining this network of tiny businesses.

Milagros looks at her shelves and thinks about the additional assistance her sister wanted to send her to relaunch the business. She chose to stop her. “With things as bad as they are, it’s better not to start making purchases that end up sitting unsold.”

Mariano sums it up in fewer words, with no entrepreneurial hope left: “This isn’t about a bad spell, nor is it that the location isn’t good for that type of sales. What’s happening is that Cubans are hitting rock bottom.”

Translated by Regina Anavy

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A Report Calls on Spain to Break with the Cuban ‘Kleptocracy’

The Disenso Foundation reopens the debate over unpaid debts and the lack of transparency in the management of Havana’s debt to Madrid.

14ymedio, Havana, August 16, 2026 / The Disenso Foundation, the think tank linked to Vox, Spain’s radical right-wing party, has published through its Foro Madrid platform a report whose title leaves no doubt about its intention: Cuba, a criminal regime sustained from abroad. The document reviews 67 years of repression, Soviet and Venezuelan subsidies, and concludes with a series of recommendations for Spain to break with the Cuban “kleptocracy.”

It is openly a text aimed at influencing public policy, but among its pages there is an issue that deserves attention: Cuba’s debt to Spain, one of the least transparent chapters in the bilateral relationship.

The report puts that debt at 1.97 billion euros, a figure that the Spanish Government acknowledged in 2020 in response to a parliamentary question from Vox. The figure is correct, although already outdated. At the end of that year, the Ministry of Economy certified Cuban public debt of 1.93755 billion euros, almost two-thirds of everything owed to Spain by Ibero-American countries. In 2021, it even rose to 2.03 billion. Since then, it has become much more difficult to publicly reconstruct the exact evolution of the balance.

Just three months ago, the Supreme Court opened a crack in that opacity. The high court accepted that the records of the Paris Club could remain secret, but rejected the Government’s automatic invocation of foreign relations as grounds for concealing how Spain applied the debt write-offs, restructurings, and extensions of payment terms granted to Cuba and Venezuela.

In 2021, researcher Guillermo Rocafort requested, under the Transparency Law, the files relating to those operations. The ministry refused

The case dates back to 2021, when researcher Guillermo Rocafort requested, under the Transparency Law, the files relating to continue reading

those operations. The ministry refused. Among the Treasury officials responsible during that process was Carlos Cuerpo, who later became Minister of Economy and is now first vice president of the socialist government of Pedro Sánchez.

The history of the debt write-offs is summarized in the report. In 2015, 201 million euros were restructured and 110.8 million were forgiven. A year later, another operation affected 2.242 billion euros, of which 1.492 billion were canceled. The 2016 agreement also included a debt-conversion program for up to 375 million euros which, after remaining pending for years, was finally activated in July 2025.

The Juan de Mariana Institute has attempted to put a figure on the opportunity cost of those concessions. In a calculation published in July, the institute argues that if the 2.444 billion euros in 2016 debt had accrued compound interest of 8% annually, the theoretical balance would today exceed 5.28 billion euros. Although this is a hypothetical exercise, it is useful for showing how much that capital would have grown had it remained intact and earned interest at that rate.

On the private-sector side, the Foro Madrid report falls short. It speaks of “around 300 million euros” owed to more than 300 Spanish companies and questions why some of those unpaid debts have not been covered through public export credit insurance, as companies victimized by Havana are demanding.

“It has not gone down because it was collected,” the PP argued, “but because some creditor companies have closed or entered insolvency proceedings (gone bankrupt)”

The Senate currently uses a considerably higher figure. In May, during a motion by the Plural Parliamentary Group, Senator Maria Teresa Pallarès recalled that the debt to Spanish companies was estimated at around 350 million euros in 2017 and stated that it has now “risen to more than 500 million.”

Senator Manuel Milián Querol, of the People’s Party, did not dispute that magnitude and spoke of “nearly 200 companies,” mostly small and medium-sized businesses, still waiting to collect hundreds of millions of euros. He added another paradox reported by those affected: some companies may even have had to pay taxes in Spain on profits recorded on their books that they never actually managed to collect in Cuba.

But official statistics present a different picture. According to data from the Economic and Commercial Office of Spain in Havana cited during the same debate, “registered” commercial debt stood at around 255 million euros, below the 284 million recorded in 2023.

How much does Cuba really owe Spain? How much has been forgiven? How much remains outstanding? How many companies have suffered the consequences of the unpaid debts?

That is precisely one of the questions the Government has yet to resolve. The Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE) attributed the decline in the recorded figure to “the monitoring carried out” by the Commercial Office and collection efforts. The PP offered a very different explanation: “It has not gone down because it was collected,” Milián argued, but because some creditor companies have closed or entered insolvency proceedings (gone bankrupt), meaning they disappear from certain statistics while the debt remains unpaid.

In light of that discrepancy, on May 5 the Senate approved a demand that the Government provide a rigorous accounting of unpaid debts through February 2026, broken down by economic sector, company size, and age of the debt. It also called for the creation of an audited census of creditors and set a maximum deadline of three months. That deadline has already expired.

The Foro Madrid report thus has the merit of once again putting an issue that rarely makes headlines on the table: how much Cuba really owes Spain, how much has been forgiven, how much remains outstanding, and how many companies have suffered the consequences of the unpaid debts.

The opacity surrounding Cuban debt is not an invention of Vox or the PP, nor is it a recent anomaly. It has spanned Spanish governments of different political orientations, which for decades have combined credits, renegotiations, write-offs, and payment deferrals without taxpayers being able to easily reconstruct the final balance. That is, beyond Foro Madrid’s political conclusions, the thread that still has much more to unravel.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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El Proyecto (The Project) Positions Itself as an Act of Resistance Amid the Chaos Gripping Cuba

David González has turned his home into “a cultural refuge for many young people in Havana who may not have anywhere else to go.”

El joven David González, fundador de El Proyecto, en las escaleras de su vivienda convertida en centro cultural. / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Havana, August 16, 2026 – In a city where power outages have lasted more than 20 hours a day for months, a space has emerged where people can enjoy concerts, film screenings, exhibitions, parties and other cultural initiatives even when the national electricity system (SEN) is in total collapse. Admission costs just 300 pesos (about 50 cents at the current exchange rate) because, according to its founder, David González, who spoke to 14ymedio, the intention is not to turn it into a lucrative business, but to create a self-sustaining refuge amid the severe crisis facing the Island.

El Proyecto is the name of this space for cultural gatherings and respite from political persecution. It operates in González’s own home, a colonial mansion belonging to his family that has now been converted into an independent cultural center. The venue, located at the corner of 11th and 14th Streets in Havana’s El Vedado neighborhood, has gained popularity, especially among young people, as a meeting place for culture, partying, freedom and resistance.

The young David González, founder of El Proyecto, on the stairs of his home, which has been converted into a cultural center.

“There is no dictatorship here, there is no SEN here, there are no problems with electricity or water here, and everyone is welcome,” said the 29-year-old González in a conversation with this newspaper, sitting naturally on the stairs in front of the doors to the cultural space. With signs on its walls such as “How much longer?” and “The feeling of collapse,” and decorative details such as a fan paying tribute to the young people imprisoned from the independent platform El4tico, El Proyecto has also become a space for freedom of expression and inspiration for “a change toward a better future” in Cuba.

With signs on its walls such as “How much longer?” and “The feeling of collapse,” El Proyecto has also become a space for freedom of expression. / 14ymedio

“El Proyecto emerged out of a need, as a kind of alternative to the chaos we are living through,” González says. The young man, a graduate in Social Communication and a former Chevening scholar in the British program, explains that the initiative began with film screenings and then expanded to parties and alternative music concerts in different genres, such as jazz, folk and rock. At first, the activities were free, but the growing audience led them to begin charging admission in order to sustain them. To keep the center operating during prolonged power outages, it has batteries and EcoFlow power stations.

The space has gained popularity especially among young people, as a meeting place for culture, partying, freedom and resistance. / 14ymedio

In addition to concerts, which mainly feature young artists, El Proyecto has also organized visual arts exhibitions, such as the one held last July 10 in tribute to 11J, “an extremely important anniversary for us as young Cubans,” González told 14ymedio, referring to the massive citizen protests of July 11, 2021, which ended in severe repression and more than a thousand protesters being imprisoned.

For González, the 11J exhibition was “our declaration of intentions in a peaceful way” and, he added, it sought “to encourage reflection on what we are doing as Cubans in present-day Cuba.” “It was a tribute to everyone who is imprisoned, to everyone who shouted for their survival, for their freedom, and who also shouted for us, representing us as young people, as the people of Cuba.”

González spoke about how El Proyecto positions itself as an act of resistance against the discouragement that can be caused by “all the things you see around you: the garbage that is in front of you, the electricity going out, the lack of water, rising prices, insecurity in the streets….” For the young man, it is about “reconverting the chaos,” using it as a catalyst rather than an obstacle and “understanding what our role is in the midst of that chaos.”

El Proyecto offers alternative music concerts in different genres, such as jazz, folk and rock. / 14ymedio

“I feel a responsibility as a young Cuban with regard to the future of Cuba,” González says about El Proyecto’s intentions. “I don’t believe that we have the solution here to all the structural problems that we have been suffering from for some time because of our current political system, but I do believe that, in some way, we are implementing changes.”

“I believe that the sum, the progression of small gestures like the ones we are bringing to fruition is precisely what can lead us to achieve that great change that we are all dreaming of,” González continues.

“There is a very harmful obsession in the social fabric that only one group of people is going to implement the great change we need, and I think it has to be viewed differently: in a more horizontal, more humble way, where we create from our own corner, from the humility of these resources.”

Creating a refuge where young people feel free to express themselves artistically, without obstacles caused by a lack of resources or government censorship, is, for González, an act of “resistance” in the face of the alarming situation affecting the Island. “And I think that, in some way, we have achieved it, which makes me extremely proud,” González says, “Having turned my home into a cultural refuge for many young people in the city of Havana who perhaps have nowhere else to go.”

“I believe that precisely in that creation lies our greatest achievement, in managing to ensure that people, without turning their backs on Cuba, without turning their backs on their reality, can rethink things and can also find hope in connecting with other human beings,” he adds.

El Proyecto seeks to be accessible to all types of audiences “with the intention that everyone can be welcome, regardless of their financial means, ideology, or way of thinking.” David González insists that the space is not intended to become a lucrative business: “it is not set up with the intention of taking money from people; it is set up with the intention that you can feel that it is an affordable space, that you can come with 500 pesos, 1,000 pesos and have a wonderful time.”

“Although everything may be turned off in the city, we are going to continue being here, even if the SEN collapses three times in a row.” / 14ymedio

“And this is our way of supporting that change, this is our way of saying that we are here, that we dream of a better Cuba, that we dream of a future,” the young communicator confesses.

El Proyecto also plans to soon host stage performances, such as dance and theater, thereby expanding its programming to other artistic expressions. Sitting on the stairs while greeting neighborhood residents, González says he would like to achieve having “people see us as a beacon, as a light shining in the middle of darkness,” although he is not referring literally to electricity, “but rather from the point of view of the message.”

“For me, the important thing is that people associate us with resistance, and with the fact that although everything may be turned off in the city, we are going to continue being here, even if the SEN collapses three times in a row.”

Translated by Regina Anavy

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Cuban Andy Díaz Sets Historic Record in Birmingham with an 18.15-Meter Jump

The athlete, who competes for Italy, moves into fourth place on the all-time world list.

Cuban Andy Díaz was crowned European triple-jump champion in Birmingham this Saturday. / Instagram

14ymedio, Havana, August 16, 2026 — “How far can Andy Díaz go?” The question posed by the specialized outlet Deporcuba arose after his 18.15-meter jump at Birmingham’s Alexander Stadium. Saturday’s mark is not only historic for Italy, but also an incentive for the Cuban-born athlete, who moves into fourth place on the all-time world list.

Andy defeated his compatriot, naturalized Portuguese athlete Pedro Pablo Pichardo (17.76 m) and Italian Andrea Dallavalle (17.37 m). Two athletes born in Cuba finished first and second. Nothing for the regime to celebrate, since the protagonists are athletes in exile who have been forced to leave the island in search of better opportunities.

Radio France Internationale highlighted the performance of the 30-year-old triple jumper, noting that “he thus earns his first major outdoor title, two years after winning bronze at the Paris Olympics.”

Díaz surpassed the 17.87-meter jump that had been his personal best with the Azzurri squad. With the new mark, he came within just three centimeters of the 18.18 meters with which his compatriot Jordan Díaz won the European championship title (2024) and has since added another appearance in international competitions.

Andy Díaz is now part of the elite group of triple jumpers who have surpassed 18 meters. Before him, Britain’s Jonathan Edwards (18.29 m in 1995) and American Christian Taylor (18.21 m in 2015), as well as Jordan, had achieved the feat.

“Díaz is shaking Edwards’ historic throne,” sports outlet As declared, describing the Havana-born athlete’s triple jump as “prodigious”

“The Havana native’s ‘monster mark’ came in the second round, immediately after an extremely long foul jump with which he came close to challenging continue reading

Edwards’ historic record, the 18.29 meters he jumped 31 years ago at the 1995 World Championships in Gothenburg,” the Spanish newspaper Sport published on its website.

At this moment, three of the ten best triple-jump marks belong to Cubans competing under another flag. “Aside from being surreal, the statistic clearly demonstrates the serious problem Cuba has retaining its top talent. That these three triple jumpers are active and competing around the world, and none of the three competes for their country of origin, is incredible,” Sports Chago emphasized on Facebook.

The athlete, who despite being ignored by officials on the island and having “wanted to win an Olympic medal for Cuba,” continues to accumulate titles for Italy.

Díaz competed with discomfort at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. The regime knew he was injured and nevertheless took him, counting on the fact that in some sports it is possible to compete while injured. “You grit your teeth, and nothing happens.” However, his case was complicated; he was determined not to compete. “I didn’t want to and I couldn’t,” he said. The reality is that the Cuban had already planned to defect during his stay in Europe.

After returning to Cuba, Andy Díaz took advantage of a layover in Spain and left the delegation. He says he decided to settle in Rome because Italy is the most Latin country in Europe.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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Cuban Opposition Activist Diosbel Véliz Marín Dies After Being Stabbed in Havana

His family says he was found dead in Altahabana while working as a bicycle-taxi driver; the motive for the crime is currently unknown.

His name also appears in numerous documented episodes of repression in recent years. / Facebook / José Díaz Silva

14ymedio, Havana, August 16, 2026 – Cuban opposition activist Diosbel Véliz Marín was stabbed to death in Havana on Saturday, according to several activists who denounced the killing Sunday and called on authorities to investigate the circumstances of his death.

Véliz Marín, a member of the Movement of Opponents for a New Republic (MONR) and also linked to the Democracy Movement, the Cuban Resistance Assembly and the Cuba Decide initiative, worked as a bicycle-taxi driver in the Altahabana neighborhood, in the municipality of Boyeros.

José Díaz Silva, president of MONR, reported on his Facebook profile that the opposition activist’s wife informed him of the news at around four in the morning Sunday. According to the account received by the family, Véliz Marín died during the night Saturday after being stabbed twice.

Shortly beforehand, according to the account shared by Díaz Silva, a woman had asked the bicycle-taxi driver to take her to the National Hospital. Later, the opposition activist’s body was found in front of a bank branch in the same neighborhood.

“There is a possibility that he was the victim of a robbery, but this must be clarified through a serious and transparent investigation”

So far, the exact circumstances of the incident are unknown, and there is no official information about continue reading

possible suspects. “There is a possibility that he was the victim of a robbery, but this must be clarified through a serious and transparent investigation,” Díaz Silva said in his denunciation.

According to Díaz Silva, his opposition activities dated back more than two decades, and he had been linked since 2002 to groups calling for democratic changes and the release of political prisoners.

His name also appears in numerous documented episodes of repression in recent years. In April 2017, he was arrested along with other MONR activists when the group was promoting independent candidates for municipal elections. The opposition activists remained for several hours in police facilities before being released.

In September 2020, Véliz Marín was arrested again. A report by the Cuban Foundation for Human Rights states that he was detained on the 4th of that month and fined 2,000 pesos before being released. At the time, several members of MONR and the Patriotic Union of Cuba were subjected to arrests, surveillance and fines to prevent their participation in the so-called Sunflower Revolution.

Journalist Boris González Arenas mourned his death Sunday and remembered Véliz Marín as a “hero of democracy”

Months later, in January 2021, the deadliest year of the Covid-19 pandemic on the island, another human rights report documented that Véliz Marín had been summoned by police in Altahabana, accused of “spreading an epidemic,” and subjected to the precautionary measure of reporting twice a week to a police station while awaiting trial.

He is also listed as a member of MONR and the #Otro18 platform among the signatories of an open letter from Cuban civil society organizations addressed to international bodies in 2020.

On his Facebook profile, Véliz Marín identified himself as a self-employed worker and a resident of Altahabana.

Journalist Boris González Arenas mourned his death Sunday and remembered Véliz Marín as a “hero of democracy,” while Ramón Saúl Sánchez, president of the Democracy Movement, described him as “a young, hardworking and decent man and a citizen of conscience who deeply loved his homeland.” Sánchez also called for an investigation and clarification of the case.

Díaz Silva, for his part, remembered his fellow activist as a “noble, hardworking, brave and patriotic” man and conveyed his condolences to his wife and the rest of the family.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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‘Just as I Was About To Get In, the Driver Asked for 500 Pesos: It Was a Lada With State License Plates’

In Matanzas, drivers who agree to give free rides are scarce; getting around depends much more on patience than on transport.

A yellow taxi slows down only to accelerate again a few meters later. / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Julio César Contreras, Matanzas, August 14, 2026 / Among the drivers offering trips only to Varadero, a shaved ice vendor, and a traffic light that no one expects to see working anymore, dozens of people raise their arms hoping that some driver will be kind enough to stop. The Viaduct bus stop is just a few meters away, but seeking refuge from the sun under that shelter can turn into an ordeal of several hours.

The images repeat themselves over and over again in front of the newly renovated Plaza Milanés. Men with backpacks slung over their shoulders scan the horizon every time a car appears; a woman shields herself with an umbrella while calculating how much longer she can endure the sun; an elderly man and a young man share the same wait by the side of the road. Behind them, the city seems to carry on as usual, but a few minutes of reflection reveal that public transportation is going through one of its worst periods, exacerbated by the energy crisis and fuel shortages.

“I’ve been here for almost two hours, and in all this time, if nine or ten cars have passed, that’s a lot. A moment ago a Lada with state license plates stopped for me. Just as I was about to get in, the driver told me it was 500 pesos to Peñas Altas, so I immediately told him to go away, not out of pride, but because I don’t have the money to pay him,” a woman from Matanzas, who knows this boarding point very well, where local buses have completely disappeared, told 14ymedio.

A woman shields herself with an umbrella while calculating how much longer she can endure the sun. / 14ymedio

“Sometimes, when there’s a transport inspector around, getting on a bus is a little easier. However, lately they haven’t been showing up at the bus stop either,” the woman adds, as she watches a yellow taxi slow down only to accelerate again a few meters later.

As she explains, places like this abound within the city, where electric tricycles pass by packed to capacity, private taxis drive right past, and state vehicles avoid stopping. “When the kids have school, it gets really bad for getting on the bus, especially around midday. To get to the university, where I work, on time I have to be here before seven in the morning. If I don’t, it can get to be nine o’clock by then.”

The uncertainty of raising a hand to a car that might never stop grips hundreds of people every day on both sides of the Vía Blanca. Some prefer to move away from the group and position themselves a few meters ahead, taking advantage of the fact that vehicles slow down as they cross the railway line, where trains to the industrial zone stopped running years ago. There, each driver represents a possibility, and each acceleration a new disappointment.

“Since I got married four years ago, I’ve lived in the town of Carbonera, but I still work for a small business here in Matanzas. Coming here is just as complicated as making the return trip, always with the pressure of trying to spend as little as possible,” says Andrés, while trucks, machinery, and private cars continue to pass by without even looking at him.

The uncertainty of reaching out to a car that may never stop is a daily reality for hundreds of people on both sides of the Vía Blanca. / 14ymedio

For the young man, there’s almost no difference left between state and private drivers. “They both try to make a living off the needs of others. The trucks going to Havana are useless to me now, because you have to pay the full fare. The tourist buses disappeared from this route a long time ago, and the Transmetro buses don’t stop because they’re chartered. Drivers who agree to take someone for free are becoming increasingly rare. That’s not because of a lack of fuel; it’s because of a lack of something else,” he says before signaling, once again, to a taxi that also doesn’t stop.

At this intersection, where the silhouette of the Sauto Theater is just steps away and the bay looms in the distance, coger botella [‘grabbing a bottle’, i.e. catching a ride] can become a daily ordeal. It doesn’t matter if your destination is Reparto Iglesias, Peñas Altas, Carbonera, or even Cárdenas. The combination of prolonged power outages, lack of diesel, and reduced public transportation has multiplied a problem that long ago ceased to be a mere annoyance and has become a permanent obstacle to working, studying, or simply getting home.

Meanwhile, the street vendor observes the scene with the serenity of someone who sees it every day. “Buy yourself a shaved ice, you don’t know how long you’ll be here,” he calls out to the newcomers. No one seems to take the phrase as a sales tactic. It sounds, rather, like advice born of experience. Around him, arms continue to be raised, vehicles pass by without stopping, and the traffic light remains off, as if it too has given up on bringing order to a city where, for months now, getting around depends much more on patience than on transportation.

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‘We Continue the Fight, Cuba’s Freedom Must Be Achieved,’ Says an 11J Prisoner Upon Leaving Prison

Mitchel Barzaga served a five-year sentence in Granma prison, where other protesters from the 2021 protests are still incarcerated.

Barzaga Mompié was greeted with hugs and tears by family and friends in his neighborhood in Granma. / ClickCuba

14ymedio, Madrid, August 15, 2026 / Fernando Mitchel Barzaga Mompié, a political prisoner for his participation in the massive protests of 11 July 2021, was released this week, after fully serving his sentence, which expired on August 12.

The former political prisoner was being held in the Granma provincial prison, known as “Las Mangas,” convicted of public disorder and assault. Other protesters from the ’11J’ demonstrations remain imprisoned there, according to Barzaga himself.

The digital news outlet ClickCuba released videos of the moment he left prison, in which Barzaga declared he was “happy, but also disappointed” because he had hoped that, upon his release, “the people would finally be free, the dictatorship would be down.” “Unfortunately, that hasn’t been the case. But we will continue fighting,” he added.

The same media outlet also documented Barzaga’s arrival in his neighborhood in Granma, where family and neighbors greeted him enthusiastically. The former political prisoner wore a Cuban flag draped over his clothing as his young children ran excitedly to meet him, showering him with hugs and kisses.

“Freedom is never complete: until the people of Cuba are free, I am not free.”

“Freedom is never complete: until the people of Cuba are free, I am not free,” begins the message Barzaga delivers via ClickCuba camera, in which he urges Cubans to demand their rights, their dignity, and their freedom, “what is rightfully theirs as human beings.” “We don’t have to do what a dictator tells us,” the former prisoner of conscience continues. “Cubans have the right to be free, to demand,” he adds, and concludes with a call: “We continue the fight: Cuba’s freedom must be achieved.”

The images show his family receiving him with remarkable emotion, amid tears of happiness, in their home in very precarious conditions.

On August 4, just days before completing his sentence, continue reading

Barzaga Mompié sent an audio message in which he criticized the artist and former political prisoner Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara for not having used his freedom more to denounce the situation of the other political prisoners on the island. In that audio, Barzaga promised that he would recount “the violations, repression, torture, and crimes of the Cuban government” that he had personally witnessed.

“I swear by every drop of blood spilled, by every brother physically disappeared and every whip lashed on the back of our Cuban people, that seven days a week will not be enough to recount, express, vent and denounce all that oppresses my soul and that unfortunately my children, my family and I live through,” the political prisoner declared at the time.

“We know the regime would rather see me dead than free, but my truth will never be silenced.”

Regarding the expectations of his release, Barzaga had said: “We know that the regime prefers me dead rather than free, but my truth will never be silenced.”

The activist had maintained his denunciations of the regime throughout his imprisonment. In August 2025, he sent a message to the Ministry of the Interior, the Cuban Armed Forces, and the Communist Party, criticizing them for

‘They Have Started Taking the Cemetery’s Iron Grilles’

Thieves are turning historic buildings, schools, and former factories into sources of reusable or sellable materials

Today, that historical legacy survives amid damaged walls and neglect that threatens to erase two centuries of memory. / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Darío Hernández, Havana, August 15, 2026 – Just over a year ago, this newspaper visited the old Guanabacoa cemetery to show the neglect of one of Havana’s oldest burial grounds. At the time, weeds were devouring the pathways, the remains of religious rituals were accumulating beside the graves, and the tombs displayed the scars left by metal theft. If in 2025 the theft of the grilles appeared as yet another symptom of neglect, today the dismantling of the site has only accelerated.

On the perimeter wall, the gaps left by the iron grilles are striking. Where bars once stood, only the masonry pillars remain, evidence of the looting suffered by the site. The metal pieces are a coveted prize in a country where a kilogram of iron can translate into a few pesos to survive.

The graves show new signs of vandalism, with fractured tombstones, opened structures, and missing ornamental elements. / 14ymedio

Designed in 1814 next to the Potosí Hermitage, the cemetery began receiving burials in 1821, as part of sanitary reforms that sought to move burials outside churches and their surrounding areas. Considered the oldest cemetery in Guanabacoa, a municipality that contains the largest number of cemeteries in Havana, it was declared a National Monument in 1997. It preserves mausoleums and structures of significant heritage value. Among them is the hermitage itself, built in the 17th century and considered one of the oldest buildings in the municipality.

Today, that historical legacy survives amid damaged walls and neglect that threatens to erase two centuries of memory. The graves show new signs of vandalism, with fractured tombstones, opened structures, and missing ornamental elements. Many graves remain overrun by vegetation, while the neglect is evident in every corner.

“They have started taking the grilles,” says Javier, who has several relatives buried in the cemetery and has witnessed the progressive deterioration of this historic burial ground.

The church, one of the cemetery’s most emblematic buildings, has also become a target for criminals. / 14ymedio

Nor have the workers escaped the wear and tear caused by the constant insecurity. “They have had to restore the church’s wood several times after thieves broke in repeatedly,” Javier explains. Each repair seems to last only a short time. Soon afterward, there are continue reading

more breakages, forced entries, and attempts to steal anything of economic value.

The church, one of the cemetery’s most emblematic buildings, has also become a target for criminals. The lack of surveillance and the shortage of resources to protect the site facilitate nighttime incursions. What were once sporadic thefts of metals or funeral ornaments have evolved into the gradual dismantling of the infrastructure.

When this newspaper visited the cemetery in May 2025, several workers attributed the deterioration to a lack of personnel, low salaries, and the impossibility of maintaining the site properly. They also reported the constant theft of copper rings, metal plaques, and other elements from the graves. A year later, those problems have worsened.

Now the looting is no longer limited to the graves. The cemetery’s own grilles are gradually disappearing, while sections of the wall have open fractures to facilitate their removal. “The cemetery is currently abandoned; apparently, no one cares anymore,” Javier laments.

The economic crisis, the informal metals market, and the absence of surveillance are turning historic buildings, schools, factories, and cemeteries into sources of reusable or sellable materials. What cannot be protected ends up being dismantled piece by piece.

At the old Guanabacoa cemetery, that process is especially painful. It is not only objects of material value that are disappearing. A place filled with memory is also deteriorating, a place where generations of families rest and where every damaged grave represents a part of local history that is being lost. For now, the decline shows no signs of stopping.

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Translated by Regina Anavy

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