MiamiHerald.com: This Week in Cuba

South Florida sees upswing in family trips to Cuba

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 23:42 EDT

Nildo Herrera drew the stares of fellow passengers and airline ticket agents as he checked into his recent Havana flight at Miami International Airport wearing five hats, one atop another.

From truffles to fox furs, U.S. ships more than food to Cuba

Sun, 06 Sep 2009 17:05 EDT

When a Havana family sits down for pollo asado, passes pan de ajo across the kitchen table or splurges on some chocolate soy ice cream, chances are the ingredients came from U.S. farms.

Pop singer Juanes sparks furor in Cuban exile community with plans for Havana concert

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 18:39 EDT

An international concert planned for Havana's Plaza de la Revolución and headed by a major Latino pop star is stoking passions in exile Miami in a controversial clash of art and politics.

Cuban Days: The Inscrutable Nation

Thu, 23 Jul 2009 12:19 EDT

Cuban leaders are again facing major political challenges. Severe economic problems have returned, and the awkward division of power between Fidel and Raúl Castro has again put the regime on a shaky footing.

Cuba slashes projections for 2009 imports, exports

Thu, 23 Jul 2009 12:19 EDT

Cuba is cutting estimates of imports by billions of dollars this year and projecting a decline in export revenues due to the international financial crisis, according to a government report shown to Reuters this week

Cuba's Ra�l Castro conducts purge by video

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 10:25 EDT

It is not the stuff of Khrushchev unmasking Stalin, nor the fall of China's Gang of Four, but a three-hour film being shown to thousands of the Cuban Communist party's 1m members this summer has emerged as a rare admission that all is not well at the pinnacle of power in Havana.

AP names new bureau chief in Havana

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 10:24 EDT

Paul Haven has been appointed The Associated Press chief of bureau in Havana, Cuba, following three years of leading the cooperative's news operations in Spain and Portugal as Madrid bureau chief.

Cuban offshore oil drilling plans postponed again

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 09:29 EDT

Cuba and a consortium of foreign oil companies have once again postponed plans to drill for oil in the island's still-untapped fields in the Gulf of Mexico, diplomatic and industry sources said this week.

Estimate: Cuba owes Venezuela $4.6 billion for oil (Spanish)

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 09:30 EDT

29,000 Cubans are Masons

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 09:29 EDT

About 29 thousands Cubans are members of more than 300 Masonic lodges in various cities of the country and at the same time are actively involved in public work, humanitarian and charitable projects.

Hello from Havana

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 11:51 EDT

Nuanced but unmistakable stirrings of change in Cuba

Cuba says economic crisis slows output, closes factories

Wed, 17 Jun 2009 10:21 EDT

Cuban factories are closing down and production is being cut at other workplaces as the international financial crisis weighs on the import-dependent Caribbean island, the official media said on Sunday.

Cubans face hardship under new austerity measures

Wed, 03 Jun 2009 09:37 EDT

Cubans faced power blackouts, longer waits for buses, uncomfortable working conditions and skimpier lunches on Monday as the government introduced austerity measures to cope with a growing economic squeeze.

Austerity bites as Cuba fails to revamp

Wed, 03 Jun 2009 09:37 EDT

It has been just over a year since Raul Castro took over from his ailing brother Fidel with a pledge to improve the Cuban people’s lives and remake one of the most statist economies in the world. But now the population is being called on to sacrifice by a government many view as old and bureaucratic.

Son of Cuban comandante Juan Almeida detained (Spanish)

Wed, 27 May 2009 09:52 EDT

The son of Cuban comandante Juan Almeida, a historical leader of the revolution, was detained on suspicion of trying to leave the island illegally. In nine letters obtained by El Nuevo Herald, Juan Juan Almeida details his efforts to leave the island for medical treatment, and says he was mistreated by State Security

Dissidents question if Cuba will shift on human rights

Wed, 13 May 2009 09:46 EDT

Cuban dissidents have questioned whether President Raul Castro is willing to respect human rights in return for normalized relations with the European Union.

U.S. to lift some curbs on travel to Cuba

Fri, 03 Apr 2009 21:22 EDT

President Barack Obama plans to lift longstanding U.S. restrictions on Cuba, a senior administration official said, allowing Cuban-Americans to visit families there as often as they like and to send them unlimited funds.

U.S. fugitives in Cuba wary of closer ties that could lead to deportation

Tue, 10 Mar 2009 22:12 EDT

Times could be uncertain for the more than 70 American fugitives hiding out in Cuba. Some have enjoyed lives as celebrity revolutionaries in the tropics. Many paraded around town, telling war stories and being hailed as heroes who stood up to "the Empire." But their fate is unclear after a change in administrations on both sides of the Florida Straits.

Fidel Castro meets with Dominican Republic's president

Tue, 03 Mar 2009 22:00 EST

The leader of the Cuban Revolution Fidel Castro met with the Dominican Republic's President Leonel Fernandez Reyna, on Monday.

New Miami Herald section for Cuba's Critical Voices

Tue, 03 Mar 2009 22:09 EST

The Miami Herald's online Cuba page now displays a special Dissident Voices section contains reports from non-government sources on the island.