Chronicle on Cuba - January 2007

Highlights

Domestic Affairs: Public appearances by three former Cuban officials linked to harsh political purges in the cultural sector during the 70’s arise protests of intellectuals and artists. Cuban dissident Manuel Valdés Tamayo, one of 75 activists jailed in a massive crackdown in 2003 and released a year later for health reasons, dies. The head of the Ideological Department of the Communist Party’s Central Committee urges journalists to reflect the people’s problems and concerns in the official media. Rumours and speculations persist about Fidel Castro’s health condition.

Economy: The Cuban power industry eliminates electricity shortages by 90%. Cuba and Venezuela sign 16 agreements of cooperation in agriculture, finance, telecoms, energy, tourism, transport, oil drilling, and mining. In 2006, the number of tourists visiting Cuba dropped by 3.6 per cent.  The number of foreign companies operating in Cuba has continued to decline.

Exile Community: Demonstrators clash with others in Little Havana over Cuban exile militant Luis Posada Carriles. Controversies arise about an official celebration at the Orange Bowl whenever Fidel Castro dies.

Foreign Affairs: Panamanian President Martín Torrijos visits Cuba.  An Oslo hotel owned by the US Hilton Hotel Corp. faced protests after refusing to book rooms for a Cuban delegation. The new government in Mexico seeks to improve relations with Cuba. Nicaragua joins Venezuela, Cuba and Bolivia in the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas. Raul Castro meets with Dr. Aristides Gomes, prime minister of Guinea Bissau, during Gomes’ official visit to Cuba.

US-Cuba Relations: The number of undocumented Cuban migrants stopped at sea by the US Coast Guard dropped in 2006. Cuba condemns as "theft" the use of frozen Cuban assets in the United States to compensate the families of two Americans killed in the 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion. The US is calling on Canada to take about 40 Cuban refugees housed at Guantanamo Naval Base. Republican and Democratic lawmakers say they would push hard to get legislation through Congress to ease restrictions on travel to Cuba.