HAVANA -- For years, Cuban dissidents say, authorities' message to them has been the same: Sure, you can leave the country. Just don't expect us to le...

In the tourist area in front of the Tropicana Hotel, of course, it was impeccably clean with police making the rounds so that no Cuban would "bother" the foreigners. But outside that perimeter of comfort, the setting for natives is a real ecological disaster.

The store is located at the corner of Galiano and San Rafael streets. It's like an alien spaceship that landed in a neighborhood that has seen its businesses turned into homeless shelters.

In what is referred to the Black Spring, 75 human rights activists throughout Cuba were arrested, tried, and sentenced to as many as 28 years in prison for peacefully demanding fundamental rights.

HAVANA, Mar 30 (IPS) - You could hear a pin drop and uncomfortable glances went round the room when the moderator of the debate invited contribution...