Cuba

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Robert Vesco, Rogue Financier, Dies in Cuba

Fugitive from justice, fraudster died in November in Havana

(Newser) - Robert Vesco, the American financier who fled the country amid accusations that he had swindled $200 million from unsuspecting investors, died in Havana last November, according to a relative. Vesco, who died at 71, had lived in Cuba since the 1980s and had served time in jail there for defrauding...

Raul Castro Empties Cuba's Death Row

New president commutes all but 3 capital sentences

(Newser) - New Cuban president Raul Castro has commuted all but three of the country's death sentences to prison terms of 30 years to life, reports Reuters. Castro, who also has been gradually easing the country's restrictions on daily life, said the death penalty would remain on the books to deter "...

Cuba Loosens Limits on Home Ownership, Salaries

State workers can now own houses; salary cap is gone

(Newser) - Raul Castro continues to lighten up on some of Cuba's least popular restrictions, ending salary caps and allowing retiring state workers to take title to the homes they live in. Government employees, including members of the military, sugar and construction workers, doctors, and teachers, will now be able keep their...

Castro Victim's Family Wins Record Verdict

Juror: $253M award shows world not to 'mess' with Americans

(Newser) - Two Miami residents won a record $253 million lawsuit against Cuba yesterday after Florida jurors approved a wrongful death claim on behalf of their father. The case involved the death of Rafael del Pino, a naturalized US citizen and ex-Castro ally who was imprisoned after turning against the Cuban dictator,...

Castro Lifts Hotel Ban for Cubans
Castro Lifts Hotel Ban for Cubans
Mar 31, 2008 3:03 PM CDT

Castro Lifts Hotel Ban for Cubans

Keeping tourist digs off-limits blasted as 'economic apartheid'

(Newser) - Raul Castro has lifted a ban on Cubans staying at hotels designated for foreign tourists, Reuters reports. The prohibition, which had been criticized as "economic apartheid," had frustrated many Cubans since the country was opened up to tourism in 1990. "Cubans can now stay at our hotels,...

Obama Inspires Caribbean Serenade

Candidate-themed calypso, reggae tunes hit YouTube

(Newser) - Barack Obama is inspiring tropical love songs, the Miami Herald reports, and the tunes—from Trinidad calypso king the Mighty Sparrow’s Barack the Magnificent to Jamaican reggae fixture Cocoa Tea’s Barak Obahama—are firing up YouTube. The songs are also a signal of the Illinois Democrat's popularity outside...

Cuba Ends Cell Phone Ban
 Cuba Ends Cell Phone Ban 
Mar 28, 2008 12:50 PM CDT

Cuba Ends Cell Phone Ban

Still-pricey service is signal of new president Castro's promised reforms

(Newser) - The Cuban government said today it will lift restrictions on mobile phones for the first time, the BBC reports—a sign new leader Raul Castro is following through on reform pledges. Cell phone service will be made generally available next week; service fees will have to be paid in foreign...

7 Cuban Soccer Players Defect to US
7 Cuban
Soccer Players
Defect to US
Mar 13, 2008 12:27 PM CDT

7 Cuban Soccer Players Defect to US

Five are already in talks with pro team in Miami

(Newser) - Seven Cuban soccer players defected from the national team over the last two days—five on Tuesday and two last night—slipping from their Tampa hotel after a game to seek asylum in the US, the Miami Herald reports. The first five have contacted a lawyer and are in discussions...

China Off US Rights Blacklist
 China Off US Rights Blacklist 
Mar 12, 2008 10:26 AM CDT

China Off US Rights Blacklist

State Dept. report drops China from top 10 worst abusers despite poor record

(Newser) - The State Department has taken China off its list of the world's 10 worst human rights abusers, the New York Times reports. China's human rights record "remained poor," the department's annual report said, with abuses including "extrajudicial killings, torture, and coerced confessions of prisoners." Officials declined...

Cuba Signs Human Rights Pacts at UN
Cuba Signs Human Rights Pacts at UN
Feb 29, 2008 8:22 AM CST

Cuba Signs Human Rights Pacts at UN

But critics say the nation's dissidents must be released

(Newser) - Cuba yesterday signed a pair of legally binding human rights agreements, promising, among other things, to allow its citizens free speech, free association, and the right to travel, the BBC reports. Coming mere days after Raul Castro became president, the gesture could signal a shift in Cuba’s policy, though...

Clinton, Obama Equally Adept at Policy Shifts

Flip-flopping can kill a campaign, but everyone does it, say experts

(Newser) - They've escaped the dreaded "flip-flopper" label, but both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama have changed positions on various issues in the course of their campaigns. Appearing absolutely consistent is especially hard for senators, reports the Washington Post, because they have thousands of votes to explain, and many are the...

Don't Expect Another Cuban Revolution

Raul is no Fidel, but is expected to stay on brother's course

(Newser) - You won't see him wearing fatigues and making fiery speeches, but Raul Castro is expected to hew closely to brother Fidel's line. Cuba's new president is a pragmatic military man who lacks his brother's charisma and ego, the New York Times reports. Fidel is still party leader, and 31 Castro...

Raul Castro Is New Cuban Prez
Raul Castro Is New Cuban Prez
UPDATED
Feb 24, 2008 1:33 PM CST

Raul Castro Is New Cuban Prez

But brother Fidel won't be far away

(Newser) - Raul Castro will succeed long-ruling brother Fidel as the president of Cuba, reports the Miami Herald, after members of the National Assembly voted today. The current defense minister and first VP of the national committee, 76, was the only candidate endorsed by a nominating committee, and his ascent is expected...

Fidel Looking Forward to 'Vacation'
Fidel Looking Forward
to 'Vacation'
Feb 22, 2008 2:48 PM CST

Fidel Looking Forward to 'Vacation'

Former leader mocks US in post-presidential newspaper column

(Newser) - Fidel can't wait to retire. The soon-to-be-former dictator published a new newspaper column today, telling Cuba he was relieved to be rid of his exhausting presidential duties. “The night before, I slept better than ever,” Castro wrote. But he couldn’t give up his newspaper gig because, “...

How US Tried to Whack Castro
How US Tried to Whack Castro
Feb 21, 2008 2:09 PM CST

How US Tried to Whack Castro

CIA devised creative means to remove Cuban president

(Newser) - Despite several assassination attempts against Fidel Castro, the Cuban president stepped down Tuesday on his own terms. The CIA came up with at least eight sometimes-kooky ways to oust the leader, CNN reports, most of which were not carried out:
  • Chemical attack on the air of his radio station.
  • Cigars
...

Steely Ra&uacute;l's Time Is Now
Steely Raúl's Time Is Now
Feb 20, 2008 9:37 AM CST

Steely Raúl's Time Is Now

Low-profile No. 2, Fidel's 'organizational glue,' steps into Cuba's top job

(Newser) - The Castro brothers overthrew a dictatorship and won a revolution together, but while charismatic Fidel was the public face giving passionate seven-hour speeches, steely Raúl quietly got it done—ruthlessly sending dissenters to the firing squad, earning him the nickname "the Prussian." As Fidel fades, writes the...

Fidel Faithful Likely to Keep Power
Fidel Faithful Likely to
Keep Power
Feb 20, 2008 7:19 AM CST

Fidel Faithful Likely to Keep Power

Cubans unsure if leader's resignation will change anything

(Newser) - Life went on as normal in Havana after Fidel Castro announced his resignation yesterday, and Cuba experts aren't sure how much real impact his decision will have, the New York Times reports. Cuba's National Assembly is due to choose a new Council of State on Sunday and power is expected...

South Florida Quiet After Castro Resigns

Exile leaders stress need for democracy on island nation

(Newser) - Few South Florida Cubans bothered to celebrate Fidel Castro's retirement today, the Miami Herald reports. Exile leaders dismissed the power shift to Castro's brother Raul as politics as usual for the island nation. "Just because he has given up a title, doesn't mean he has given up power,''...

US Should Have Hugged Castro to Death
US Should
Have Hugged Castro to Death
OPINION
Feb 19, 2008 12:23 PM CST

US Should Have Hugged Castro to Death

Dictator relied on angry giant to the north to keep people afraid

(Newser) - Fidel Castro has left power, but his legacy endures because the US never did what it took to eliminate his regime: embrace it. Fidel survived for decades because his people were afraid of the angry superpower to the north, writes Newsweek’s Christopher Dickey. Had America embraced him, the Cuban...

Fidel Steps Down After 50 Years
Fidel Steps Down After 50 Years
Feb 19, 2008 4:07 AM CST

Fidel Steps Down After 50 Years

Cuban leader announces retirement

(Newser) - Fidel Castro has resigned after nearly 50 years as Cuba's leader, the AP reports. "I neither will aspire to, nor will I accept, the position of president of the council of state and commander in chief," the 81-year-old wrote in a letter published in the Communist Party's online...

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