Cuba Earthquake - September 11 2011

An earthquake of magnitude 5.1 struck of the south western coast of Cuba at 08:43:
06 UTC on 15 September 2011. Located at 19.563°N, 78.008°W at a depth of 5 km
according to the USGS estimate, the event occurred offshore to the northwest of
Jamaica, the closest CCRIF member country. This made the event epicentre 122km
 north of Montego Bay. There were no reports of damage or loss in Jamaica as a
result of this Event.
source: CCRIF

Cuba's crumbling buildings mean Havana housing shortage

By Sarah Rainsford.
Havana is beguiling from a distance, especially its old colonial buildings bathed in tropical sunshine. But up close this city is crumbling......
source: BBC News

Cuban foreign minister affirms viability of socialism despite blockade

BEIJING, China, September 2009 — Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla today affirmed the viability of socialism in his country despite the U.S. policy of aggression, which, he said, remains intact.
Granma Newspaper

Tourism to Cuba Grows 200,000, Up 9.3% in 2008

Some 2.35 million tourists visited Cuba in 2008, spending 2.53 billion convertible pesos ($2.74 billion), the National Statistics Office reported. Source: Latin American Herald Tribune

2005 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices (Western Hemisphere)

All men and women desire and deserve to live in dignity and liberty. As President Bush said: "The advance of freedom is the great story of our time." Promoting human rights and democracy is a worldwide phenomenon and there is a growing global discussion of democracy and the universal values protected by democratic governance.

By defending and advancing human rights and democratic principles, we keep faith with our country’s most cherished values and lay the foundation for lasting peace. Fulfilling the promise of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights and building vibrant democracies worldwide will take generations, but it is work of the utmost urgency that cannot be delayed.
Source:US Dept. of State

International Narcotics Control Strategy Report for 2006

Illicit Drugs Shipped Through Caribbean Nations to U.S., Europe
The report cites Bahamas, Dominican Republic, Jamaica as major transit points. As a result of their geographic location, many nations of the Caribbean are utilized as transit countries to shift cocaine, marijuana and other illicit drugs from South America to the United States, Europe and elsewhere, according to the U.S. State Department's International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR) for 2006.
Source:U.S. Department of State

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL REPORT 2006 - CUBA

Restrictions on freedom of expression, association and movement continued to cause great concern. Nearly 70 prisoners of conscience remained in prison. The US embargo continued to have a negative effect on the enjoyment of the full range of human rights in Cuba. The economic situation deteriorated and the government attempted to suppress private entrepreneurship. More than 30 prisoners remained on death row; no one was executed.

Background
There were strikes and riots in January and April as a result of public anger over the economy. The government expressed a desire to change the Constitution in order to accept the jurisdiction of the Caribbean Court of Justice as the final court of appeal in Belize, replacing the Privy Council.

Prisoners of conscience
Prisoners of conscience continued to be arrested and sentenced for their peacefully held views. Some were released for health reasons. René Gómez Manzano and Julio César López Rodríguez were detained, along with several others, in the capital Havana after participating in a peaceful anti-government demonstration on 22 July. René Gómez Manzano, a member of the Assembly to Promote Civil Society, and eight others remained imprisoned awaiting trial. On 13 July around 20 people were detained while participating in a peaceful event in Havana. They were commemorating the “13 de Marzo” tugboat disaster of 1994, in which some 35 people were killed while attempting to flee Cuba when their boat was reportedly rammed by the Cuban authorities. Six remained in detention without charge and one was sentenced to one year’s imprisonment for “peligrosidad predelictiva” defined as “a person’s special proclivity to commit offences as demonstrated by conduct that is manifestly contrary to the norms of socialist morality”. Prisoner of conscience Mario Enrique Mayo Hernández, sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment in 2003, was conditionally released on health grounds on 1 December.

Restrictions on freedom of expression, association and movement

Human rights activists, political dissidents and trade unionists were harassed and intimidated. Such attacks were frequently perpetrated by quasi-official groups, the rapid-response brigades, allegedly acting in collusion with members of the security forces.

Freedom of expression and association continued to be under attack. All legal media outlets were under government control and independent media remained banned. Independent journalists faced intimidation, harassment and imprisonment for publishing articles outside Cuba. Human rights defenders also faced intimidation and politically motivated and arbitrary arrests.

The laws used to arrest and imprison journalists, relating to defamation, national security and disturbing public order, did not comply with international standards. According to the international NGO Reporters Without Borders, 24 journalists were imprisoned at the end of 2005.

Oscar Mario González Pérez, an independent journalist, was arrested on 22 July after covering a demonstration. He remained in prison without charge. Dissidents continued to face restrictions when attempting to travel abroad.

Miguel Sigler Amaya, a member of the unofficial Alternative Option Movement (Movimiento Independiente Opción Alternativa), was detained at Havana International Airport when he and his family were about to board a plane to the USA even though they had exit visas as political refugees. He and his family were released several days later and finally left Cuba on 5 October. Miguel Sigler Amaya’s brothers, Guido and Ariel, both prisoners of conscience, continued to serve sentences of 20 and 25 years respectively.

In December, representatives of Ladies in White (Las Damas de Blanco), a group of prisoners’ female relatives who had marched every Sunday since March 2003 demanding the release of their husbands, brothers and sons, were not given official permission to travel to attend the award ceremony in Strasbourg, France, to receive the European Parliament’s Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought.
Source:Amnesty International