Cuba Solidarity Manchester

Beyond the Frame: A ground-breaking exhibition in support of the Miami Five

2012-03-06T17:59:00.003Z

Beyond the Frame is aimed at raising awareness around the case of the Miami Five organised by the Cuba Solidarity Campaign.

The full exhibition includes some of the finest contemporary Cuban art – shown in the UK for the first time – and artwork by celebrated UK-based artists such as John Keane, Derek Boshier, Susan Hiller and Mona Hatoum. It will be in London (Gallery 27) 23-28 April and Glasgow (The Lighthouse) 7-13 May. All of the artists have donated their work for free and will be sold for the Miami Five campaign. A selection will be displayed and available for purchase in Manchester on Friday May 4th at the Anthony Burgess Centre, Cambridge Street.

The Miami Five were falsely accused of committing espionage against the United States. They have been imprisoned for over 13 years and their families have been denied full visitation rights. Their trial and incarceration has been condemned by the United Nations, Amnesty International, many British trades unions and various human rights groups. Beyond the Frame will help bring this ongoing injustice to a new audience in Manchester on Friday, May 4th in the Anthony Burgess Centre.

The exhibition features special works by Antonio Guerrero and Gerardo Hernández, two of the Miami Five. Antonio has contributed a selection of drawings and paintings whilst Gerardo has contributed a series of cartoons. All of their artwork has been completed whilst behind bars. “Behind every work there is always an emotion, but I can tell you that in mine there is, above all, freedom in the roughest confinement” – Antonio Guerrero, Miami Five prisoner Miami Five

The exhibition will open in Manchester on Friday May 4th at 12 midday, It will be at the Anthony Burgess Centre (IABF), 3 Cambridge Street, M1 5BY. Entrance is free. School, College and Community groups are especially welcome. At 7pm a public meeting will be held there. Speakers will include : Lesbia Vent Dumois and Gustavo Diaz Sosa. Both are contributing artists to the exhibition. Lesbia has been Director of Fine Arts at Casa de Las Americas in Havana. Gustavo’s art is currently exhibiting in Madrid. They will speak on culture in Cuba’s revolution and also on the case of the Miami Five. Admission £5, £3 cons. including buffet reception from 5.30p.m.

How you can help? You can help support the exhibition and campaign for Freedom for the Miami Five by publicising the exhibition and meeting, making a donation, and buying artwork

Support in Manchester has come from Unison, Councillor Mike Amesbury (Executive member for Culture and Leisure), Councillor Mark Hackett (former Lord Mayor), and Parvathi Kumarswami (Co- Director, Centre for Latin American and Caribbean Studies, University of Manchester).

Please contact Manchester Cuba Solidarity : csc.mcr@poptel.org . Telephone : 07951-312914

Further details can be found at www.cubabeyondtheframe.com

Growing Food in the City: Local Food in Havana and Manchester

2012-03-01T21:31:00.000Z

Levenshulme Green Party are hosting the above event on Wednesday the 14th March at Levenshulme Inspire from 7.30pm. Speaking will be Liz Postlethwaite who has just returned from Cuba to look at urban food production, and Chris Walsh from Manchester Kindling Trust.

Assistance needed at stall

2012-01-30T19:38:00.001Z

We've agreed to have a CSC stall at The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy Conference on Wednesday 8th & Thursday 9th of February at The Palace Hotel, Manchester. Sue Simpkins has agreed to set up the stall and I can help sometime, but we do need another couple of volunteers.

Is anyone available to help? – it could just be for the a morning or afternoon. Please contact Bruce at csc.mcr@poptel.org if you can assist

Cuban Art Exhibition - Date set

2012-01-04T19:36:00.000Z

Beyond the Frame will present for viewing and sale the best of contemporary Cuban art with the aim of raising awareness about the campaign for justice for the Miami 5. The main exhibition will be held in London and then Glasgow. However, the Manchester CSC has arranged for some of the art to be available for one night only on the 4th May, with venue to be confirmed.

There will be at least four cartoons , possibly six, by Gerardo and six copies of art works by Antonio available for the Manchester event. One of the exhibitors, Nelson Ramirez, Director of the Fototeca de Cuba (National Photographic Museum) has offered to provide a silk screen copy of a photograph which could be sold/auctioned in Manchester to raise additional funds.
Lesbia Vent Dubois has undertaken to make herself available for this event. Born in 1932, Lesbia became an artist in pre-revolutionary Cuba when it was difficult for women to gain access to training. From the first days of the Revolution she involved herself in creative work as part of the revolutionary process. She was a founding member of the National School of Art and is President of Fine Arts in Cuba.

Lesbia embodies much of the experience of the Revolution in its determination to make cultural life accessible to all and to encourage creative self-expression for workers, peasants and youth. Like all the artists we met, she is passionate about the rights of the Miami Five and can communicate why their case is so important to all Cubans. Her presence will give the opportunity for a discussion on a range of issues including the Five, the role of cultural activity in the development of the Revolution and how Cuban artists see their social and political roles.

Other Cuban artists, at present in Europe, have requested to be part of the visit to the UK to support the Defence Campaign so there may be a possibility of a second artist accompanying Lesbia. Manchester Cuba Solidarity Campaign group are organizing the Manchester event. For offers of assistance or sponsorship please contact us at csc.mcr@poptel.org

Free the Miami 5 - contact Barak Obama

2012-01-04T19:17:00.004Z

Please take a moment to copy the statement below and send it to President Obama for the 5th of the month. You can do this using this link you just have to enter your details and then paste the message in.

For the zip code, under the heading 'Type' click on 'International'. Please tick the box that indicates a response is required too.

"I am writing to ask you to show humanity and respect for justice and to free Gerardo Hernández, Ramón Labañino, Antonio Guerrero, Fernando González who have been unjustly imprisoned in United States jails for more than twelve years since 12 September 1998, and to allow René González to return to Cuba. Rene, who was never allowed to see his wife throughout the 13 years in jail, is being forced to remain on parole in the USA and is still being prevented from being visited by his wife.

Amnesty International has asked the US government to review the case of the Five and to mitigate any injustice against them. You have the constitutional power to do this today.

Please act now and show compassion. Please undo the injustice that has been carried our against these men who your own security experts admit were no threat to the United States, but were solely in your country to gather information on violent groups planning terrorist attacks against the Cuban people".

Cuba Solidarity Social - Saturday 14th January

2012-01-04T19:04:00.000Z

The Bourbon Street Preachers

Soulful Blues, and stomping Zydeco.

http://www.myspace.com/bourbonstreetpreachers

Please come along and support this event to support the campaign to free the Miami 5 and to raise funds for the Cuba Solidarity Campaign in Manchester. The event will take place at the New Lloyds Hotel, Wilbraham Rd, Chorlton, Manchester M21 9AN.

Free admission, and there will be a raffle and stall

“The life of a human being is worth more than all the gold of the world’s richest man” Che Guevara

Cuban Art Exhibition in Manchester

2011-12-15T20:21:00.002Z

The Manchester CSC is currently working with a contemporary Cuban Art Company called Beyond the Frame to bring an exhibition to Manchester on the 4th May next year. The exhibition will feature artwork by two of the Miami 5, Antonio Guerrero and Gerardo Hernández, for one day only in the North West. At present, this date is only provisional and a venue is to be confirmed in due course, but much work has already been done to ensure we get to this stage. More information will be posted up on here in due course, but in the meantime, you can find out more on Beyond the Frame at their website by clicking here

The Cuban revolution and its relevance today by Mark Burton

2011-12-09T22:27:00.001Z

Nearly 53 years have passed since the triumph of the Cuban revolution and 50 years since the imposition of a strangulating economic blockade of Cuba by the USA. So this is a good moment to reflect on the revolution, its achievements and challenges and to ask what it means for progressive movements in the world today.

Every year the United Nations General Assembly votes on a Cuban motion for the necessity to end the blockade. Every year the vast majority of the world’s countries vote with Cuba, the exceptions being the USA, Israel and one of its other clients, usually a Pacific micro-state. Not even a country like Colombia votes with the USA.

To read the whole article, please click here

Next Meeting - 13th December

2011-12-09T17:42:00.001Z

The next meeting will be next Tuesday, at 7.30 pm at the Unison Regional Office, up the stairs to the left of the stairs to the MEN Arena. For map, see here. There are quiet a lot of items to discuss at this meeting & I know it’s never a favourite month for a meeting, but the more input the better.

Probably most importantly we have to discuss are activities in the coming year. These are going to include building an event around the touring version of Beyond The Frame exhibition. We will be hoping to raise in the region of £500 for this.

As well as this event there will be an ongoing need to build the Miami 5 campaign – possibly based on the ‘5th for the 5’ campaign'. There will be an update on the Mala Vista project and how we can start building this too, again with a view to an event later in the year.

And reports on the Vigil for the 5 and the Latin America 2011 conference, which was a great success.

Hope you can make it

Bruce Rafeek - Secretary CSC Manchester

Miami 5 - Email Obama today

2011-12-09T17:36:00.001Z

If you haven’t already done so, please take a moment to copy the statement below and send it to President Obama. You can do this clicking here. You’ll just have to enter your details and then paste the message in. Please tick the box that indicates a response is required too.

I am writing to ask you to show humanity and respect for justiceand to free Gerardo Hernández, Ramón Labañino, Antonio Guerrero, FernandoGonzález and René González who have been unjustly imprisoned in United Statesjails for more than twelve years since 12 September 1998.

On13 October this year, Amnesty International asked the US government to reviewthe case of the Five and to mitigate any injustice against them. You have theconstitutional power to do this today.

Pleaseact now and show compassion. Please undo the injustice that has been carriedour against these men who your own security experts admit were no threat to theUnited States, but were solely in your country to gather information on violentgroups planning terrorist attacks against the Cuban people.

Justice for Colombia Event

2011-11-26T11:53:00.001Z

Colombia is the most dangerous country in the world to be a trade union member. Thousands of our colleagues in that country have been murdered for joining a union or speaking out about poor wages or working conditions. Please join us from 16.00 onwards on Friday 2nd December, Sandinista! 2 Old Bank Street, off St Anne’s Sq, Manchester, M2 7PF. Arrive early for complimentary drinks

The speaker will be Rosalba Gaviria who is a former political prisoner and member of the Fensuagro agricultural workers trade union. Since 1986 over 2,700 trade union activists have been assassinated in Colombia. Last year alone 40 trade union leaders were killed – more than in the rest of the world combined.

If you are interested in attending this event then please RSVP to Paula Woods on PaulaWoods@thompsons.law.co.uk or Telephone 0161 819 3505

For more information on Justice for Colombia, please click here

Our History is still being written: The story of Three Chinese-Cuban Generals in the Cuban Revolution

2011-11-13T12:09:00.001Z

The University of Manchester will host an evening of discussion on a little known aspect of Chinese emigrant history in Cuba on Friday 25th November in Samuel Alexander Building from 5pm. The evening will centre around a book published by Pathfinder Press which uses interviews with Armando Choy, Gustavo Chui, and Moisés Sío Wong, three Chinese Cubans who became generals in Cuba’s revolution that brought down the Batista dictatorship.

In 'Our History is Still Being Written: The Story of Three Chinese-Cuban Generals in the Cuban Revolution', the three men discuss their roles in the 1959 Cuban revolution, how they helped lead Cuban volunteers in the fight to defeat South African apartheid’s invasion of Angola, the historic place of Chinese immigration to Cuba and the place of Cuba in world politics today, and much more.

Speaking at the event will be Dr Raquel Ribeiro from the University of Nottingham, Jonathan Silberman from Pathfinder Books and Dr Aaron Moore from the Centre for Chinese Studies at the University of Manchester with Dr Par Kumaraswami, Co-Director, Centre for Latin American and Caribbean Studies, chairing. This will be followed by a film showing excerpts from Loni Ding’s award-winning film “Ancestors in the Americas; Coolies, Settlers and Sailors”.

The event is sponsored by the Manchester University (MU) Centre for Latin American and Caribbean Studies, Cuba Solidarity Campaign in Manchester, MU African Caribbean Society, Mexican Society in Manchester and Pathfinder Books in Manchester. For Further details please email Pathfinder Books or Dr Par Kumaraswami

Next meeting

2011-11-06T08:51:00.003Z

The next branch meeting is on Tuesday 8th November, 7.30 pm at the usual address – Unison Offices, 1 Arena Point – next to the MEN Arena steps.

As you may know, next year there is an exhibition and sale of contemporary Cuban art – including work by Gerardo Hernández and Antonio Guerrero– being held in London and Glasgow (so far). The proceeds of this will go the Miami 5 Campaign.

Click here to the website where you can also make a donation.

Red November Dinner

2011-11-01T17:53:00.000Z

The Communist Party of Britain will be hosting a dinner in celebration of the 94th anniversary of the Bolshevik revolution next Monday, 7th November. The event is being held in the El Cuba Libre restaurant in Hyde and speakers will include Maria Victoria from the Communist Party of Cuba, Mark Burton from the Cuba Solidarity Campaign and Robert Griffiths, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Britain.

If you would like to attend, there are still a small number of places available and tickets can be obtained from Jenny Turner by emailing jennyturner@phonecoop.coop. More information, including prices and directions to the venue can be found here

Prison installation in Manchester City Centre draws attention to imprisoned fighters against terrorism

2011-09-10T20:13:00.001+01:00

A mock prison was erected in Manchester City Centre to draw attention to the case of 5 Cubans wrongly imprisoned for fighting terrorism

Five activists dressed in prison overalls wereincarcerated behind bars while others gave out leaflets and collectedsignatures to raise awareness of the case of the ‘Miami 5’, Cuban citizens whohad, following an accord between Cuba and the US gathered information on terrorplans by ultra right elements in Florida. When they gave the information to theFBI they were promptly arrested and after a trial seen as unfair by legalexperts and sentenced to extremely long prison terms for alleged espionage andconspiracy to murder.

Lively Cuban music played while members of the groupengaged in discussion with interested passers by.

Bruce Rafeek, Secretary of Manchester Cuba SolidarityGroup, said:

“We have long campaigned against this injustice and thisyear settled on a new way to draw the public’s attention to their fate. Withwhat was a cross between street theatre and art installation we certainly madean impact and found again that when the facts of the case are explained, thepeople of Manchester show their concern for injustice and offer their supportto the cause.”

The installation started at the statue of that US campaignerfor justice, Abraham Lincoln and then moved on to Piccadilly Gardens. For more pictures, please see our Flickr page by clicking here

Notes for editors

The Miami 5 are Gerardo Hernández, Fernando González,Antonio Guerrero, René González and Ramón Labañino. These five Cubans weregiven harsh jail sentences on 'conspiracy' charges in 1998 by the US court inMiami. They were denied the right to a fair trial.

Their only crime was to gather information on terroristgroups in Miami that were planning attacks on Cuba. In the past 50 years over3,000 lives have been lost from such terror attacks on Cuba. Known terroristswalk freely in Miami and have even boasted of their exploits on localtelevision shows there.

Before sentencing they spent 18 months in solitaryconfinement. They have spent the last 13 years in separate maximum-securityprisons. Their applications for appeals have been repeatedly blocked by the USgovernment.

Visits from their families have been severely restricted.The wives of two men - Gerardo and Rene - have been refused visas to visittheir husbands for 13 and 12 years respectively. Amnesty International, The UNHuman Rights Commission, The TUC, 11 Nobel Prize winners and ex US presidentJimmy Carter, are amongst those who have protested against their unlawfulimprisonment.

Only public pressure can help them now.

Free the Miami 5!

2011-09-05T17:41:00.001+01:00

September this year marks the 13th year since the five Cubans were wrongfully imprisoned, so on Saturday 10th September we are doing a vigil/ awareness raising event about the Miami 5 at Piccadilly Gardens , 1.30 pm. We’ll meet before hand at the statue of queen Victoria.

We’ll have a visual display, stall, and be giving out leaflets highlighting the plight of the 5. Obviously the more people we have there the better, so if you’re in town on Saturday, please come along and show your support.

Raising Money for Cuban Musicians

2011-08-19T23:09:00.001+01:00

Steve Ludlam, who is a Senior Lecturer at Sheffield University and CSC member is going to attempt to cycle from John O'Groats to Lands End to raise money for the Music Fund for Cuba, a UK charity which supports education and development of music and performing arts in Cuba.

If you would like to make a donation to this worthy cause, you can do so by clicking HERE.

In addition, if you would like to keep up to date with how Steve is progressing, you can access a blog that is being run by his brother HERE

Manchester CSC Day School - this Saturday (23rd July)

2011-07-19T19:13:00.001+01:00

Just a reminder that Manchester CSC will be at the Cross Street Chapel in central Manchester this Saturday, 23rd July, hosting a series of talks on Cuba today. They will include LGBT issues, environmental sustainability, health and poetry.

Cost will be £10 waged, and £5 unwaged, which includes food and entrance into all the talks. The event will start at 10am. All are welcome

Manchester CSC AGM

2011-07-06T20:15:00.005+01:00

The next branch meeting is on Tuesday 12th July at at Unison Regional Office, Arenas Point, 1 Hunts Bank, Manchester, M3 1UN - up the stairs to the left of the stairs to the MEN Arena. Directions can be found here

This meeting is our AGM. As well as reporting on the years activities and sorting out officers, we will discuss upcoming events and ideas for the following year including the upcoming Day School.

It’s important to have as much input as possible, and so as many people attending as possible.

Look forward to seeing you there.

Letter from Gerardo Hernandez

2011-06-20T22:20:00.001+01:00

Please see below the text from a letter received by CSC Manchester member Jenni Ford, from Gerardo Hernandez, one of the Miami 5.

From US Penitentary-Victorville, California

Dear Jenni

Many thanks to you and to all our friends in Manchester for your card and birthday greetings! The support of friends like you gives us strength to continue our struggle for justice!

Gerardo

Gerardo, along with Fernando Gonzalez, Ramon Labanino, Antonio Guerrero and Rene Gonzalez, were locked up in separate US jails having being caught on American soil without the US authorities permission, accused of espionage. In fact, they were there, not to spy on the Americans, but to protect Cuban citizens from repeated attacks coming from Miami based terrorist cells. For more information on the Miami 5, please click here

Cuban Cinema Event: Papeles Secundarios

2011-06-08T21:27:00.000+01:00

When: Wednesday 15 June, 17:30-20:30

Where: A7, Ground Floor Samuel Alexander Building, University of Manchester

Event in Spanish and English ALL WELCOME
A fee of £10/£5 concessions (students/unemployed/retired) will be charged

Guest: Fernando León Jacomino. Vice-President 2005-2010 (and interim President in 2010) of the Instituto Cubano del Libro (Cuban Book Institute). For a good part of the 2000s, Fernando was involved as a cultural policymaker and worked closely with the Union of Young Communists, the Hermanos Saíz Association for young artists and, more generally, the Ministry of Culture.

However, he is also a published poet and a researcher, specialising in Cuban theatre, especially street theatre and film adaptations of theatre. In 2009, Fernando was awarded the Razón de Ser research scholarship, by the Alejo Carpentier Foundation, Havana.

On this occasion, Fernando will talk about Cuban cinema, especially the processes that made possible the founding of the Cuban Film Institute (ICAIC) and about the relationship between Cuban cinema and reality over the last fifty years. He will be joined by Dr Par Kumaraswami, Lecturer in Latin American Cultural Studies and specialist in revolutionary Cuban culture, University of Manchester. To confirm your place, please email parvathi.kumaraswami@manchester.ac.uk

17:30-18:00 - Introduction
18:00-19:30 –Screening of film Papeles secundarios /Supporting roles (Orlando Rojas 1990) with English subtitles
19:30-20:30 – Discussion and Questions

The Brutal and Turbulent North: Reflections by Comrade Fidel

2011-06-02T20:27:00.000+01:00

I was reading abundant materials and books to make good my promise of continuing writing on the Reflection of April 14 about the Battle of Giron when I had a look at the recent news that came yesterday, which were also as abundant as they are everyday. You could pile up mountains of news on any given week ranging from the earthquake in Japan to the electoral victory of Ollanta Humala over Keiko, the daughter of Alberto Fujimori, ex President of Peru.

Peru is a major exporter of silver, copper, zinc, tin and other minerals. It has huge reserves of uranium that powerful transnationals are hoping to exploit. Enriched uranium can be used to produce the most terrible weapons ever known by humankind as well as the fuel of electronuclear power stations which, despite every warning by the ecologists, was being manufactured at an increasing pace in the United States, Europe and Japan.

Of course, it would not be fair to blame Peru of all this. Peruvians did not invent colonialism, capitalism or imperialism. Neither can we blame the people of the United States, who are also victims of the system that has begotten the craziest politicians ever known in the planet.

On April 8 last, the masters of the world published their traditional annual report about “human rights violations”, which led to a thorough analysis on the website ‘Rebelión’ by the Cuban Manuel E. Yepe, based on a response given by the Council of State of China. The document lists up several facts that show the disastrous situations of such rights in the United States.

“…the United States is the country that attacks human rights the most both inside its own territory and in the entire world. Is one of the nations that offers less guarantees to the life, property and personal security of its inhabitants.

“Every year one out of every five people is a victim of a crime in the United States. No other nation on Earth has a rate that is higher. According to official figures, persons above the age of 12 have suffered from 4.3 million violent actions.

“Crime has surged in an alarming way in the four most important cities of the country (Philadelphia, Chicago, Los Angeles and New York). Notorious increases as compared to the previous year have also been reported in other big cities (Saint Louis and Detroit).

“The Supreme Court has ruled that the possession of firearms for self-defense purposes is a constitutional right that can not be ignored by state governments. Ninety million persons - out of the 300 million inhabitants in the country- have 200 million firearms.

“A total of 12 000 homicides caused by firearms were recorded in the country, while 47 per cent of robberies were equally perpetrated with the use of firearms.

“Under the “terrorist activities” section of the Patriot Act, torture and extreme violence to obtain confessions from suspicious persons are common practices. Unjust sentences are evidenced in the 266 persons -17 of them are already on death row- who have been acquitted thanks to the DNA tests.

“Washington advocates for freedom in the Internet to turn the network of networks into an important diplomatic tool of pressure and hegemony, but imposes strict restrictions in cyberspace within its own territory and tries to put up a legal siege to deal with the challenges posed by Wikileaks and its leaks.

“With a high unemployment rate, the number of US citizens living in poverty sets new records. One out of every eight citizens resorted to the coupons program last year.

“The number of families welcomed in homeless shelters increased by 7 per cent. Those families had to stay longer in those shelters. Violent crimes against these homeless families are increasing nonstop.

“Racial discrimination is permeating every aspect of the social life.

Minority groups are

discriminated against at their work places; they receive a humiliating treatment and are not taken into account for promotions, benefits or any labor selection process.

One third of

blacks suffered discrimination at their work place although only 16 per cent dared to submit a complaint.

“Unemployment rate among whites is 16.2 per cent, among Hispanics and Asians is 22 per cent and among blacks is 33 per cent. Afro-Americans and Latin account for 41 per cent of the inmate population. The rate of Afro-Americans serving life sentences is 11 times higher that that of whites.

“Ninety per cent of women have suffered some type of sexual discrimination at their work place. Twenty million women are victims of rape. Almost 60 000 female inmates have suffered some kind of sexual assault or violence.

One fifth of female university students are sexually assaulted and 60 per cent of rapes at the university campus occur at the ladies dorms.

“Nine out of every 10 homosexual, bisexual or transsexual students are harassed at schools.

“The report devotes one chapter to remind us of the human rights violations that the US government is responsible for outside its borders. The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, led by the United States, have produced sky-rocketing figures of victims among the civil population in these countries.

“The US anti-terrorist actions have included serious scandals of abuses against prisoners, indefinite detentions without any indictment or trial in detention centers like that in Guantanamo and elsewhere in the world, which were created to interrogate the so called “high value detainees”, where the worst tortures are applied.

“The Chinese document also reminds us that the United States has violated the Cuban people’s right to exist and develop in disregard of the world’s opinion, expressed by the United Nations General Assembly during 19 consecutive years regarding the “necessity to put an end to the economic, commercial and financial blockade against Cuba”.

“The United States has failed to ratify several international human rights conventions such as the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women; the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

“The data contained in the report by the Chinese government show that the nefarious performance of the United States in this field disqualifies it as “judge of human rights in the world”. Its ‘human rights diplomacy’ is sheer double standards hypocrisy to the service of its strategic imperialist interests. The Chinese government advises the government of the United States to take concrete measures to improve its own human rights situation examine and rectify its activities in that field and stop its hegemonic actions whereby it uses human rights to interfere in the internal affairs of other countries.”

In our view, the important thing about this analysis is that such denunciation is contained in a document issued by the Chinese government, a country of 1 341 million inhabitants, whose monetary reserves amount to two trillion dollars. Without China’s commercial cooperation the empire would sink. I though it was important for our people to know the accurate data contained in the document issued by the Chinese Council of State.

Had Cuba said, it would not be so important. We have been denouncing those hypocrites for more than 50 years.

Marti had said in 1895, 116 years ago: “…the road that is to be closed, and is being closed with our blood, annexing our American nations to be brutal and turbulent North that despises us…”

“I have lived inside the monster and I know its entrails.”

Fidel Castro Ruz

April 23, 2011

7:32 p.m.

Reaping the whirlwind / Features / Home - Morning Star

2011-05-04T19:13:00.001+01:00

Article in Tuesday's Morning Star which looks at the hypocracy of the US war on terror when compared with their own response to domestic insurgents

Reaping the whirlwind / Features / Home - Morning Star

Public Meeting

2011-05-02T18:24:00.000+01:00

The next CSC meeting will be on Tuesday 10th May, 7pm at Unison Regional Office, Arenas Point, 1 Hunts Bank, Manchester, M3 1UN - up the stairs to the left of the stairs to the MEN Arena

This year is the 50th anniversary of the Bay of Pigs where Cuban militias alongside the police and armed forces defeated an invasion of 1,500 mercenaries trained, armed and deployed by Washington. This example of how it is possible to confront and resist US might is one that 50 years on the US still cannot stomach.

To mark the anniversary we will be showing a Cuban film which has been made available to us by branch members.

The film is 66 hours : the story of Playa Giron and is based on coverage by Luis Baez, the main Cuban journalist who covered the event at the time. It features interviews with participants and footage of the actual event. (NB film is in Spanish with English subtitles, 55 mins).

Please feel free to pass on details of this event to interested parties.

Continuing on the theme of defending the revolution, and following from our member's report last meeting, we will also be discussing ways in which we can renew our support for The Cuba 5. If people have ideas and information please bring them to the meeting.

Day School Planned for the Summer

2011-04-23T09:55:00.000+01:00

Manchester Cuba Solidarity Campaign are looking to put on an event on the 23rd July in or around central Manchester. A number of options are currently being looked at including;

- a venue which may cater for an all day event, where we can put on food and a bar
- speakers on various subjects involving Cuba and Latin America
- cultural workshops i.e music and dance
- possibility of building further links with other groups associated with Latin America

If you have any suggestions of ideas about this event, please contact Manchester CSC Bruce Rafeek Bruce at the following email address: csc.mcr@poptel.org.uk

COMMENT: Jimmy Carter: "Release the Cuban Five"

2011-04-01T20:26:00.001+01:00

In anticipation of our upcoming meeting where we will hear from CSC supporters who have met the Cuban 5, here is a bulletin from the National Committee to Free the Cuban 5 on Jimmy Carters recent visit to Cuba;

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter is the highest-ranking official, former or current, who has just publicly called for the freedom of the Cuban Five.

He has just spent three days in Havana, where he gave an interview to Cuban journalist Arleen Rodríguez Derivet, and also a press conference to Cuban and international media earlier in the day. On both occasions, Carter took the opportunity to call for changes in U.S. policy -- an end to the blockade, normalization of relations, and freedom for the Cuban Five.

Some excerpts from Carter's comments:

"I believe that there is no reason to keep the Cuban Five imprisoned, there were doubts in the U.S. courts and also among human rights organizations in the world. Now, they have been in prison 12 years and I hope that in the near future they will be released to return home.

"I also have had a chance to meet with the parents of the so-called Cuban Five, with two of the mothers and also with three of the wives, and I expressed my feelings to them, and I hope that in the future they will be released, according to U.S. law.

"As you know I am not only a President. I am also a Nobel laureate. Well, in my private talks to President Bush and also with President Obama, I have urged the release of these prisoners.

"I recognize that there are restraints within the American judicial system. However, my hope is that the president would grant a pardon. You have to realize that this is a decision that can only be made by the president. It is presumptuous of me to try to tell another president what to do.

"But the Presidents, now and before this [Obama and Bush], have known that my own opinion is that the original trial of the Cuban Five was very doubtful, norms were violated, and also some of the restraints on their visitations have been overly restrictive. I know that all of the families have been able to visit them. My wish in the future, before a pardon might be granted, is that there would be more access of their families to these prisoners in the United States.

"I have been informed by officials, for instance, that the shooting down of the small plane over Havana that caused the death of two pilots was done after the president of the United States [Bill Clinton] informed the Cuban leaders that no more flights would take place. I was informed by Cuban officials that they expressed to the president very clearly that they could not permit a plane to fly over their capital city, dropping leaflets, that they would have to protect the sovereignty of Cuba. So even those more serious allegations, in my opinion, are very doubtful about their need or cause of the extensive sentences that have been granted to the prisoners."

"So in every way, in my private report with Obama when I return to the United States, in my public statements like today, in my previous conversations with American leaders, I've called for the release of the Cuban Five." Read the full interview and press conference by clicking the links below

The Interview

The Press Conference

EVENT: Branch Meeting

2011-03-30T20:45:00.002+01:00

Manchester CSC will hold its next branch meeting on Tuesday 19th April at Unison North West Regional Centre, next to MEN, at 7pm, where we are fortunate enough to have a range of speakers on offer. First of all, there is Cuban academic and policymaker, Fernando Leon Jacomino. Fernando is a former Vice-President (and interim President in 2010) of the Instituto Cubano del Libro. For a good part of the 2000s, Jacomino was involved as a cultural policymaker and worked closely with the Unión de Jóvenes Comunistas, the Asociación Hermanos Saíz and, more generally, the Ministerio de Cultura. However, he is also a published poet and a researcher, specialising in Cuban theatre, especially street theatre and film adaptations of theatre.

The current news on the Miami 5, as you may know, is that Antonio Guerrero and Gerardo Hernández, have just filed important legal briefs in their "habeas corpus" appeals, their final legal opportunity to obtain a new trial and overturn their unjust convictions.

With this in mind, we are very fortunate to have a branch member and a lawyer from Thompsons Solicitors who has recently returned from Cuba. When they were there they met the mothers, wives and children of the Miami 5, and we are extremely pleased that they have agreed to talk at the next branch meeting about their experience.

Anyone interested in attending would be more than welcome. For more information, please contact Bruce at csc.mcr@poptel.org.uk

NEWS: Brazil funds Cuban aid programme in Haiti with US$80m

2011-03-16T22:45:00.004Z

The Brazilian Congress approved $80 million in funding for a healthcare program in Haiti that is jointly coordinated by Haiti, Cuba and Brazil.

According to Brazilian officials, Cuban experts are “assisting” the tri-party program. However, given their experience and long-time presence in Haiti, Cuban health officials make many organizing and purchasing decisions, according to observers.

Read the full report here

EVENT: Honduras Solidarity

2011-03-16T22:44:00.001Z

Public Meeing 5.30-7pm, 5th April
@ Manchester University Students Union, Meeting Room 4, Oxford Road, M13 9PL

Speakers from MUCA and LOS NECIOS speaking as part of a meeting organised by CAWN against women’s oppression in Central America

Contact us: ring 07762 618 233, email or join us on Facebook

Obituary: Alan Neill

2011-03-14T08:59:00.000Z

It is with deep regret that we must inform CSC supporters of the death of Alan Neill. Alan was a stalwart of CSC for some 10 years. He had a comitment to the revolution, its goals and achievements but maintained a healthy critical outlook. He was part of the Manchester CSC mini-brigade that went to Matanzas in 2003, and as treasurer, Alan was responsible for the group's current constitution and he facilitated the transfers of several thousand pounds of solidarity aid to Cuba over the years. He was also one of the organisers of the first Manchester CSC day school.

I also had contact with Alan through work and know that he was highly regarded in the harm reduction speciality of public health.

We also learned Spanish together at the Instituto Cervantes and he was a great person to have in the same class, with his dry sense of humour and genial character.

The (green) funeral will be at 10.45 on Friday 18th at
West Pennine Remembrance Park
Entwhistle Hall Lane
Entwhistle
Near Turton
Lancs
BL7 0LR

Alan's CSC comrades are invited to attend and to a get together afterwards.

Mark Burton - Manchester CSC

EVENT: The Day Diplomacy Died DVD

2011-03-05T22:41:00.000Z

The next meeting of Manchester CSC is on Tuesday 8 March at 7pm at our new venue, Unison NW Regional Centre . It's really easy to find - go to the steps at the MEN arena. To the left there's some stairs going up to an office. At the door, press buzzer 1 and you'll be let in.

This meeting we'll be showing the documentary 'The Day The Diplomacy Died' - the real story behind the dissident groups in Cuba. In relation to this, please find the following link to a recent Cuban program about US support for dissidents called 'The Empire's Pawns' can be found by clicking here

EVENT: Young Trade Unionists' May Day Brigade

2011-02-14T22:22:00.000Z

27 April-11 May 2011

A unique opportunity for activists to participate in practical solidarity work,
take part in Havana's May Day celebrations and discover the reality of life for
Cubans living under the illegal US blockade of their country

Find out more and how to take part at:

http://www.cuba-solidarity.org.uk/news.asp?ItemID=1942

EVENT: Challenges facing Cuba

2011-02-02T22:07:00.000Z

Dr Steve Ludlum from Sheffield University will address a Cuban Solidarity Campaign meeting this Tuesday at Unison North West region offices in Manchester. Steve teaches courses on Cuba and Latin America and belongs to the UK-Cuba Research Forum. He frequently visits Cuba.

He will talk about the labour changes that are now being implemented, and the debate currently going on across the country. There will be plenty of time for questions. All are welcome.

Directions to the event can be found here. It is very near Victoria Train Station. When you get there, buzz and go up to the first floor.

Jury listens to Posada Carriles’s lies in trial

2011-01-23T11:21:00.002Z

Evidences of lies by international terrorist Luis Posada Carriles were presented in the federal court of El Paso, Texas, in a trial that could last for four to eight weeks.

According to the U.S. media outlets, among Tuesday testifiers in the trial was Gina Garrett-Jackson, National Security attorney who interrogated former CIA agent Posada Carriles for entering the U.S. illegally.

Garrett-Jackson participated in immigration hearings on which Posada Carriles lied under oath, which is the reason why he is now facing charges of perjury, obstruction and fraud on his naturalization process, says a PL report.

To read the whole report, click here

Independent Article on Cuban Doctors in Cuba

2011-01-15T20:58:00.001Z

Cuban medics in Haiti put the world to shame

Castro's doctors and nurses are the backbone of the fight against cholera
By Nina Lakhani

They are the real heroes of the Haitian earthquake disaster, the human catastrophe on America's doorstep which Barack Obama pledged a monumental US humanitarian mission to alleviate. Except these heroes are from America's arch-enemy Cuba, whose doctors and nurses have put US efforts to shame.

A medical brigade of 1,200 Cubans is operating all over earthquake-torn and cholera-infected Haiti, as part of Fidel Castro's international medical mission which has won the socialist state many friends, but little international recognition.

To read the full article, please click here

Friends from Fifty-Six Countries March in Favor of the Cuban Five

2010-11-21T14:01:00.002Z

Some 10,000 people, including over 300 foreigners from 56 countries defied rain on Saturday to march for the release of the five Cuban antiterrorist fighters who remain unjustly imprisoned in the United States since 1998. Participants in the Sixth International Colloquium for the freedom of the Cuban Five —as Rene Gonzalez, Antonio Guerrero, Gerardo Hernandez, Ramon Labañino and Fernando Gonzalez are internationally known—, which is underway in the eastern city of Holguin, accompanied thousands of locals who marched to the monument dedicated to Ernesto Che Guevara in this city.

Adriano Agostino, a member of the Cuba-Italy Friendship Association, told ACN that he closely follows the case of the Cuba Five from Genoa, where he lives in Italy.

Joe Callahan, who lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota, said he was impressed by the massive support of the Cuban Five, who were arrested and given harsh and unjust sentences for monitoring anti-Cuba extreme right-wing groups in South Florida that were planning and carrying out attacks against the island.

This article appeared on the Cuban News Agency website on 20th November 2010

Features Interview: Irma Gonzalez

2010-10-30T10:33:00.004+01:00

Until the age of six, Irma Gonzalez led the life of an ordinary Cuban child. She lived with her parents and spent weekends with grandparents in Havana. Suddenly in December 1990 everything changed.

"I woke up one morning and my dad wasn't there. I was used to him being away for one or two nights, but this time he just didn't come back."

Growing up, Irma never questioned the explanation that he was "studying abroad." Letters and phone calls every few months were enough to keep the inquisitive six-year-old satisfied.

Despite Olga's best efforts to keep her daughter's spirits up, Irma sensed something was wrong.

"I saw my mother growing sad. She was trying to stay happy for me, but she was not well or happy in herself." Six years passed and then in December 1996 Olga told her now 12-year-old daughter they were leaving to join Rene in Miami.

"Me and dad had been very close when I was younger and seeing him again was like the years had never passed. He was exactly the same smart, talkative and loving father who had left."

What Irma didn't know was that Rene had spent their six years apart infiltrating Miami terrorist groups which were carrying out attacks against the Cuban people.

Nor was she aware that he had hijacked a plane to leave Cuba in 1990 in order to convince them he was genuinely against the Cuban revolution.

This is part of an article printed in the Morning Star in October 2010. For the full article please click here

Crowds flock to US Embassy vigil to support the Miami Five

2010-10-25T11:59:00.006+01:00

Up to four hundred people gathered for CSC’s annual candlelit vigil outside the US Embassy in London on Tuesday to call for the immediate and unconditional release of the Miami Five prisoners held in US jails.

On what was a very cold and wet October evening the crowd held flaming candles aloft symbolising their hopes for justice and freedom for the Five heroes and their families after 12 long years of imprisonment. Present at the vigil was Irma González, daughter of the René González, one of the Miami 5 prisoners.

"I thank you all for your love and support. For 12 years you have been with us every step of the way," she said.

Moving messages were read out to the crowd from Gerardo Hernández, René González and Fernando González. Gerardo’s message included the following:

'Dear Friends attending the Vigil for the Five in London: Once again you are reunited outside the U.S. Embassy to show solidarity with the five Cubans imprisoned in the United States for defending our country against terrorism. Once again the functionaries of that embassy will ignore your claim or will say that the Five are in prison for the very serious crime of having committed espionage.

Once again we can tell anybody, plain and simple: that is a lie.’

This article, by CSC Director Rob Miller, appeared on the CSC website in October 2010. For the full article please click here

Read the full messages from the Five sent to the vigil