Free Cuba Now!

Christian Liberation Movement Declaration on 24th anniversary of Varela Project. Cuban Officials Threaten to 'Eliminate' Cuban dissidents. Former Cuban political prisoner beaten to death by police.

Twenty four years ago on May 10, 2002, carrying 11,020 signed petitions in support of the Varela Project, the Christian Liberation Movement's Oswaldo Payá Sardiñas, Antonio Diaz Sanchez, and Regis Iglesias Ramirez delivered them to the Cuban National Assembly.

On May 10, 2026, the Christian Liberation Movement issued a formal statement recalling the continuing relevance of this nonviolent action.

Today marks 24 years since the first hand over of signatures for the Varela Project was presented to the National Assembly of People's Power. That act, supported by more than 11,000 Cuban citizens, was neither a provocation nor a partisan maneuver: it was a legitimate exercise of popular sovereignty, protected by the constitutional framework then in force, to demand a referendum on rights, freedoms, amnesty for political prisoners, freedom of expression, freedom of association, and free elections.

The regime's response was not to listen to the people, but to attempt to stifle that demand with a massive signature campaign pressured from within state power, later imposing the so-called "irrevocability" of socialism, as if a clause written out of fear could supersede the sovereign will of the nation.

Having failed morally and politically in that attempt, the dictatorship responded as always: with repression, imprisonment, and long sentences against those who peacefully defended the Cuban people's right to decide.

Twenty-four years later, history once again exposes the regime. Faced with international pressure, and in particular the United States' firm stance against a tyranny that has further devastated the country, multiplied the number of political prisoners, and driven hundreds of thousands of Cubans into exile, the regime is resorting to the same tactic: collecting signatures under controlled conditions, fabricating endorsements, and simulating popular support.

But it no longer convinces. [ Rest of statement here. ]

On May 7, 2022 at the West Dade Regional library organizers of the Varela Project gathered together to reflect on the significance and impact of this citizen initiative, and the continuing struggle against the Castro dictatorship. The movement remains active in Cuba

Project Varela organizers gathered at the West Dade Regional Library on May 7, 2022.

This is not an action just remembered by Cuban activists, but four years ago the man who led the Varela Project effort was highlighted by the Florida's governor.

On May 9, 2022, the eve of the 20th anniversary of the first Varela Project petitions being turned in to the National Assembly in Cuba, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill that designated “a portion of State Road 953, known as Le Jeune Road, between Northwest 11th Street and Northwest 14th Street in Miami-Dade County” as Oswaldo Payá Way. News Channel 8 reported on the significance of this today.

Payá founded the Christian Liberation Movement in Cuba, and “was one of the first outspoken opposition leaders against the Castro dictatorship,” DeSantis said, and fought for democracy and to change the regime. He died in 2012, in a “mysterious car accident,” that the governor said some believe was “orchestrated” by the Cuban government.

Rosa Maria Payá, the daughter of Oswaldo Paya, spoke at this gathering and discussed the upcoming  anniversary of the killing of Oswaldo Payá and Harold Cepero, but also the ongoing crimes of communism being committed by the Castro regime.

“Next July will mark the 10-year anniversary of the killing of my father, at the hands of the Cuban regime,” Payá said. “But sadly, my father was not the only one killed that day. My dear friend, Harold Cepero was also killed, 10 years ago. As thousands of Cubans before them during these six decades, actually some Cubans after them, last July 11, when Diubis Laurencio was shot down in the street just because he was filming a peaceful protest,” Payá said. “Actually, while we talk today, at least 1,000 Cubans are suffering political prison just for peacefully marching, demanding freedom, demanding the end of Communism.”

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) on June12, 2023 made public its “Report on Admissibility and Merits No. 83/23 of Case 14,196” in which it held the State of Cuba responsible for the deaths of Oswaldo Payá and Harold Cepero.

 

There have been many others. Earlier this month activists marked another year without justice for Juan Wilfredo Soto Garcia (age 46) who had been arrested and beaten by Castro’s revolutionary police on May 5, 2011 while protesting the dictatorship died three days later on May 8th from injuries sustained.

 

This decades long murder of nonviolent dissidents without officials having to answer for their crimes leads state security officials to feel secure enough in their impunity to have threatened Cuban dissidents and political prisoners with “death or disappearance in the event of a U.S. military strike on the island, as tensions between Havana and Washington continue to escalate.”  Among those targeted for death one presumes is 16-year-old Cuban political prisoner Jonathan David Muir.

 

72-year-old prisoner of conscience Félix Navarro was beaten and thrown into isolation in early April 2026 — right after a family visit with his wife Sonia Álvarez. Prison officer Norlen Pedroso Sotolongo verbally abused him, ordered a humiliating search of his belongings, then had him handcuffed and dragged to a punishment cell. He now has fresh contusions on top of his already failing health. His life is at serious risk. Felix’s daughter, Sayli Navarro, who is also a political prisoner was punished for getting the news out about her father’s beating by the Cuban prison official.

 

Juan Wilfredo Soto Garcia murdered by police in Cuba, and children he left behi

No One Washes a Rental Car

the AZEL PERSPECTIVE Commentary on Cuba's Future, U.S. Foreign Policy & Individual Freedoms - Issue 459 B

José Azel's latest books "On Freedom" and "Sobre La Libertad" are now available on Amazon. No One Washes a Rental Car (Previously published) Share Tweet Forward

In memory of Luis and Lilian Diaz “In the history of the world, no one has ever washed a rented car.” The saying, attributed to economist Lawrence Summers, former President of Harvard, is a delightful metaphor for the relevancy of a culture of private property ownership in human affairs. A renter has little incentive to wash a car that he or she does not own, is returning to the rental agency, and will never drive again. On the other hand, a car owner has a much greater incentive to take good care of his car. Owners care and plan about the future. Private property has a distinguished and polemical intellectual pedigree. John Locke, the 17th century British political philosopher and father of classical liberalism, conceived private property as a “natural right” independent of government. “Every man has Property in his own Person...The Labour of his Body, and the Work of his Hands, we may say are properly his.” In the 18th century, the moral philosopher and economist Adam Smith argued that property and civil government were dependent on each other, and that the main function of government was to safeguard private property ownership. And, in the 19th century, Karl Marx rejected private property outright stating in his Communist Manifesto that “...the theory of Communists may be summed up in a single phrase: Abolition of private property.” Today, private property is a legal concept prescribed by a country’s political system for the ownership of property by individuals and non-governmental entities. As it turns out, property rights and national prosperity are intimately connected. Contrary to Marx’s theory, nations prosper when private property rights are clearly defined and enforced in favor of the right of individuals to own resources and use them as they see fit. In the 19th century, Marx did not have the benefit of the rental car metaphor and unfortunately, the Marxist view of property rights captivated much of the world in the 20th century. But even more important than the now clear positive correlation between property ownership and economic development, is how private property serves to protect our freedoms. In his political treatise The Road to Serfdom, Austrian-British economist and philosopher Friedrich von Hayek, warns of the tyranny that inevitably results from government control of economic decision-making through central planning: “The system of private property is the most important guaranty of freedom, not only for those who own property, but scarcely less for those who do not. It is only because the control of the means of production is divided among many people acting independently that nobody has complete power over us...” Economists now realize that the broader and sounder the laws protecting property rights, the clearer the incentives to work, save, and invest. Thus, the stronger property rights are protected, the more efficient the operation of the economy, and the greater the creation of wealth. It is no longer economic orthodoxy that national development is subject to the presence or absence of natural resources. Development has occurred in countries with a scarcity of resources, and development has been dismal in countries rich in natural resources. Studies show that a handful of institutional variables explain over eighty percent of the international variation in per-capita gross national income with property rights having the highest level of significance. (e.g., Richard Roll and John Talbott, “Why Many Developing Countries Just Aren’t”) And yet, even “free market” governments are consistently weakening property rights with an onslaught of regulations affecting the use of private property. Regulations negatively impact economic activity because regulations interfere with private property rights and undermine the most effective allocation of resources. On average, GDP per capita is twice as high in nations with the stronger protection of property than in those providing only fairly good protection. (Lee Hoskins and Ana I. Eiras, “Property Rights: The Key to Economic Growth”) But for most of us these economic studies are unnecessary to fully apprehend how a culture of private property ownership affects our decision-making. We just need to remember when we last washed a rented car before returning it to the car rental company. Please let us know if you  this article. We welcome your feedback. Abrazos, Lily & José (click on the name to email Lily or Jose) José Azel, Ph.D. José Azel left Cuba in 1961 as a 13 year-old political exile in what has been dubbed Operation Pedro Pan - the largest unaccompanied child refugee movement in the history of the Western Hemisphere.   He is currently dedicated to the in-depth analyses of Cuba's economic, social and political state, with a keen interest in post-Castro-Cuba strategies. Dr. Azel was a Senior Scholar at the Institute for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies (ICCAS) at the University of Miami, Jose Azel has published extensively on Cuba related topics. In 2012 and 2015, Dr. Azel testified in the U.S. Congress on U.S.-Cuba Policy, and U.S. National Security.  He is a frequent speaker and commentator on these and related topics on local, national and international media.  He holds undergraduate and masters degrees in business administration and a Ph.D. in International Affairs from the University of Miami. José along with his wife Lily are avid skiers and adventure travelers.  In recent years they have climbed Grand Teton in Wyoming, trekked Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania and Machu Pichu in Peru.  They have also hiked in Tibet and in the Himalayas to Mt. Everest Base Camp. They cycled St. James Way (El Camino de Santiago de Compostela) and cycled alongside the Danube from Germany to Hungary and throughout southern France.  They have scuba dived in the Bay Islands off the Honduran coast and in the Galapagos Islands. Most recently, they rafted for 17 days 220 miles in the Grand Canyon. Their adventurers are normally dedicated to raise funds for causes that are dear to them.  Watch Joe & Lily summit Kilimanjaro. Books by Dr. José Azel José Azel’s writings are touched with the wisdom of a master, and the charm of an excellent communicator. Anyone who wishes to understand why countries do, or do not, progress will find in this book the best explanations. And, from these readings emerge numerous inferences: How and why do the good intentions of leftist collectivism lead countries to hell? Why is liberty not a sub product of prosperity, but rather one of its causes? If it was in my power, this work would be required reading for all college and university students, and I would also recommend its reading to all politicians, journalists, and policymakers. With his writings Azel accomplishes what was achieved in France by Frédéric Bastiat, and in the United States by Henry Hazlitt: Azel brings together common sense with intelligent observation, and academic substance. Stupendous, Carlos Alberto Montaner                                                                    BUY NOW Los escritos de José Azel están tocados por la sabiduría de un maestro y la amenidad de un excelente comunicador. Cualquiera que desee entender por qué los países progresan, o no, encontrará en este libro las mejores explicaciones. De estas lecturas surgen numerosas inferencias: ¿Cómo y por qué las buenas intenciones del colectivismo de izquierda llevan a los países al infierno? ¿Por qué la libertad no es un subproducto de la prosperidad, sino una de sus causas? Si estuviera en mis manos, esta obra sería de obligada lectura de todos los estudiantes universitarios, pero además, le recomendaría su lectura a todos los políticos, periodistas y policy makers. Con sus escritos Azel logra lo que Frédéric Bastiat consiguiera en Francia y Henry Hazlitt en Estados Unidos: aunar el sentido común, la observación inteligente y la enjundia académica. Estupendo. Carlos Alberto Montaner                                                            Compre Aqui "Liberty for beginners is much more than what the title promises. It is eighty themes touched with the wisdom of a master, and the charm of an excellent communicator. Anyone that wishes to understand why countries do, or do not progress, will find in this book the best explanations. Stupendous" Carlos Alberto Montaner Buy Now "Libertad para novatos es mucho más de lo que promete el título. Son ochenta temas tocados con la sabiduría de un maestro y la amenidad de un excelente comunicador. Cualquier adulto que desee saber por qué progresan o se estancan los pueblos aquí encontrará las mejores explicaciones. Estupendo." Carlos Alberto Montaner Compre Aqui In Reflections on Freedom, José Azel brings together a collection of his columns published in prestigious newspapers.  Each article reveals his heartfelt and personal awareness of the importance of freedom in our lives.  They are his reflections after nearly sixty years of living and learning as a Cuban outside Cuba. In what has become his stylistic trademark, Professor Azel brilliantly introduces complex topics in brief journalistic articles. Buy Now En Reflexiones sobre la libertad José Azel reúne una colección de sus columnas publicadas en prestigiosos periódicos. Cada artículo revela su percepción sincera y personal de la importancia de la libertad en nuestras vidas. Son sus reflexiones después de casi sesenta años viviendo y aprendiendo como cubano fuera de Cuba.  En lo que ha resultado ser característica distintiva de sus artículos, el Profesor Azel introduce con brillantez complejos temas en  breves artículos de carácter periodístico. Compre Aqui Mañana in Cuba is a comprehensive analysis of contemporary Cuba with an incisive perspective of the Cuban frame of mind and its relevancy for Cuba's future. Buy now

Present at the Creation

the AZEL PERSPECTIVE Commentary on Cuba's Future, U.S. Foreign Policy & Individual Freedoms - Issue 458 B

José Azel's latest books "On Freedom" and "Sobre La Libertad" are now available on Amazon. Present at the Creation (Previously published) Share Tweet Forward

Dedicated to the heroes of the Brigade 2506 and the                 underground resistance “Had I been present at the creation, I would have given some useful hints for the better ordering of the universe.” This nostalgic expression of Alfonso X King of Castile (1252-1284) inspired the title of Dean Acheson’s memoirs “Present at the Creation: My Years in the State Department.” Acheson (1893-1971) was not just present at the creation of the postwar world; he was one of its architects until he left office as Secretary of State in 1953. Similarly, my generation was present at the creation of Cuba’s totalitarian state beginning in 1959 and has witnessed the socioeconomic devastation of a nation. In the introduction to my book “Reflections on Freedom,” I recount the story of how I was ten years old in January 1959 when the Cuban revolution came to town. Like most Cuban children I was captivated by the circus-like and storybook qualities of that surreal experience. I did not then apprehend the antecedents and the consequences, and it did not take long for the storybook heroes to turn into villains. Within a year I had joined the underground urban resistance fighting against the Castro regime. Following the failure of the Bay of Pigs invasion in April 1961, my father concluded that for our safety, my brothers and I should leave Cuba. Thus, in June 1961, I left Cuba as part of Operation Pedro Pan, at that time the largest exodus of unaccompanied children in the history of the Western Hemisphere. I began life in the United States as a thirteen-year-old political exile with an indelible, if juvenile idea of our individual freedoms and how they must be protected. I was never able to see my father again, and I have never returned to my place of birth as I vowed never to return until Cuba was once again free. I beg the reader’s indulgence for this melancholic walk on memory lane. But, as the cohort of those present at the creation dwindles, it is important to convey the angst for freedom of a generation of Cuban-Americans that has fought valiantly defending freedom for both their adopted homeland and their place of birth. My generation is that of the aging heroes of the Cuban urban resistance of the 1960’s, of the Bay of Pigs invasion, of the uprising in the Escambray mountains, of the Pedro Pan exodus, of the Vietnam War. Our generation, present at the creation of a totalitarian regime in our homeland, has not succeeded in bringing freedom to Cuba. And perhaps, like Alfonso X, we could have done more for the better ordering of the universe. But we have succeeded admirably in transmitting love of country – for both the United States and Cuba- and democratic values to our children and grandchildren. Those inheriting our struggle understand freedom as a state of being, and a state of consciousness. Our children and grandchildren apprehend the free flow of information, economic freedom, human rights, political liberty, transparency, freedom of speech, and empowerment of the individual as a way of life. Their freedom-fighting tactics may differ from ours, but these are values they will not repudiate by embracing tyrannical collectivism. We are passing the torch to a generation that understands instinctively that economic well-being is a consequence of freedom, and that to value freedom is an insightful philosophical and moral achievement. It is a generation that grew up listening to our stories of a lost country and has learned the lessons of Pericles as he sought to inspire the Athenians during the Peloponnesian War: “Make up your minds that happiness depends on being free, and freedom depends on being courageous.” The youngest of my generation are now in their 70s, and we are necessarily passing the responsibility and the honor of defending freedom to a new generation that was not present at the creation of Cuba’s totalitarian state. But, like a mirror at the end of the road, this generation will honor us by being present at the creation of a democratic nation. Please let us know if you  this article. We welcome your feedback. Abrazos, Lily & José (click on the name to email Lily or Jose) José Azel, Ph.D. José Azel left Cuba in 1961 as a 13 year-old political exile in what has been dubbed Operation Pedro Pan - the largest unaccompanied child refugee movement in the history of the Western Hemisphere.   He is currently dedicated to the in-depth analyses of Cuba's economic, social and political state, with a keen interest in post-Castro-Cuba strategies. Dr. Azel was a Senior Scholar at the Institute for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies (ICCAS) at the University of Miami, Jose Azel has published extensively on Cuba related topics. In 2012 and 2015, Dr. Azel testified in the U.S. Congress on U.S.-Cuba Policy, and U.S. National Security.  He is a frequent speaker and commentator on these and related topics on local, national and international media.  He holds undergraduate and masters degrees in business administration and a Ph.D. in International Affairs from the University of Miami. José along with his wife Lily are avid skiers and adventure travelers.  In recent years they have climbed Grand Teton in Wyoming, trekked Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania and Machu Pichu in Peru.  They have also hiked in Tibet and in the Himalayas to Mt. Everest Base Camp. They cycled St. James Way (El Camino de Santiago de Compostela) and cycled alongside the Danube from Germany to Hungary and throughout southern France.  They have scuba dived in the Bay Islands off the Honduran coast and in the Galapagos Islands. Most recently, they rafted for 17 days 220 miles in the Grand Canyon. Their adventurers are normally dedicated to raise funds for causes that are dear to them.  Watch Joe & Lily summit Kilimanjaro. Books by Dr. José Azel José Azel’s writings are touched with the wisdom of a master, and the charm of an excellent communicator. Anyone who wishes to understand why countries do, or do not, progress will find in this book the best explanations. And, from these readings emerge numerous inferences: How and why do the good intentions of leftist collectivism lead countries to hell? Why is liberty not a sub product of prosperity, but rather one of its causes? If it was in my power, this work would be required reading for all college and university students, and I would also recommend its reading to all politicians, journalists, and policymakers. With his writings Azel accomplishes what was achieved in France by Frédéric Bastiat, and in the United States by Henry Hazlitt: Azel brings together common sense with intelligent observation, and academic substance. Stupendous, Carlos Alberto Montaner                                                                    BUY NOW Los escritos de José Azel están tocados por la sabiduría de un maestro y la amenidad de un excelente comunicador. Cualquiera que desee entender por qué los países progresan, o no, encontrará en este libro las mejores explicaciones. De estas lecturas surgen numerosas inferencias: ¿Cómo y por qué las buenas intenciones del colectivismo de izquierda llevan a los países al infierno? ¿Por qué la libertad no es un subproducto de la prosperidad, sino una de sus causas? Si estuviera en mis manos, esta obra sería de obligada lectura de todos los estudiantes universitarios, pero además, le recomendaría su lectura a todos los políticos, periodistas y policy makers. Con sus escritos Azel logra lo que Frédéric Bastiat consiguiera en Francia y Henry Hazlitt en Estados Unidos: aunar el sentido común, la observación inteligente y la enjundia académica. Estupendo. Carlos Alberto Montaner                                                            Compre Aqui "Liberty for beginners is much more than what the title promises. It is eighty themes touched with the wisdom of a master, and the charm of an excellent communicator. Anyone that wishes to understand why countries do, or do not progress, will find in this book the best explanations. Stupendous" Carlos Alberto Montaner Buy Now "Libertad para novatos es mucho más de lo que promete el título. Son ochenta temas tocados con la sabiduría de un maestro y la amenidad de un excelente comunicador. Cualquier adulto que desee saber por qué progresan o se estancan los pueblos aquí encontrará las mejores explicaciones. Estupendo." Carlos Alberto Montaner Compre Aqui In Reflections on Freedom, José Azel brings together a collection of his columns published in prestigious newspapers.  Each article reveals his heartfelt and personal awareness of the importance of freedom in our lives.  They are his reflections after nearly sixty years of living and learning as a Cuban outside Cuba. In what has become his stylistic trademark, Professor Azel brilliantly introduces complex topics in brief journalistic articles. Buy Now En Reflexiones sobre la libertad José Azel reúne una colección de sus columnas publicadas en prestigiosos periódicos. Cada artículo revela su percepción sincera y personal de la importancia de la libertad en nuestras vidas. Son sus reflexiones después de casi sesenta años viviendo y aprendiendo como cubano fuera de Cuba.  En lo que ha resultado ser característica distintiva de sus artículos, el Profesor Azel introduce con brillantez complejos temas en  breves artículos de carácter periodístico. Compre Aqui Mañana in Cuba is a comprehensive analysis of contemporary Cuba with an incisive perspective of the Cuban frame of mind and its relevancy for Cuba's future. Buy now