Sakharov for Fariñas: Acknowledgment of Cuban Democrats

Generally, awards give rise to controversies, and that is normal. Only totalitarian regimes are bent on wanting everyone to think and act the same way. But, despite some voices who disagree (most of which come straight from those who defend the regime), the most popular and prestigious awards handed out throughout the world during the [...]

Fulfilled What?

My sister in the civil struggle, Marta Beatriz Roque, commented to me that the Spanish foreign minister, Miguel Angel Moratinos, had recently declared in New York that Cuba “had fulfilled” its promise. And now, I ask myself: did the totalitarian Castro-ite regime honor the Universal Declaration of Human Rights? Did Cuba fulfill the observance of [...]

Hunger Strike

The political prisoner, Lamberto Hernandez Plana, declared himself on hunger strike on September 23rd. Hernandez Plana is 41 years old and hails from a home on 24th street number 109, between 15th and 17th in Vedado, in the municipal capital of Plaza of the Revolution. He is one of the ones from the group that [...]

Scars in the Memory

Remembering the happy days is not a problem; forgetting the days of captivity is nearly impossible, for the wounds deeply scarred my soul. Now that I have more time to meditate, I ask myself: how did I survive so much human misery? A misery which is not only linked to the penal population, for I [...]

We Can’t Always be Deceived

There are many dissimilar forms of lying, but our fellow human beings cannot always be deceived. Right now, the authorities of Havana are carrying out a fierce campaign against anyone who dissents from the current political system to the extreme that they make a state journalist publish articles or entire websites that are run by, [...]

Calling Upon the European Union

We political prisoners and prisoners of conscience are addressing the Council of the European Union, which will meet during its scheduled semi-annual session and will discuss, among other things, the relations between the EU and Cuba. With total respect for the sovereignty of the Union and each of its member countries, we are aiming to [...]

“Zapata Lives!” An Interview with Antonio Diaz Sanchez; by Pablo Pacheco

During the last couple of years many people have sacrificed their bodies and souls in order to try to achieve the democratization of the island. Plenty of men and women have ended up serving excessive sentences in prison and have also been accused by the regime under the false and rhetorical label of mercenaries, traitors, [...]

Women: Perserverance and Firmness

I have lost count of how many times I have asked myself the same question: Who invented the philosophy that the female sex is weak? Sometimes, as product of voluntary error, we believe that strength is defined by carrying, pushing, or sustaining a fixed weight. Human civilization, however, has given women more of a lead [...]

Moratinos and Havana

The illustrious Spanish minister of foreign affairs, Miguel Angel Moratinos, has returned to the scene. He has declared his absolute position towards the European bloc and Havana through his eagerness of encouraging the European Union, Spain, and Cuba to engage in dialogue, according to the news report made by the state-run Granma newspaper. Besides being [...]

Auto Determination…

In the midnight hours of this past 18th of March, the common prisoner Alexander Orrelis Soto ended his own life, according to sources close to the deceased. The sources also added that the suicide occured in Detachment 1 of the provincial prison of Canaleta in Ciego de Avila. Orrelis Soto wrote an abundance of letters [...]