Cuban priest Alberto Reyes, a strong critic of the Cuban dictatorship, has posted a new year’s message on Facebook in which he says many things that could get him arrested, such as denouncing the government for not being interested in the suffering of the Cuban people and warning that it is a certainty that it will NOT do anything to alleviate that suffering. As if this weren’t daring enough, he also compares Castro, Inc. to slavers who don’t want to free their slaves.

It is highly unusual for Castro, Inc. to tolerate any such criticism. Up until now it has not tried to do away with this troublesome priest, but that doesn’t mean that it won’t try to do so. If you are a praying person, pray for Father Reyes. Click on the link above to read his entire message in Spanish. Below is an excerpt.

I’ve been thinking about bets for the new year

No matter how difficult the personal and social situation may be, it is common to have at least a glimmer of hope for ‘something better’ every time a year begins. 2023 has been hard, with a continuous crescendo not only in the difficulty of acquiring what is necessary to live but in the number of emigrants and the desperation to emigrate and in the apathy of the government, which increasingly ignores the day-to-day life of this people while mobilizing their energies towards control and repression.