C U B A

• Sculpture donated to Hemingway's Cuban home
May 17,2013
“I love this country and feel at home here, and where a man feels at home, apart from the place where he was born, that is the place where he was destined to be… and I will always be the partisan who chose Cuba," affirmed the U.S. writer Ernest Hemingway,

 • “Home is love, respect and inclusion”
May 17,2013
MARIELA Castro Espín promotes dialogue. She speaks softly and has no need to raise her voice in order to convince. She inherited these qualities from her mother, Vilma Espín, together with her natural beauty and steadfastness.

• Support for the Cuban people’s struggle confirmed
May 17,2013
A standing ovation, joy and endorsement marked the final meeting of the 8th International May Day Brigade upon learning that the Cuban anti-terrorist René González is to remain in Cuba after renouncing his U.S. citizenship.

• More solidarity from Venezuela
May 17,2013
STRENGTHENING the ties of friendship and sisterhood uniting the lands of Simón Bolívar and José Martí is the focus of the Venezuelan Carlos Aponte Solidarity Brigade, which is to make an annual visit to Cuba.

• Cuba’s changing demographic structure
May 17,2013
COMPLEX demographic phenomena such as fertility and mortality rates, plus emigration, serve as the starting point for a study published by Cuba’s National Statistics and Information Office (ONEI), which projects a vision of Cuba in 2030, taking into account trends and situations experienced by the country’s inhabitants in recent years.

• CUBA-EU relations
An exception that should not continue
May 17,2013
CUBA is the only country in the Americas with which the European Union (EU) does not have a contractual framework for its bilateral relations. "This is an exception which should not continue," stated Christian Leffler, from Sweden, Director for the Americas of the European External Action Service (EEAS), during a recent visit to Cuba.

• Haitian Prime Minister begins official visit to Cuba
May 16,2013
HAITIAN Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe began an official visit to Cuba yesterday, May 15, during which he is to meet with authorities with a view to extending bilateral relations.

• The battle against our own limitations and deficiencies
May 14,2013
MAY 10, during an expanded meeting of the Council of Ministers, President Raúl Castro Ruz reiterated the need to avoid inefficient use of resources since, “conservation is a principal source of income within the economy,”

• Cuba, best country in Latin America for maternity
May 9,2013
LONDON, May 7.— Cuba is the best country in Latin America, and 33rd in the world for maternity, according to the international organization Save the Children, which promotes the rights of childhood.

• This is an honorable country
May 9,2013
CHALLENGING U.S. government restrictions, San Diego resident Jurg Hinderling, recently visited Cuba as part of the 21st Ernesto Che Guevara Volunteer Work Brigade, comprising friends of Cuba from Canada and the United States.

• Religious freedoms in Cuba
May 9,2013
ANNUAL U.S. State Department reports refer to Cuba as one of the countries which obstructs the exercise of religious expression. While the latest State Department report, in reference to the country, states that government respect for religious freedoms has improved, it notes that significant restrictions have remained in place.

• Broad recognition of Cuba’s human rights record
May 9,2013
GENEVA, May 1.— The great majority of speakers during Cuba’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) recognized the guarantees and protection offered human rights in the country, despite damage caused by the U.S. blockade.

• IN GUANAHACABIBES:
Guardians of a treasure
May 9,2013
PINAR DEL RÍO.— Shrouded in legends retold over centuries, as if not acknowledging the passing of time, the Guanahacabibes Peninsula is still, for many, a land of mystery, of the hidden treasures of corsairs and pirates.

• René González, a Cuban patriot
May 7,2013
DURING a press conference in Havana, René González, one of the five Cuban heroes unjustly convicted in the U.S. for anti-terrorist activities, said, “My commitment to this people is the only possible response I can make to the solidarity, affection and support 11 million Cubans have shown me.”

• René can remain in Cuba
May 6,2013
ON May 3, Judge Joan Lenard accepted the request presented by René González to modify the conditions of his supervised release and remain in Cuba, in exchange for renouncing his U.S. citizenship.

• Raúl receives FAO Director General
May 6,2013
PRESIDENT Raúl Castro received on May 3 José Graziano da Silva, Director General of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), who was making a working visit to Cuba.

• Captivated by flowers
May 2,2013
LOS PALACIOS, Pinar del Río.— In a province known for its agriculture, above all for its important ricefields, César Lugo has gained notoriety for a different activity, the cultivation of flowers.

• This is Santiago de Cuba! Don’t be surprised!
May 2,2013
"Santiago moves you, it looks like a bombed out city. But we are going to get through this. You are a fighting people,” said Raúl, on October 29, 2012, touring the province which was hit on October 25 by devastating Hurricane Sandy.

• Moncada: A call for change in the social and economic order
May 2,2013
THE assault on the Moncada Garrison on July 26, 1953, and on the smaller Carlos Manuel de Céspedes Garrison in Bayamo, was not planned and carried out solely to overthrow a de facto government which had seized power via a military coup the previous year.

• Cubana Aviation expands its fleet
May 2,2013
CUBA'S national airline, Cubana de Aviación, has incorporated into its fleet a Russian-Ukrainian Antonov 158 (AN-158) aircraft, the first of three of its kind to be acquired by Cuba this year.

• Cuba-Venezuelan cooperation continues
May 2,2013
THE approval of 51 collaborative projects between Cuba and Venezuela on April 27 once again confirmed that the close ties between the two nations go far beyond mere bureaucratic acts and constitute “a historical alliance which transcends time,” as President Nicolás Maduro stated in the closing session of the 13th Cuba-Venezuela Intergovernmental Commission.

• Cuban President heads May Day central event
May 1,2013
PRESIDENT Raúl Castro today headed the central event for International Workers’ Day, while Cuban workers and people filled the country’s plazas and avenues in honor of Venezuelan Comandante Hugo Chávez.

• Message from the Five
May Day message from Ramón, in the name of the Five
May 1,2013
ON this May 1, International Workers’ Day! embraces and infinite love from the Five who, even from this frontline combat trench, always accompany you in every effort, every activity and every undertaking for the good of Cuba and the world.

• Cuba submits report to UN Human Rights Council
April 25,13
The Cuban Foreign Affairs Ministry submitted, on April 23, its Universal Periodic Review (UPR) to the United Nations Human Rights Council, to be reviewed by the UN on May 1 in Geneva, Switzerland.

• Monument Conservation and Restoration Awards
April 25,13
To coincide with International Monuments and Historical Sites Day on April 18, Cuba’s National Cultural Heritage Board awarded the 2013 Monument Conservation and Restoration Prize to the Nazareth Baptist Church, an example of Art Deco in Cienfuegos, and to the Havana Cristo by Cuban sculptress Jilma Madera.

• Over seven million learn to read with Yo, sí puedo method
April 25,13
Over seven million people who were unable to read and write, in 30 countries, have benefited from the Cuban literacy method Yo, sí puedo (Yes, I can), according to Ricardo del Real Hernández, Head of the Education and Literacy Department for Young People and Adults in the Latin American and Caribbean Pedagogical Institute.

• Freedom for the Five demanded in Canada
April 25,13
Adriana Pérez, wife of Gerardo Hernández, one of the Five Cuban anti-terrorists convicted and imprisoned in the United States, called on the Canadian religious community to support demands for the Five to be returned to their homeland.

• Baracoa at a glance
April 25,13
There is an old story that Baracoa is home to three lies of nature. One, a Farola (lighthouse) which does not light (not in fact a lighthouse but a highway, designated as one of the seven wonders of Cuban construction), a River Miel (Honey), that is brackish, and El Yunque (anvil), a local mountain which holds no iron.

• Friends from 23 countries celebrate May Day in Cuba
April 25,13
As this edition of Granma International closes, some 200 friends of Cuba from 23 countries are preparing for the country’s International Workers’ Day march which culminates in Havana’s Plaza de la Revolución. They are among the members of the 8th International May Day Brigade and offered the following comments.

• Work and study driving a revolution in Cuba’s prison system
April 22,13
There are no security fences, high intensity lights or concrete watchtowers here. The San Agustín Work and Study Center (CTE), in Matanzas, shatters the preconceptions of what constitutes a prison.

• Sensitivity, understanding, inclusion
Cuba commemorates World Autism Awareness Day
April 17,13
Established by the United Nations General Assembly in 2008, World Autism Awareness Day is observed April 2 in an effort to improve the lives of individuals with this condition.

• Plant species identified in Cuba’s remote western region
April 17,13
Cuban botanists have identified 125 tree species within Guanahacabibes National Park, located on the far western end of the island and designated a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO.

• EDITORIAL
Agreements are being implemented, with greater accountability and rigor
April 17,13
“THE updating of our economic model is not a miracle that can be performed overnight, as some think. Its complete implementation will be achieved gradually over the coming five year period, since it involves a great deal of detail, planning, coordination, on both the judicial level and in the meticulous preparation of all who will participate in the practical work.”

• Cuba and Poland: New trade opportunities
April 17,13
In recent years, Cuban exports to Poland have mainly consisted of rum, sugar, hand-rolled cigars and black tobacco, while Cuba’s most common imports from Poland have been fertilizers and powdered milk, even though collaboration agreements are more comprehensive.

• Fidel and Maradona meet
April 17,13
The historical leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro Ruz, held a friendly meeting on Saturday April 13 with former star footballer, Argentine Diego Armando Maradona.

• Effects of climate change require special attention
April 17,13
Climate change requires particular attention with a view toward sustainable development in Cuba, given its broad impact and the high degree of vulnerability of the Cuban archipelago, according to a specialist in the subject.

• Cuban doctors continue providing services in Venezuela
April 17,13
Cuban doctors continue to fulfill their duty to attend to any Venezuelan citizen needing their services, irrespective of their political affiliation, social class or any other consideration.

• Cuba opens its prisons to the press
April 16,13
CUBAN and foreign journalists visited on April 9 the Combinado del Este prison facility, Cuba’s largest penitentiary, and spoke with inmates in cells, the hospital and in work and study areas.

• Raúl congratulates Nicolás Maduro
April 15,13
Havana, April 14, 2013
Dear Nicolás,
In the name of the government and people of Cuba, I congratulate you for this extraordinary victory which demonstrates the strength of the ideas and work of Comandante Hugo Chávez. This decisive win and your loyalty to the people will assure the continuity of the Bolivarian Revolution and the genuine integration of Our America.

• Fidel inaugurates educational complex
April 11,13
THE leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro Ruz, inaugurated on April 9 the Vilma Espín Guillois Educational Complex bordering the Futuro Lechero dairy, in Havana’s Playa municipality.
- PHOTO

• Díaz-Canel receives CELAC Foreign Ministers
April 11,13
MIGUEL Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, First Vice President of the Councils of State and Ministers, received on April 5 representatives of the expanded troika of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC).

• Forestry strategy to expand wooded areas
April 11,13
RAISING the survival rate of plantings, and thus expanding wooded areas, is the focus of the country’s forestry strategy, reported Isabel Russó Milhet, forestry director for the Ministry of Agriculture (MINAG), in an interview with Granma.

• Solidarity with the Syrian people
April 5,13
A number of Cuban organizations demonstrated their solidarity with the Syrian people, in the run up to the 67th anniversary of Syrian independence from France, and condemned the Western conspiracy against the country’s integrity.

• Cuba’s food sustainability efforts recognized
April 5,13
THE priority Cuba is giving to increasing agricultural production was highlighted by European Union representatives in a workshop relating to food sustainability, held on April 2.

• Cuba notes shortcomings of Arms Trade Treaty
April 5,13
UNITED NATIONS.—Cuba criticized the discussion of the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) given its curtailment in the UN General Assembly, as a means of winning approval for a treaty which does not have the required consensus support, Prensa Latina reported.

• Raúl: We are moving forward at a good pace despite obstacles
April 4,13
PRESIDENT Raúl Castro Ruz insisted on "thinking and rethinking everything we do, periodically checking all steps taken to correct possible mistakes, moving forward despite obstacles which might emerge," during an April 2 Council of Ministers meeting which had as its focus the analysis of proposed general directives for the development of the 2014 Economic Plan and State Budget.

• The "linguistic aroma" of tobacco
April 4,13
SANCTI SPIRITUS.— The aroma of cigars is praised or rejected by smokers and non-smokers alike. Tobacco has become part of Cuba’s national identity over centuries. Gilberto Torrecilla Guerra, PhD in Agricultural Sciences, a researcher from the Tobacco Study Center in Cabaiguán, has been studying the plant since 1969. He has collected more than 2,000 words related to tobacco as part of his research.

• EQUALITY IN CUBA
Will there ever be a man's day?
April 4,13
DESPITE huge efforts and legislation approved by the Revolution to create gender equality in society, men and women believe that equality is still something quite distant.

• FIAGROP 2013
Emphasis on greater domestic production
April 4,13
MORE than 1,400 different species of cattle, pigs, poultry, equines, sheep, goats, rabbits and buffalos, the best of Cuba’s livestock, were exhibited during the 16th edition of the country’s most important agricultural fair, FIAGROP 2013, held in Havana, March 23-29. Clearly reflected was the commitment to promoting greater domestic agricultural and livestock production.

• UNDP Associate Administrator highlights Cuban support in Haiti
April 2,13
QUITO, April 1.—UN Under-Secretary General Rebeca Grynspan stated here that without the presence of Cuban doctors in Haiti, it would have been impossible to respond to the cholera outbreak in that country.

• U.S. economic blockade encourages theft of Cuban trademarks
April 1,13
HAVANA.—March 31.—The economic, financial and commercial blockade imposed on Cuba by the United States encourages the theft of the country’s trademarks.

• Communist Party of India delegation visits Cuba
March 28,13
JOSE Ramón Balaguer Cabrera, director of the Communist Party of Cuba’s International Relations Department received Prakash Karat, general secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and his accompanying delegation, invited by the Party.

• Cuban history preserved for ever
March 28,13
WITH the objective of preserving the historic memory and guarding for posterity a faithful testament of Cuba’s socioeconomic development, two important collections of documents have been included in the UNESCO Memory of the World Program’ National Registry. The registration certificates were presented to the Council of State’s Historical Affairs Office.

• Antonio Guerrero paints José Martí
March 28,13
SANTIAGO DE CUBA.— The painting exposition entitled El verdadero hombre, (The Real Man) dedicated to Cuba’s national hero José Martí, by Antonio Guerrero, himself a decorated Hero of the Republic, began its tour of the island in the historic Moncada Garrison on March 19.

• CLOSING THE DIGITAL DIVIDE
We either take action or lose ourselves in a technological abyss
March 28,13
IN the so called digital era, Information and Communications Technology (ICT) has become a strategic development tool around the world. But with the staggering speed of internet and scientific and technological advances, the technology divide, or imbalances in access to these technologies, has also grown.

• ALTERNATIVE DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES
…To change the world
March 28,13
NO matter how many times he is interviewed, it is always interesting talking with Hervé Fischer. And that is because it is hard to think of this sociologist, philosopher, communication theorist, writer and artist, born in France and now living in Canada, a person who is always presenting innovative ideas, creating problems to be solved, without mentioning his ideas and his ability to create.

• Heberprot-P benefits 100,000 patients worldwide
March 28,13
MORE than 100,000 patients worldwide, including those in Cuba, have benefited from Heberprot-P, a medication developed by Cuban biotechnology to treat diabetic foot ulcers, with excellent results.

• Cuba: leader in disaster medicine, says world expert
March 28,13
PROFESSOR John R. Ashton, president of the UK Faculty of Public Health, stated on a recent visit to Havana that Cuba is a leader in terms of medical support for disaster areas in the Americas

• Biometeorological Forecasting
March 28,13
CUBAN researchers have been investigating and developing biometeorological forecasting since the 1990’s, with the aim of providing advance warning for emergency medical services when weather conditions are expected to provoke a sharp increase in bronchial asthma, high blood pressure, severe headaches and other chronic non-transmittable illnesses.

• Fidel sends letter to Evo Morales on Day of the Sea
March 26,13
THE historical leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro, sent a letter to Bolivian President Evo Morales, coinciding with the commemoration of the Day of the Sea in Bolivia.

• DEMOGRAFIC TRENDS IN CUBA
An urgent challenge
March 22,13
CERTAIN journalism theorists state that too many figures can complicate the reading or decoding of texts, or obscure the message. If figures are used at the beginning of an article, this is even worse. However, on some subjects, there is no alternative but to present figures to assist understanding.

• The recovery of Havana Bay
March 22,13
“TEST results show that the water is oxygenated. Look at the fish, the pelicans and seagulls in search of a good catch," says Josué  Prat, smiling, fishing rod in hand. Prat, a teacher at the José Martí High School in Villa Panamericana (Habana del  Este municipality), likes to spend his leisure time fishing.

• In step with present-day Cuba
March 22,13
THE updating of Cuba’s Central State Administration and the need to develop a system of government which responds to the country's needs have led to a change in structure, mission and functioning of the Ministry of Information Technology and Communication.

• CUBAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
50 years linking Cuban enterprise with the world
March 22,13
 THE Cuban Chamber of Commerce celebrated the 50th anniversary of its founding with renewed vigor and targets for continuing to guarantee Cuban business relations with the world.

• Raúl: The smiles of our children are enough for us to feel content
March 22,13
IF the only result of everything we have done were just smiles on the faces of our children, that would be enough to make us content; if there were but one sole reason to justify the struggles of more than 50 years, it would be your happiness, just that would be the reward for so much effort,” Raúl said to members of La Colmenita Children’s theater company, after attending the premiere of Y sin embargo se mueve (Eppur si muove).

• 55th Anniversary of the Frank País Second Eastern Front
Tribute to its combatants
March 22,13
SEGUNDO Frente, Santiago de Cuba.—Once again guerrilla compañeros came together in the heart of Mayari Arriba in response to their patriotic duty, not to take up arms, but to honor those who, 55 years ago, were the protagonists of many acts of bravery.

• Raúl’s message to Prime Minister Li Keqiang
March 22,13
Havana, March 14, 2013
 Dear compañero:
 I extend to you my most cordial congratulations on the occasion of your election as Prime Minister of the Council of State of the People’s Republic of China, in the name of the Cuban people and government.

• Message from Miguel Díaz-Canel to Vice President Li Yuancho
March 22,13
 Havana, March 14, 2013
 Dear compañero,
 ON the occasion of your election as Vice President of the People’s Republic of China, I extend to you my warmest congratulations and best wishes for success during your mandate.

• Order is synonymous with development
President Raúl Castro heads expanded Council of Ministers meeting
March 19,13
IN an expanded Council of Ministers meeting on March 15, President Raúl Castro once again called for the promotion of order in all areas of society. He likewise reiterated the need to continue working with discipline and rigor for the country’s sustainable development.

• Message from Raúl to President Xi Jinping
March 15,13
Havana, March 14, 2013
DEAR compañero,
On the occasion of your election as President of the People’s Republic of China, I extend to you warmest congratulations in the name of the Cuban people and government. We are convinced that, under your leadership, this sister country will achieve new successes in the building of socialism.

• Honoring a guerrilla poet and his Front
March 15,13
AT dawn on March 6, President Raúl Castro Ruz arrived at the Mausoleum in the heart of the Sierra Maestra where the remains of combatants in the Dr. Mario Muñoz Monroy Third Eastern Front are laid to rest, to honor the unforgettable Comandante of the Revolution Juan Almeida Bosque, the undisputed leader of the Front, and his compañeros in struggle.

• Cuba honors the Bolivarian President
March 15,13
JUST like his great-grandfather Maisanta, Hugo Chávez seemed to be the last horseback rider when, at the end of the 20th century, he "threatened" Latin American integration.

• Forbidden to let Chávez die
March 15,13
CARACAS, Venezuela.— I left Cuba with its flags flying at half-mast. Since yesterday afternoon [March 5], that terrible yesterday afternoon, it is being said that Chávez has died. The talk is of death, obsequies, mortal remains, the funeral cortege. But however much I try to accustom myself to the idea, I cannot see a dead Chávez. It is as if the noun has nothing to do with the adjective describing it, as if language itself had been seized by insanity.

• What Chávez left us
March 15,13
JOSÉ Marti, that traveler who arrived in Caracas and "without cleansing himself of the dust of the journey, went directly to the statue of the Liberator [Simón Bolívar]," showed all Cubans the greatness, not just of a man, but of his American independence thinking.

• Only such a great man could be so human
March 15,13
SANTIAGO de Cuba.— Just two encounters between Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez Frías and Cuba’s greatest homerun hitter Orestes Kindelán Olivares were enough to develop a mutual affection, and profoundly sadden the Santiago-born former baseball player on learning of the death of the Bolivarian leader.

• Message from Raul to Pope Francis
March 14,13
HIS Holiness Francis
Your Holiness:
On the occasion of your election as His Holiness of the Catholic Church, in the name of the Cuban government and people, it is my pleasure to convey my cordial congratulations and best wishes for your pontificate.

• We have lost our best friend
March 11,13
THE best friend the Cuban people have had throughout their history died on the afternoon of March 5. A call via satellite communicated the bitter news. The significance of the phrase used was unmistakable.

• GUANAROCA-GAVILAN LAKE NATURE RESERVE
Nature in state of grace
March 7,13
CLOSE to 3,400 hectares of land and water comprise the Guanaroca-Gavilán Lake Nature Reserve in the municipalities of Cienfuegos and Cumanayagua (Cienfuegos province), where many species are preserved and protected, among them a colony of almost 1,600 pink flamingos.

• Members of the Council of State
March 7,13
THE Council of State elected during the constitutional session of the National Assembly of People's Power, which began its 8th Legislature on February 24, has 17 new members, in what is a close to 55% renewal, in comparison with the 42% renewal rate of the 7th Legislature.

• Statement from Josefina Vidal, U.S. director at the Cuban Foreign Ministry
March 7,13
IN the context of the publication of the February 27 MINREX statement, referring to a new outrage against one of the Five, a State Department official, who asked not to be named, gave a statement to the EFE news agency.

• World Communion of Reformed Churches supports the Cuban Five
March 7,13
ON the final day of his first pastoral visit to Cuba, Reverend Jerry Pillay, president of the World Communion of Reformed Churches, stated he would appeal to the humanity of U.S. President Barack Obama to show solidarity with the Cuban Five and their families.

• ICAP announces 3rd World Cuba Solidarity Conference
March 7,13
THE Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples (ICAP), social and mass organizations in Cuba and the Cuban branch of the Network in Defense of Humanity, have announced the 3rd World Cuba Solidarity Conference, Cuba Solidarity 2014.

• Havana's 15th Cigar Festival
March 7,13
CUBA has once again hosted the largest international event for aficionados of the finest tobacco in the world, the 15th Cigar Festival, dedicated this year to two of the most prestigious cigar brands in the country: Montecristo and Partagás.

• Boris Becker: Passion for Cuban cigars
March 7,13
VARIOUS famous celebrities took part in the 15th Habano Cigar Festival, but none of them received as much media attention as the former German tennis ace, Boris Becker, who, during the course of his hugely successful sports career, won a range of prestigious tournaments, including six Grand Slams: three Wimbledons (1985, 1986, 1989), one in the United States (1989) and two in Australia (1991, 1996)

• Cubans honor Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías
March 7,13
THE Cuban people are paying heartfelt and patriotic tribute today to Venezuelan President Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías, in the midst of their pain and grief at the death of the much loved leader of the Bolivarian Revolution.

• Statement from the Revolutionary government
HASTA siempre, Comandante
March 6,13
With deep and lacerating pain, our people and the Revolutionary government learned of the death of President Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías and are preparing to pay him a heartfelt and patriotic tribute on his entry into history as an independence leader of Our America.

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