Monday

4th Dec 2023

Castro rails at EU for granting prize to Cuban women

Cuban president Fidel Castro has rebuffed the European Parliament's decision to grant its top human rights prize to female relatives of Cuban political prisoners, with measures taken to prevent EU embassies from inviting the laureates to official receptions.

The Cuban leader accused European nations of being "corrupt, immoral, exploitative hypocrites", suggesting they created colonialism and unfair trade, which they "keep in place even today", according to AFP.

Read and decide

Join EUobserver today

Become an expert on Europe

Get instant access to all articles — and 20 years of archives. 14-day free trial.

... or subscribe as a group

"They are as low, as they always have been", Mr Castro said at a teachers' graduation ceremony.

He comments on Friday (28 October) came in reaction to the European Parliament's Sakharov prize for freedom of thought award to Damas de Blanco, meaning "Ladies in White".

The group of wives, mothers and sisters of the imprisoned political opponents of the communist leader shared the 2005 prize with a Nigerian human rights lawyer and a French organisation dedicated to defending journalists.

The official Sahkarov prize ceremony is scheduled for 16 December, and the Cuban women will need government approval to leave the island in order to attend.

No change after sanctions lifted

It is the second time within three years that MEPs have granted the prize to Cuban activists, after the opposition leader Oswaldo Paya received the award in December 2002.

A few months after Mr Paya appeared in the European Parliament's seat in Strasbourg, the Cuban authorities jailed 75 of his colleagues in the opposition movement.

The EU reacted with a series of diplomatic sanctions in June 2003, which were only lifted earlier this year in a bid to promote dialogue with the communist government.

With several member states opposing the move to lift the sanctions in January, the bloc agreed its diplomats would keep communicating with the Cuban opposition.

However, the country's regime has recently banned a reception organised by the Czech embassy in a Havana-based hotel, on the grounds that Damas de Blanco's scheduled attendance gave the event a "counter-revolutionary character", Czech media reported.

Of the 75 political prisoners, just 14 have been released so far, mostly due to health problems.

Nobel nominee dispels ‘Island of Freedom’ myth

In an interview with the EUobserver at his home in Havana, last year’s winner of the Sakharov prize, Oswaldo Payá Sardiñas, explains why he is not able to travel to Europe, the state of political prisoners and the myth surrounding Cuban communism. This year's short-list for the Sakharov prize will be published by the European Parliament today.

Brussels denies having no 'concern' on Spain's amnesty law

The Spanish government remains secretive about its negotiations with pro-independence Catalans, but claims the EU Commission has "zero concerns" about their proposed amnesty law for Catalan separatists. The EU executive denies that.

Interview

Why populism appeals to less brainy EU voters

People who voted for Brexit tended to be less clever, research shows, in findings that also shed light on the appeal of EU populists, such as Dutch politician Geert Wilders, who won elections this week.

Analysis

How Wilders' Dutch extremism goes way beyond Islamophobia

Without losing sight of his pervasive Islamophobia, it is essential to note Geert Wilders' far-right extremism extends to other issues that could drastically alter the nature of Dutch politics — and end its often constructive role in advancing EU policies.

Opinion

The EU's U-turn on caged farm animals — explained

A European citizens' initiative — signed by 1.4 million people — saw the EU Commission promise to ban cages for 300 million farmed animals. Then the farming lobby got involved.

Opinion

'Pay or okay?' — Facebook & Instagram vs the EU

Since last week, Mark Zuckerberg's Meta corporation is forcing its European users to either accept their intrusive privacy practices — or pay €156 per year to access Facebook and Instagram without tracking advertising.

Latest News

  1. Afghanistan is a 'forever emergency,' says UN head
  2. EU public procurement reform 'ineffective', find auditors
  3. COP28 warned over-relying on carbon capture costs €27 trillion
  4. Optimising Alzheimer's disease health care pathways across Europe
  5. Georgian far-right leader laughs off potential EU sanctions
  6. The EU's U-turn on caged farm animals — explained
  7. EU-China summit and migration files in focus This WEEK
  8. COP28 debates climate finance amid inflated accounting 'mess'

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. Nordic Council of MinistersArtist Jessie Kleemann at Nordic pavilion during UN climate summit COP28
  2. Nordic Council of MinistersCOP28: Gathering Nordic and global experts to put food and health on the agenda
  3. Friedrich Naumann FoundationPoems of Liberty – Call for Submission “Human Rights in Inhume War”: 250€ honorary fee for selected poems
  4. World BankWorld Bank report: How to create a future where the rewards of technology benefit all levels of society?
  5. Georgia Ministry of Foreign AffairsThis autumn Europalia arts festival is all about GEORGIA!
  6. UNOPSFostering health system resilience in fragile and conflict-affected countries

Join EUobserver

Support quality EU news

Join us