Summary (English): Summary (English)Side A: A speech made on July 26th, 1988. The recording has a lot of transmission noise.Side B: Second part of the July 26th, 1988, speech, also with a lot of transmission noise. Summary (Spanish) Summary (Spanish)Side A: Un discurso de 26 del julio de 1988 con mucho ruido de transmisión.Side B: Segunda parte del discurso del 26 de julio de 1988, aun con mucho ruido de...

Summary (English): Summary (English)Side A: Interview with Carlos Franqui. Franqui discusses the letter that Cuban exiles have sent Castro challenging him to a referendum to see if, 30 years after the beginning of his government, Cuba wants him to hold free elections. He goes on to compare Castro and Chile's dictator Augusto Pinochet, who called for free elections after a similar referendum. Franqui answers Melero's questions regarding peaceful protest, the political role of youth and Cuba's...

Summary (English): Summary (English)Side A: Panel discussion: the applicability of Jose Marti's thought in contemporary times. Chubaya, Carmen; Marrero, Levi; Cuadra, Ángel; Figueroa, Javier; Candelaria, Andrés; Melero, Alfredo. Chubayan follows with an invocation and introduces the panel. Candelaria is moderating and Melero, coordinator of CID (Cuba Independiente Democrática), is present. The panel discusses what aspects of Cuban national hero and intellectual Jose Martí can be appropriated for...

Summary (English): Summary (English)Side A: Speech about the situation of Cuba: the hardships of life on the island and the humiliation of being exiled. The speaker is hopeful about the end of Castro's regime, particularly following the very quick end of the USSR, which transpired with very few deaths.Side B: Convención Anual de 1991 de Cuba Independiente y Democrática. Peña Martínez, Oscar; Abí Cobas, Hirán; Moya Alfonso, David. Hirán Abí Cobas from the Cuban Human Rights Party and...

Summary (English): Summary (English)Side A: Marrero talks about the history of Cuba and how Cuba has no history of democratic self-government due to the political system applied by Spain during colonial times. He says that Cuba had a history of quality education before the dictatorship and that current indoctrination is failing.Side B: Tape begins twice. Marrero describes Cuba's impressive environmental resources. He says that despite this Castro is turning Cuba back into what it was in...

Summary (English): Summary (English)Side A: Guedez, Emilio; Cesteves, Emil; Martínez, Manuel; Sanz, Paquita; Álvarez, Mario; Melero, Alfredo. Guedez discusses the ideals behind the Cuban revolution, the political situation in the months following the revolution, and the difference between the democratic "26 de Julio" and the communist orientation of Castro. Castro has tried to legitimize his usurpation of power by aligning with the communist political forces.Side B: Many little segments...

Summary (English): Summary (English)Side A: Press conference with former first dancer of the National Ballet of Cuba, Jorge Esquivel, who has received political asylum in Puerto Rico. Esquivel says that the worse the embargo gets, the faster Castro's dictatorship will end. Any economic support will only delay the future uprising. He also talks about the expressions of dissent on the island by youth, musicians, and through involvement with organizations like CID, etc.Side B: Continuation...

Summary (English): Summary (English)Side A: Melero and Franqui compare Haiti and Cuba. Franqui notes that this is not a racial issue, but a national problem, and compares Cuba's economic, political and moral destruction with Haiti's past. Franqui then makes the distinction between Castro and Cuba and reminds listeners that it is legitimate to love Cuba and yet hate Castro.Side B: The speaker comments on Castro's September 5, 1992, speech decreeing the end of the construction of Juraguá...

Summary (English): Summary (English)Side A: Melero and Franqui discuss a January 4th, New York Times article by Ginger Thompson titled, "Castro relaxes grip on Cuba's churches, move seen as bid to bolster support." They point out that people's displeasure with the government has become more vocal which signals the approach of the end of Castro's government. They then discuss Major Orestes Lorenzo's December 19, 1992, successful attempt to rescue his...

Summary (English): Summary (English)Side A: The speakers talk about the deterioration of Cuba, and the "individual solutions" that are arising to the problems of life on the island: suicide and desertion when possible. Silva encourages listeners to stop thinking in terms of individual solutions, and all three speakers believe it's time to overthrow Castro's government. They argue that Orestes Lorenzo's success proves that national security is not functioning as well as it did in the past and that...

Summary (English): Summary (English)Side A: The speakers discuss the coming reduction of the Cuban army: the reasons, the methods and the consequences. The reason, they believe, is the end of the USSR and Cuba's inability to afford such a disproportionally large army (the biggest per capita in America, according to the speakers' opinion). The reduction will probably be used as a cover for the selective expulsion of democratic forces within the army.Side B: Second part of the panel...

Summary (English): Summary (English)Side A: The speakers discuss how Castro is selling Cuba's patrimony to foreigners. Franqui evaluates Castro's 3 big truths "in Cuba everyone has a job, everyone has medicine and everyone has an education". They then note the irony of the fact that on December 20th, 1993 the UN General Assembly reprimands Cuba for human rights abuses (74-20, with 61 abstentions), despite the fact that Castro is an enemy of an abusive imperialist power and most countries should...

Summary (English): Summary (English)Side A: Franqui describes Havana as he first encountered it in his youth and describes the problems of infrastructure and contamination that are now common there. He thinks this is due to the fact that Castro never liked the city and never allowed for the restauration of the buildings. The speakers propose that Castro's name never be spoken in Cuba after the end of his government as a way of punishing his arrogance.Side B: Melero complains that the...

Summary (English): Summary (English)Side A: The speakers discuss the huge Cuban delegation at the XVII Central American and Caribbean Games. They point out how despite the bad economic situation in Cuba about 1.5 million US dollars were spent on the delegation because they are used as political emissaries for Castro's regime. Melero describes his experience helping one of the delegates desert, describing the delegate's motivation and his perception of Cuba.Side B: The speakers discuss...

Summary (English): Summary (English)Side A: Discussion of the legacy of Castro and feelings of coming change. Rodríguez, Felipe. Silva, Rodolfo. Melero, Alfredo. During the Central American and Caribbean Games in Puerto Rico, the speakers discuss issues of freedom in Cuba as well as the legacy of Castro as the worst dictator in Latin America. The speakers complain about the lack of opposition leadership, which is necessary for change, though they say that changes are soon to come.Side...

Summary (English): Summary (English)Side A: Absurd contradictions: hunger and gold medals for Cuba. Rodríguez, Felipe. Silva, Rodolfo. Melero, Alfredo. It is Thanksigiving Day and the Central American and Caribbean Games are still going on in Puerto Rico. The speakers criticize the fact that Cuba sent one of the biggest delegations of athletes to the games when there is so much hunger and poverty in Cuba. They also criticize a new law that prohibits the raising of pigs in Havana, something people...

Summary (English): Summary (English)Side A: Embargo versus Blockade. Franqui, Carlos. Guedes, Emilio. Franqui introduces Guedes, a filmmaker and journalist who was a fierce opponent of Batista and was previously part of Castro's government but then disagreed with him on many issues. Guedes explains that at the time of the Revolution, there were many people in the U.S. who sympathized with the rebels. He then explains that the U.S. embargo on Cuba has been largely ineffective because of the Soviet...

Summary (English): Summary (English)Side A: Castro blames the US for Cuba's problems, but wants the US to save him. Franqui, Carlo. Guedes, Emilio. Guedes argues that the embargo is a legal mechanism to prevent US nationals from doing business in Cuba, yet Cuba still trades with many other countries. However, Castro blames Cuba's economic woes on the US embargo as a scapegoat. He wants the US to lift the embargo in order to introduce more American dollars in the Cuban economy.Side B: On...

Summary (English): Summary (English)Side A: The impossibility of dialogue with Castro. Melero, Alfredo. Franqui, Carlos. Franqui discusses a recent article he wrote about the debate among the exiled community regarding whether there should be dialogue with Castro or another revolution. Most people, he explains, do not believe in dialogue, not because they prefer violence, but rather because Castro has never and will never agree to dialogue. He even refuses to dialogue with the Catholic Church or...