Chronicle on Cuba - June 2009

Highlights

Domestic Affairs: Cuba announces the resignation of its central bank chief. Smaller bean rations and longer bus lines are among the new hardships hitting Cubans. A corps of inspectors pursues fraud in the consumption of electricity in Havana’s residential sector. A video on the dismissal of former vice president Carlos Lage and former foreign minister Felipe Perez Roque circulates in the island. An official note announces over 31 confirmed new cases of the Influenza A H1N1 virus.

Economy: The Cuban government establishes "exceptional measures" to save energy. Factories are closing down and production is being cut at other workplaces as the international financial crisis weighs on in the island. Cuba’s government announces new labour measures to “stimulate jobs”. Cuba's trade deficit soared by 65 percent in 2008.

Exile Community: The Cuban Studies Institute (IEC) warns about threats received in Havana by its president, Dagoberto Valdes. Exile groups announce in Miami a new stage of the campaign “I do not cooperate”.

Foreign Affairs: El Salvador and Cuba formally re-establish diplomatic ties. Paraguayan President Fernando Lugo visits the island. The Organization of American States (OAS) agrees to lift a provision that suspended Cuba from the group.  Havana makes clear does not want to rejoin the OAS. Bolivian President Evo Morales arrives in Havana for a working visit. European Union nations want to deepen dialogue with Cuba. The Cuban Government condemns the military coup in Honduras.

Security: Military units from Cuba joined Venezuelan and ALBA nation forces in a parade commemorating Venezuela’s historical battle in Carabobo.
 
US-Cuba Relations: Cuba agrees to resume talks with the Obama administration on legal immigration. A former State Department official and his wife have been charged with spying for Cuba. Fidel Castro harshly criticizes the Obama Administration in several of his columns.  The US Supreme Court declines to hear an appeal by five convicted Cuban spies. The National Endowment for Democracy hands out its annual Democracy Award to five Cuban dissidents.