The Pope saluted the gathered crowds, kissed a number of children who had been preselected for the occasion, blessed a similarly pre-approved woman on a wheelchair, embraced his Jesuit brothers and boarded his new Pope Mobile. No one drew his attention to a bulletin board where hundreds of petitions from Cuban citizens had been posted.
Read MoreThe Cuban press appears to be re-editing that old maxim of “the selfless aid of the Soviet Union,” replacing the USSR with the Vatican. It remains to be seen whether they’ll be able to “sell” citizens the illusion of such help once again.
Read MoreI will focus on three important regulations stemming from the hard-headed, bureaucratic reluctance to raise worker salaries, “until the country’s productivity is increased,” as well as the excessive centralization of foreign and domestic trade and the insistence on egalitarianism in subsidies afforded by the ration booklet.
Read MoreIn his first intervention at the United Nations, Cuban president Raul Castro had the following words to say on Saturday at the UN Sustainable Development Summit. Castro will address over a hundred heads of state and government at the plenary session of the UN General Assembly on Monday, Sept. 28.
Read MoreA reader left a comment saying that “Cubans went into the Special Period economic crisis together, and they are coming out of it one-by-one.” The question now is whether we’ll all be able to come out of the crisis or whether the “weakest” will be left behind.
Read MoreThe best part of Pope Francis’ visit to Havana took place near nightfall, when the planned gathering with young people was held. Speaking on behalf of those present, a university student greeted the pontiff with the following words: “Cuba needs profound reforms, so that it may one day become the home all Cubans want, regardless of what they think and where they live.”
Read MoreOn Sunday, a congregation of Communist Party militants and non-dissident Christians sang the Alleluia at Havana’s Revolution Square, a place that belongs, not to Fidel or Raul Castro, but to all revolutionaries who defend Cuban independence – Christian or atheist – and who fought and died for something more than clinging to power indefinitely.
Read MoreThat was the question a journalist put to the Cuban foreign minister during the presentation of the resolution to be discussed again at the UN General Assembly, calling for the lifting of the blockade on Cuba.
Read MoreVictor Jara’s killers were finally arrested. The Chilean singer and songwriter was murdered in Santiago’s National Stadium in 1973, a few days after the military coup that toppled the government of Salvador Allende. Today we can celebrate the fact that justice moves slowly but surely – at least in the case of Chile.
Read MoreBecause of my age and financial situation, I am one of the many people who began using information technologies rather late, something of a tragedy considering I was born in Cuba. For us, this is compensated for by our children and grandchildren.
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