The debate on one of the presentations focused on the new forms of censorship being applied in the country, characterized by avoiding outright bans, seeking to annul through other means the works that could impact on the population. Refined methods are used including minimizing distribution of art or literature critical of government policy.
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An analysis about the possible success or failure of the reform process taking place in Cuba was the focus of discussions during the first plenary session of the XXIV Annual Conference of the Association for the Study of the Cuban Economy (ASCE). The three-day event, which began on Thursday at the Hilton Miami Downtown, was attended by hundreds of industry professionals, including many Cubans from both shores of the Straits of Florida.
Read moreLooked at both in a national as well as an international perspective, the duty of the left in Cuba is to preserve all the positive things that the Cuban socialist experiment has brought with it, as it struggles to move on towards a new model which – in the words of the currently fashionable jargon – is both prosperous and sustainable.
Read moreCarpentier spoke of “magical realism,” just as people had spoken of this earlier in Europe. Similarly, Stalinists defended their grim “socialist realism.” Now, Cuba — a country with restricted internet access for its citizens — is showcasing to the world the island’s most famous blogger who is giving us “virtual realism.”
Read moreChavez started a democratic revolution, respecting the constitution approved by popular vote during his fourteen years in power, without excluding his enemies, while accepting the “No” to his proposals when they were voted down. Even after his passing away, respect is being given to the right to multi-party elections, the media and electoral campaigns.
Read moreWhen there’s a lot to say, it’s better to write little. When it comes to the award-winning Uruguayan writer Daniel Chavarria, who has lived among us for so long, it was unfortunate to hear about the slip he made by denying proven facts concerning the repression of homosexuals in Cuba.
Read moreOne central issue characterizes the comments added to articles published in Havana Times. Many of them express the desire to do away with socialism in Cuba (though, paradoxically, some of them even claim that such a system never existed in our country.
Read moreCooperatives are now being formed in Cuba in the service sector, which includes transportation, plus some productive sectors such as fishing and construction. Agriculture was the traditional area in which cooperatives existed, and now even these have greater autonomy from government control.
Read moreOn December 7, the Granma newspaper reported on what may be called large-scale telephone fraud. Two foreign companies were able to provide mobile and landline telephone services to numbers of Cubans, charging them black market prices well below those set by the national telephone company, ETECSA, which typically monopolizes those services on the island.
Read moreThe existence of the market, with its basic categories such as money, wages, banking, credit and so on, does not imply the presence of a capitalist system. Such economic categories have accompanied human society since the dawn of civilization.
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