Chronicle on Cuba - November 2009

Highlights

Domestic Affairs: For several days a mob demonstrates outside the home of prominent dissident Vladimiro Roca. State Security agents violently prevent blogger Yoani Sanchez from participating in a peaceful march. Official media warn Cubans to get used to a belt-tightening situation. The husband of Yoani Sanchez, a well-known dissident blogger, is punched and shouted down by a mob of hundreds of government followers. Government authorities arrest the son of the late revolutionary leader Juan Almeida on his way to a protest march.

Economy: Cuba says its foreign trade is down 36 percent this year. The Government stops payments to many foreign suppliers. A Russian state oil company signs contracts with Cuba to search for oil. Cuba and Iran sign six import-export agreements. Cuba orders all state enterprises to adopt "extreme measures" to cut energy usage.

Foreign Affairs: The European Union Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid holds conversations in Havana. The president of the Vatican's communication council asks Raul Castro to allow the Church normal access to the media. The Canadian Minister of State for the Americas visits Havana. Human Rights Watch issues a comprehensive report on civil and political rights in Cuba. Several high dignitaries from Australia, Asia and Africa visit Cuba. Hugo Chavez makes a surprise visit to Cuba. Cuban Foreign Affairs Minister holds talks with the EU troika.

Security: The Cuban President meets with the Russian Minister of Civil Defense and Emergency Situations. The Cuban Armed Forces carry out Bastion 2009, a large-scale military exercise.

US-Cuba Relations: Cuban purchases of US food fall by at least a third this year. In several of his “Reflections”, Fidel Castro denounces the installation of US military bases in Colombia and accuses the US Government of “hypocrisy and cynicism”. The International Republican Institute conducts a poll among Cubans living in the island. President Barack Obama's answers to seven questions Yoani Sanchez sent him. The House Foreign Affairs Committee conducts a hearing on the US ban on travel to Cuba.