What remains certain is that Obama’s visit will continue to be the topic of conversation over the next four weeks – on Cuban television, international television, the streets of Havana and Miami, and the President will be greeted in March with expectation, flags and baited breath.
Read MoreFrom what I’ve perceived, no one expects Obama to come offer magical solutions to our problems. The price of tomatoes will not go down, teacher wages will not be raised, our phone company, ETECSA, won’t stop treating us like chumps and buildings won’t sprout from the earth to offer those in shelters and living with families decorous housing just to please Obama.
Read MoreThe day-to-day life of Cubans is very tough, uncertain, stressful and monotonous. Luckily, there’s not much violence in the country and one doesn’t have to pay for schools or hospitals, for that would make it a true, living hell.
Read MoreThe great Cuban novelist and journalist Lisandro Otero used to say that, while one can never be certain of what comes next under capitalism, one is oblivious as to what came before under socialism. It sounds like a joke, but, in Cuba, people know this is gospel truth.
Read MoreFour developments and a survey conducted by a public US radio station this week revealed that, despite the embargo (still in place), bilateral relations between the United States and Cuba are making progress.
Read MoreWhat Latin American government would be upset if the USA offered financing to its private sector and encouraged the growth of small and mid-sized enterprises? However, Raul Castro wants all financing for the State and considers the growth of those sectors not under its supervision a threat.
Read MoreFor the vast majority of Cubans, being able to leave the island legally has long been – and continues to be – a pipe dream, an unattainable goal. This is especially so for those who live in the interior. Some have achieved this through sacrifice and tenacity…
Read MoreIt’s striking to see the images of a successful revolution, aired on television and sold to the world: smiling children being vaccinated or heading to school in colorful uniforms, hospitals and clinics offering free services, full of apparently satisfied patients, athletes leaping, running or batting a homerun and thrilling fragments of passionate speeches.
Read MoreThe online platform Reflejos (“Reflections”) is one of the Cuban government’s maneuvers aimed at offering local citizens a substitute for the Internet. It claims to be a space aimed at bringing together blogs authored by Cuban Internet users and making these more visible, so that they can reach more people in cyberspace.
Read MoreCuban-American dissidents, activists and legislators continue to make contradictory statements which the press eats up and amplifies without questioning: they speak of strengthening or fostering Cuban civil society while referring to the regime’s totalitarian nature, calling the changes implemented mere “cosmetic” touchups.
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