Protests Erupt in Cuba

[dann]

Originally Posted by dann

As for the rest of the world:
When will they ever learn?!

In this context, also kudos to Singapore. Different vaccines, but somewhat similar strategies.
Daily new confirmed COVID-19 deaths per million people: Cuba, Singapore, USA, Denmark - Oct 1, 2022 --> present

Cuba had a very tough time from June to October 2021 when Delta hit the country before vaccinations, the delay of which was largely due to the US blockade.
Daily new confirmed COVID-19 deaths per million people: Cuba, Singapore - March 23, 2020 --> present
Since then Cuba has been doing much better than Singapore, but the disparity in population density is considerable:
Cuba: 106 per km²
Singapore: 8,358 per km²

Cumulative confirmed COVID-19 deaths per million people: Cuba, Singapore, USA, Denmark

[dann]

Difficult to find in U.S. media:

Quote:

Miami's Cuban conservative, just a few but with much political influence, are presently stirring up the U.S. blockade against Cuba instead of condemning it, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said on Monday.
During his morning briefing at the National Palace, the Mexican leader replied to a migration-economic integration question that he will discuss on Monday in a meeting with his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden.
(...)
López Obrador gave as an example of profiting from the needs and pain of the people the case of a group of Cubans in Miami who, being a tiny minority, have great political influence and are the ones who whip up U.S. blockade and are against migrants from other nations as well, profiting and enriching themselves at their own people's expense.
U.S. blockade against Cuba and Miami's Cuban conservatives' stances are a flagrant violation of human rights, as is Washington’s hostile policy towards Cuba, López Obrador said, while asking the United States what gave it permission for one country to blockade another if we are not in the Middle Ages, are we not free?
Mexico accuses Miami's Cuban conservatives of goading on US blockade (Prensa Latina, Jan 9, 2023)

[dann]

I forgot to update this in December, so let's take a look at the numbers since Nov 17, 2022:

Daily new confirmed COVID-19 cases per million people in Cuba since Nov 17, 2022. On Nov 17, 2022: 0.28; on Jan 16, 2023: 1.45. A considerable rise in the number of new cases from Nov 22, 0.19 to Dec 26, 2.42. The numbers have been deceasing since then to now 1.45, probably due to the face-mask recommendations. (See posts above.) But still much higher than the November numbers.
For perspective: Daily new confirmed COVID-19 cases per million people in Cuba and the USA since Nov 17, 2022. USA Nov 17: 114.14; Jan 16, 2023: 140.68 (from 225.26 on Jan 9).

The SARS-CoV-2 numbers from Our World in Data, Nov 16, 2021, and now:
Daily new confirmed COVID-19 cases per million people. 7-day rolling average. Cuba 33, USA 251. --> Cuba 1.45, USA 140.68.
Daily new confirmed COVID-19 deaths per million people. 7-day rolling average. Cuba 0.23, USA 3.49. --> Cuba 0.0, USA 1.57.
Cumulative confirmed COVID-19 deaths per million people Cuba 760.78, USA 3,251.31. No new Covid-19 deaths in Cuba since Aug 21, 2022.

Vaccinations:
Share of people vaccinated against COVID-19, Nov 19, 2021 and now: Cuba: fully 73.41, total 89.07; USA: fully 57.58, total 67.38. --> Cuba: fully 89.24, total 95.63; USA: fully 69.08, total 80.73.
It takes three jabs to be considered fully vaccinated in Cuba, and Cuba offers booster shots more often, so the difference is even bigger if we look at:
COVID-19 vaccine doses administered per 100 people Cuba 238.92, USA 130.99. --> Cuba 382.91, USA 200.75.

Daily COVID-19 vaccine doses administered per 100 people. Rolling 7-day average. Cuba 0.98, USA 0.30. --> Cuba 0.17 (Jan 14), USA 0.04 (Jan 10).
For a while, from Oct 1 to Dec 27, the USA was actually vaccinating more per capita than Cuba, but the rising number of new infections has made Cuba ramp up its vaccination programme again.

CNN's Tracking Covid-19 vaccinations worldwide

The numbers in this thread from Dec 17, 2021, Jan 17, 2022, Feb 17, Mar 16, April 17, May 17, June 17, July 17, Aug 17, Sep 17, Oct 17 and Nov 18.

[dann]

Quote:

SOBERANA-02 is a COVID-19 conjugate vaccine (recombinant RBD conjugated to tetanus toxoid). Phases 1/2 clinical trials demonstrated high immunogenicity, promoting neutralising IgG and specific T-cell response. A third heterologous dose of SOBERANA-Plus (RBD-dimer) further increased neutralising antibodies. The aim of this study is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of two immunisation regimes: two doses of SOBERANA-02 and a heterologous three-dose combination with SOBERANA-Plus added to it.
Safety and efficacy of the two doses conjugated protein-based SOBERANA-02 COVID-19 vaccine and of a heterologous three-dose combination with SOBERANA-Plus: a double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled phase 3 clinical trial (The Lancet, Volume 18, Feb 1, 2023; online Dec 31, 2022)

This looks promising:

Quote:

The SOBERANA vaccines demonstrated to be efficacious in preventing PCR-confirmed symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infections among adults aged 19–80 years. Efficacy after two doses SOBERANA-02 administration, 69.7%, was well over the WHO-set 50% threshold. After completion of the heterologous schedule with SOBERANA-Plus, VE attained an excellent 92.0%. Efficacy to prevent severe COVID-19 was 74.9% for the two doses regimen; no severe case presented under the heterologous scheme. The occurrence of serious and severe AEs was very rare and equally distributed between the placebo and vaccine groups. Solicited AEs were slightly more frequent in the vaccine group but predominantly local and mostly mild and transient.

Subunit protein vaccines present clear advantages in terms of manufacturing, storage and distribution. Still, administration of a third heterologous dose in the So2P regimen, which significantly further increases SOBERANA's VE, could be construed as a disadvantage compared to COVID-19 vaccines using two dose regimens. However, the need for and benefits of administering a booster dose to the primary schedules of registered vaccines is increasingly recognised. Furthermore, due to the T-epitopes from the tetanus toxoid carrier protein, SOBERANA-02 -the first conjugate SARS CoV-2 RBD protein-based vaccine induces T-helper response and long lasting immunity. Heterologous combinations for priming and booster using protein vaccines are also reported by others, with excellent results.

VE vaccine efficacy
AE adverse effects

[dann]

It's an opinion piece, not an editorial, but still ...

Quote:

Over the holidays, leading human rights experts were busy placing bets on the imminent demise of the Cuban government. Rocketing inflation, food shortages, and spiraling infrastructure has resulted in its embattled economy sounding the death knell on further funding for investment and resources. Unsurprisingly, what the political discourse around Cuba fails to mention is that the island has been shackled under an oppressive U.S blockade on trade spanning decades.
(...)
Avenging the events of 1959 is what has enabled the slandering of Cuba as a tyrannical and despotic island to flourish. Notwithstanding that Cuba's COVID vaccination drive is a model example the world over, that its literacy rate soars past its neoliberal counterparts, and that recent anti-government protests were exaggerated by those devoted to its demise.
Biden's progressive credentials and efforts to resolve foreign disputes are undermined by continuing Trump's calamity. A total of 185 countries voted in favor of a U.N.-backed motion in November to end the blockade on Cuba, with the U.S. and Israel being the only two states to vote against it. Biden continues to hold communism responsible yet leaves out resentments over historic power struggles and Cuba's successful attempts to keep its island independent from imperial rule.
If communism is so bad, Biden should ease sanctions and let the Cuban people figure that out for themselves.
Why Is Biden Pursuing a Trump-Lite Approach With Cuba? (Newsweek, Jan 20, 2023)

[dann]

Originally Posted by dudalb

I don't like oppresive regimes, no matter what ideology they use.

Originally Posted by theprestige

But I admit I don't have a lot of info and am pretty much just guessing.

Originally Posted by Arcade22

Yes how surprising that the only people allowed to "protest" unmolested in Cuba are the thugs who "protest" on behalf of the country's cruel ruling dictatorship that oppresses anyone who tries to assert their own freedom.

For some reason, nobody wanted to comment on the most recent Cuban referendum. I mentioned it in the thread about Evangelical Homophobia in Cuba, and I witnessed it taking place in Havana on Sep 25, 2022, with cute kids standing guard at the ballot boxes. I didn't notice any cruel oppression. I didn't see the celebrations afterwards, and I didn't see anybody complain, but they may have been scared off by the threatening attitude of the girls in school uniforms.

Not everybody was happy with the outcome:

Quote:

However, the updated code also faced stark opposition from religious conservatives. The Cuban Roman Catholic Church told Reuters that the updated law was riddled with “gender ideology” that would lead to “indoctrination of children in schools without parental consent,” echoing the language favored by large swathes of the U.S. Republican Party. Numerous of the island’s Protestant delegations have been extensively campaigning against same-sex marriage for years as well.
Cuba Has Legalized Same-Sex Marriage and Adoption (Them, Sep 26, 2022)

And now there's a chance to learn about elections to the Cuban National Assembly of People's Power, which will be held on March 26, 2023:
Cuba alista elecciones nacionales de marzo próximo (PrensaLatina, Jan 13, 2023)
Cuban Parliamentary Election: Electoral system (Wikipedia)

[dann]

Two posts about pandemic measures in Cuba and Singapore in the thread How do we know a pandemic's over?
http://www.internationalskeptics.com...9#post13999149
http://www.internationalskeptics.com...0#post13999160

[dann]

Occasionally, people pretend to know how Cuba's system of government works:

Originally Posted by The Atheist

I will reiterate this is a bloke who thinks a one party vote in Cuba constitutes a democratic election.

Now there's a chance to learn! The election of Cuba's National Assembly of People's Power takes place on March 26, but the electoral process has already started:

Quote:

Para integrar la lista electoral, cada propuesta para candidato a diputado deberá obtener este domingo más del 50 % de los votos de los delegados
Mañana, las asambleas municipales del Poder Popular nominarán a los candidatos a diputados (Granma.cu, Feb 4, 2023)

Google translate:
To integrate the electoral list, each proposal for candidate for deputy must obtain this Sunday more than 50% of the votes of the delegates
Tomorrow, the municipal assemblies of Popular Power will nominate the candidates for deputies

See also post 206

[dann]

Originally Posted by SuburbanTurkey

i came in here to do apologism for the Cuban revolution, but I just can't given the record of human rights abuse. There's a horrible prison right there on the island that is openly torturing prisoners and shows no sign of ever stopping. Perhaps one day the torture camp can be liberated and those committing crimes against humanity will be held accountable.

Only a tankie would say this is ok.

The camp is still there, but Belize receives prisoner released from US naval base in Guantanamo (PrensaLatina, Feb 4, 2023).

[dann]

Quote:

“We’re curing a thousand people’s blindness,” says MrBeast – real name Jimmy Donaldson – in the Saturday video, which reached over 32 million views as of Sunday afternoon.
The video features touching before-and-after footage of patients seeing with clear vision after finishing the surgery. The YouTuber also gave cash donations and other gifts to some of the participants.
YouTube star MrBeast helps 1,000 blind people see again by sponsoring cataract surgeries (CNN, Jan 29, 2023)

MrBeast Criticized for Viral Blindness Video (GameRant, Jan 31, 2023)

What is wrong with this guy?! Is he a bloody communist? Is the trying to make thousands of ophthalmologists lose their jobs? There's something very suspicious going on here! He must have ulterior motives, and he's gotta be stopped!

Quote:

Operación Milagro (English: Operation Miracle; also Misión Milagro in Venezuela) is a program of international solidarity launched in 2004 by the governments of Cuba and Venezuela to provide free medical treatment for people with eye problems.
(...)
Clinics like in Uruguay will scout out patients in rural areas, performing surgeries that would cost at least $5,000 for free. Hospital Saint Bois in Uruguay, which houses the José Martí Ophthalmology Clinic, reported 50,000 surgeries in seven years.
(...)
In accordance with Cuban internationalist medical programs created at this time, an ulterior motive to the program is political legitimacy for Cuba and greater economic agency. Working in programs like Operación Milagro instills patriotism in Cuban doctors, furthered by the Cuban government's monetary incentives for participating personnel.
(...)
The United States, critical of the Cuban government and the ALBA's function in Latin America, remains steadfast in attempting to maintain its sphere of influence. WikiLeaks revealed that the United States government was influencing Mexican president Felipe Calderón to resist medical assistance in Mexico through Operación Milagro. Right wing governments have also shown pushback against the expansion of the program, including Panama, where the government created its own program to combat Cuba's. In Peru, the conservative government of Alan García ended ties with Operación Milagro, also noting that they had their own program, which was not only domestic but also more limited in scope. Other nations have accused Cuba of overtaking their professional healthcare systems, worried that Cuban doctors would overshadow medical competition.
Operación Milagro (Wikipedia)

What's next? Will the communists try to kill a perfectly good business for the Western vaccine companies?!

Oh, I see!

[dann]

Originally Posted by dudalb

You know, I am wierd in one way. I don't like oppresive regimes, no matter what ideology they use. Oppersive regimes are bad, period.

Originally Posted by theprestige

I admit I don't have a lot of info and am pretty much just guessing. I couldn't give you a good reason for why I think this.

Originally Posted by Arcade22

Yes how surprising that the only people allowed to "protest" unmolested in Cuba are the thugs who "protest" on behalf of the country's cruel ruling dictatorship that oppresses anyone who tries to assert their own freedom.

Cuban elections
in English:
Candidates to Cuba’s parliament hold meetings with citizens (+Photos) (PrensaLatina, Feb 6, 2023)
Cuban president participates in assembly to approve candidacy (+Photo) (PrensaLatina, Feb 6, 2023)
Parliamentary candidates tour Cuban provinces (PrensaLatina, Feb 7, 2023)

in Spanish:
Dialogan con el pueblo granmense candidatos a diputados al Parlamento Cubano (Trabajadores.cu, Feb 6, 2023)
Realizan encuentros con la población candidatos a diputados de Arroyo Naranjo (Trabajadores.cu, Feb 6, 2023)
Dialogan con el pueblo candidatos a diputados camagüeyanos (Trabajadores.cu, Feb 7, 2023)
Con Filo: La candidatura (Trabajadores.cu, Feb 7, 2023)
Sin promesas, ni varitas mágicas andan los candidatos a diputados (Trabajadores.cu, Feb 7, 2023)

Las próximas elecciones nacionales serán otro hecho de valentía y de democracia de Cuba (JuventudRebelde, Feb 6, 2023)
Candidatos a diputados en segunda jornada junto al pueblo (JuventudRebelde, Feb 7, 2023)
En Virgina clases sobre el buen hacer comunitario (JuventudRebelde, Feb 7, 2023)

Estos son los candidatos a diputados a la X Legislatura del Parlamento cubano (Granma.cu, Feb 7, 2023)

[dann]

Quote:

Cuba's Covid-19 Abdala vaccine proved to be stable, effective and functional after being stored for 15 days at 37^oC, the Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology of Cuba (CIGB) reported Thursday.
“Abdala is a vaccine that requires no freezing process to be preserved, unlike other vaccines, since it can be stored from four to eight degrees Celsius. It has been proved Abdala vaccine is thermostable for 15 days at 37^oC without being affected.”
“It facilitates its distribution and a high vaccination coverage,” the CIGB tweeted.
(...)
Since July 2021, the Cuban vaccine has been authorized for emergency use after proving 92.28% effectiveness in preventing symptomatic disease and 90% effectiveness in severe Covid-19 patients. It also showed a 99.15% rise in antibodies in volunteers aged three to 11 years and 98.28% in those aged 12 to 18 years.
The CIGB confirmed the increased antibody titers was fourfold or more from the first dose in these population groups.
Cuba’s Abdala vaccine is safe, effective and thermostable – CIGB (PrensaLatina, Feb 9, 2023)

Demonstrating “Abdala” Subunit Vaccine Stability Under Thermal Stress Conditions (BioProcessing Journal, Vol. 21, Sep 2022)

[dann]

Daily new confirmed COVID-19 cases per million people in Cuba since Feb 17, 2022.
For perspective (notice the y-axis): Daily new confirmed COVID-19 cases per million people in Cuba and the USA since Feb 17, 2022.
Cuba does have regular updates, for instance Feb 16 and Jan 31. However, unlike the daily updates in New Zealand, I haven't seen any that distinguish between incoming travellers and others.

The SARS-CoV-2 numbers from Our World in Data, Nov 16, 2021, and now:
Daily new confirmed COVID-19 cases per million people. 7-day rolling average. Cuba 33, USA 251. --> Cuba 0.42, USA 98.68.
Daily new confirmed COVID-19 deaths per million people. 7-day rolling average. Cuba 0.23, USA 3.49. --> Cuba 0.0, USA 1.01.
Cumulative confirmed COVID-19 deaths per million people Cuba 760.78, USA 3,301.23. No new Covid-19 deaths in Cuba since Aug 21, 2022.

Vaccinations:
Share of people vaccinated against COVID-19, Nov 19, 2021 and now: Cuba: fully 73.41, total 89.07; USA: fully 57.58, total 67.38. --> Cuba: fully 89.26, total 95.67; USA: fully 69.22, total 80.93.
It takes three jabs to be considered fully vaccinated in Cuba, and Cuba offers booster shots more often, so the difference is even bigger if we look at:
COVID-19 vaccine doses administered per 100 people Cuba 238.92, USA 130.99. --> Cuba 388.54, USA 201.89.

Daily COVID-19 vaccine doses administered per 100 people. Rolling 7-day average. Cuba 0.98, USA 0.30. --> Cuba 0.08 (Feb 14), USA 0.02 (Feb 7).
I don't know if the USA has stopped reporting vax numbers: Daily share of the population receiving a COVID-19 vaccine dose

CNN's Tracking Covid-19 vaccinations worldwide

The numbers in this thread from Dec 17, 2021, Jan 17, 2022, Feb 17, Mar 16, April 17, May 17, June 17, July 17, Aug 17, Sep 17, Oct 17,Nov 18 and Jan 17, 2023.

[dann]

See U.S. and Cuban vaccination numbers in the previous post!

Quote:

House Vote 4: COVID VACCINES AND FOREIGNERS: The House has passed a bill (H.R. 185), sponsored by Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., to end the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Covid vaccine requirement for foreigners visiting the U.S. by air. Massie referenced the "tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions of people who have been separated at our border because of this ridiculous, illogical, unscientific policy." A bill opponent, Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., D-N.J., said if the mandate ended, "I would be very concerned about people coming from places like Russia, China, and Cuba not being vaccinated because of the lack of attention to public health in those countries." The vote, on Feb. 8, was 227 yeas to 201 nays.
WASHINGTON - Here's a look at how area members of Congress voted over the previous week. (CitizenTimes, Feb 8, 2023)

By the way, Frank Pallone isn't even a Republican.

[dann]

Quote:

During the coronavirus pandemic, Cuba was able to effectively control the virus with vaccines developed and produced by its own pharmaceutical and biotech centers.
The vaccines known as ABDALA and SOBERANA proved highly-effective against the virus, as acknowledged by Cuban scientists and international scientific institutions.
COVID control with home-grown vaccines in Cuba (CGTN, Feb 8, 2023)

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I AGREE

[dann]

For a longer life, Cuba bets on improving health (RadioReloj.cu, Feb 22, 2023)

For a shorter life, Western countries bet on learning to live with the virus.

[dann]

Quote:

Washington, Mar 7 (Prensa Latina) The reintroduction of a bipartisan bill by five US lawmakers legislators to have the blockade against Cuba lifted has become an example of the efforts to establish normal relations between the two countries.
Democratic Senators Amy Klobuchar, Chris Murphy and Elizabeth Warren joined Republican Lawmakers Roger Marshall and Jerry Moran to present the initiative, which seeks to break the blockade imposed on Cuba by Washington for more than 60 years.
According to a statement released on Klobuchar’s official website, the Freedom to Export to Cuba Act would create new economic opportunities for US businesses and farmers by boosting exports and giving Cubans more access to US products.
US senators introduce bill to have blockade against Cuba lifted (Prensa Latina, Mar 7, 2023)

Even though 'Havana Syndrome', 'Anomalous Health Incidents' and 'attacks' on U.S. diplomats and spies aren't mentioned at all, it can't be a coincidence that this happens less than a week after those ideas have been deemed untrue by the ODNI report.

Quote:

“It is long past time for us to normalize relations with Cuba,” said Warren. “This legislation takes important steps to remove barriers for U.S. trade and relations between our two countries and moves us in the right direction by increasing economic opportunities for Americans and the Cuban people.”
Klobuchar, Moran, Murphy, Marshall, Warren Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Lift Trade Embargo on Cuba (Klobuchar.Senate.Gov, Mar 6, 2023)

That Roger Marshall stresses that it "allows for Kansas farmers, ranchers and manufacturers to expand their businesses to Cuba and opens the door to a large export market" also isn't coincidental!

[dann]

Big conference in New York about attempts to normalize US-Cuban relations:

Quote:

Stand with Cuba - International US-Cuba Normalization Conference, NYC
International US-Cuba Normalization conference at Fordham University, School of Law, New York City, March 11th -12th
International US-Cuba Normalization Conference (March 11 to 12, 2023)

Tomorrow, Sunday, there will be a webinar on Zoom. Pre-register for in-person or virtual attendance.

[dann]

Quote:

But the embassy’s chargé d’affaires, Benjamin Ziff, told the Miami Herald in January that the imprisonment of hundreds of Cuban protesters stemming from islandwide protests in July 2021 is the “most serious obstacle” to further improvement in relations.
Between the U.S. and Cuba, more cultural exchanges and engagement signal a modest shift in policy - Despite tensions over the imprisonment of Cuban protesters, there have recently been more cultural events and meetings of delegates of the two countries. (NBC News, March 7, 2023)

For some reason, Cuban diplomats don't seem to think that the arrests of at least 1,000 American protesters stemming from January 2021 protests in Washington are the "most serious obstacle" to further improvement in relations. Could it be because Cuban diplomats are just better informed than their U.S. counterparts and know that those American protesters weren't arrested for protesting but for something beyond protesting?

[dann]

Daily new confirmed COVID-19 cases per million people in Cuba since Mar 16, 2022.
For perspective (notice the y-axis): Daily new confirmed COVID-19 cases per million people in Cuba and the USA since Mar 16, 2022.

The SARS-CoV-2 numbers from Our World in Data, Nov 16, 2021, and now:
Daily new confirmed COVID-19 cases per million people. 7-day rolling average. Cuba 33, USA 251. --> Cuba 0.38 (Mar 16), USA 72.04 (Mar 11).
Daily new confirmed COVID-19 deaths per million people. 7-day rolling average. Cuba 0.23, USA 3.49. --> Cuba 0.0 (Mar 16), USA 0.93 (Mar 10).
Cumulative confirmed COVID-19 deaths per million people Cuba 760.78, USA 3,290.76. No new Covid-19 deaths in Cuba since Aug 21, 2022. USA number down since last month's 3,301.23. Maybe due to adjustments of population size?

Vaccinations:
Share of people vaccinated against COVID-19, Nov 19, 2021 and now: Cuba: fully 73.41, total 89.07; USA: fully 57.58, total 67.38. --> Cuba: fully 89.27, total 95.70; USA: fully 69.32, total 81.07.
It takes three jabs to be considered fully vaccinated in Cuba, and Cuba offers booster shots more often, so the difference is even bigger if we look at:
COVID-19 vaccine doses administered per 100 people Cuba 238.92, USA 130.99. --> Cuba 390.05, USA 202.57.

Daily COVID-19 vaccine doses administered per 100 people. Rolling 7-day average. Cuba 0.98, USA 0.30. --> Cuba 0.05 (Mar 14), USA 0.01 (Mar 7).
The USA seems to be reporting its numbers only once a week now:
Daily share of the population receiving a COVID-19 vaccine dose

CNN's Tracking Covid-19 vaccinations worldwide

Earlier numbers: Dec 17, 2021, Jan 17, 2022, Feb 17, Mar 16, April 17, May 17, June 17, July 17, Aug 17, Sep 17, Oct 17, Nov 18, Jan 17, 2023, Feb 17.