February is the shortest month of the year, but it is not the month with the fewest events. Out of Kubahora We share the most important events in Cuba and the world.
NATIONAL ELECTION PREPARATION
MP candidates visit labor centers in Camaguey
This February was a month of preparation for the next national elections on March 26th National Electoral Council (CEN). In addition, the candidates for the Xth Legislative Assembly of the Cuban Parliament held meetings with the people of their respective provinces, which included visits to cities, workplaces, educational institutions, neighborhoods and community projects.
GREAT FOREST FIRE IN MAYARÍ, HOLGUÍN
According to preliminary information, 1,200 hectares of forest were destroyed
A large fire has ravaged the Mayarí forests in Holguín for more than a week. Even if a team of rangers, agricultural aviation, Armed forces, forest workers from the provinces of Holguín and Santiago de Cuba and residents of the region are working to prevent and eradicate the spread; strong winds and drought made the task difficult.
On Saturday, February 25, 1,200 hectares of forest were destroyed in the incident, according to preliminary data released by National News.
“The management of the response measures is exercised by the temporary working group of the Mayarí Municipal Defense Council, with the participation of forces from the Forest Ranger Corps, the Fire Brigade, the Mayarí Agroforestry Company, the FAR Air Force and Agricultural Aviation, 258 forces are deployed in these actions , as well as a bulldozer, 4 iron trucks, 2 tankers, 2 vans, 2 pipes, 3 jeeps, 1 ambulance, the Revolutionary Armed Forces Helicopter Aviation (1 medium) and the ENSA Agricultural Aviation with 4 aircraft (1 AN-2 and 3 M-18) “, reported the interior ministry.
FAILURES CAUSE THE DISCONNECTION OF ELECTRICAL SERVICE IN THE CENTRAL-EASTERN AREA
Accordingly electrical union, the 220 kV grid between Santi Spíritus and Nuevitas was disrupted on Monday 13 February as a result of a fire in a sugar cane field. Subsequently, on the 21st, two wildfires caused the system to fail in two Moments in the afternoon and on the 23rd of this month, another failure occurred causing the system to disconnect from Cienfuegos to Guantanamo. In order to provide a solution as soon as possible, work was carried out to rectify the faults, reconnect the system and alternatively provide power from generator sets.
CUBA IN SPORT
peasants left from the semifinals of the Caribbean Series
After a four-year absence, a representative from Cuba returned to the Caribbean series. But the Farmers side, champions of the Elite League, narrowly managed to win at the expense of Curaçao on their debut. The teams led by Carlos Martí looked clearly inferior to the other teams and signed unforgettable performances, including the duels against Panama and Venezuela, which ended in overwhelming results.
Our team finished the Caracas edition with the worst baseline average (.277) and the second-lowest OPS in the competition (.565). Yuniesky Larduet (with a .393 average), Andrés de la Cruz (with a .292 offensive average, four RBIs and a home run), Yordanis Alarcón (with a .407 offensive average and five RBIs), and Yosvani Alarcón (with a -346 batting average) average and two doubles) were the best offensively.
Pitching also left a lot to be desired with an alarming 9.13 ERA for the rotation and 6.57 for the bullpen, easily the worst in the competition. The defense failed too, making mistakes that cost the game and narrowly thwarting attempts to steal the base.
On the other hand, the Cuban athletics he left a good taste in the mouth during his tour of Europe as part of the winter preparations. Above all, the triple jump, which showed great stability with Liadagmis Povea (14.81 meters) and Leyanis Pérez (14.65 meters) with important records and personal records.
Maikel Massó also had an outstanding participation, reaching 8.15 meters and breaking the 8.08 meters he had held in indoor competitions since 2021. Likewise, 60m hurdler Keily Pérez showed her potential by stopping the clocks in 8.32 seconds and staying very close to her personal best despite failing to make it to the final.
The most universal of all sports was La Mayor de las Antillas’ participation in the pre-world under-17 football competition, held at the Mateo Flores Stadium in Guatemala City.
Even when the Cuban side lost to Jamaica (4X2) and Costa Rica (4X0), they managed to sneak into the round of 16 after surprisingly beating the Guadalupe team (4X0). But they again lost 2X0 at the crossing with Panama, ending the dream of participating in the world championship of the category.
In general, ours were seen a few steps below their rivals in terms of technical-tactical resources. Hardly any game creation was done and too many mistakes were made in the transition phase, which does not detract from the will and competitiveness of Sandro Sevillano’s students.
OF THE WORLD
demonstrations in Peru
From the international scene it emerged that the Congress of Peru Approved a draft legislative resolution mandating the constitutional indictment of President Pedro Castillo on alleged crimes of criminal organization, influence trading and collusion. In addition, the constitutional allegations against former ministers Juan Silva and Geiner Alvarado were approved.
All of this happened amid mobilizations taking place in the country against President-elect Dina Boluarte for closing Congress, bringing forward this year’s general elections and establishing a Constituent Assembly.
In the Latin American context, the progress made in talks between the Colombian government and the National Liberation Army (ELN) also made headlines. At their meeting in Mexico, both delegations announced that they had agreed on the legal classification of the ELN as an armed political rebel organization.
In addition, they defined the mandate by which the Group of Accompaniment, Assistance and Cooperation Countries for the Peace Process will be governed and adopted the report of the Humanitarian Commission of the Round Table, which toured the area of Bajo Calima and Medio San Juan and the responsibilities assigned to each board member to ensure the continuity of the discussions.
The delegations indicated that they are working on defining the dialogue agenda, which should make it possible to address issues such as society’s participation in the process and the bilateral ceasefire.
On the other hand, the visit of Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to his US counterpart Joseph R. Biden made the headlines. On his third official foreign visit since taking office on January 1, Lula stressed the need to reposition his country in global geopolitics after four years of isolation.
According to official statements from both parties, the behind-closed-doors meeting was marked by dialogues on climate change, the defense of democracy, the economy, the Russo-Ukrainian conflict and the United States’ relations with South America and Mercosur.
Outside the region, the first year of the armed conflict between Russia and Ukraine was one of the events most highlighted by the international press.
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, if the fighting continues, bombings of various cities in Ukraine and military support from the United States and the rest of Europe to the government of Volodymir Zelenskyy increases, 405 air defense systems have been deployed, 842 tanks and other armored vehicles have been destroyed , 4,222 field artillery pieces and mortars, 1,045 multiple rocket launchers, 8,556 vehicle units, 3,243 drones, among others.
According to Vladimir Putin, one of the basic goals of the special military operation is the demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine. For this reason, the Russian Defense Ministry insists that the attacks are not aimed at civilian facilities, but at military and war infrastructure.
THE CULTURE
Cuba’s largest literary festival opened its doors in the Cuban capital for another year to showcase the literary wealth that thrives in this part of the world. This 31st edition of the Havana International Book Fair took place from February 9th to 19th with Colombia as guest of honor and was a pluralistic and interdisciplinary event where cultural industries were intertwined with languages from more than 40 nations and 120 exhibitors between Cubans and foreigners.
This fair will also be held in all the provinces of Cuba to bring the good art of reading to all corners of the country.
Although Cuba’s largest literary festival was taking place, February brought us terrible news when we learned of the death of prominent journalist and film critic Rolando Pérez Betancourt.
His image was known from the acclaimed show The Seventh Door, but Rolando was an exquisite prose writer who wrote analytical texts in which reality passed through the sieve of impeccable intelligence. His commitment to truth and objective events led him to be balanced, fair, and elegant. He wrote novels, chronicles, art reviews. He made journalism the perfect home for the most discerning creations, he had the well-deserved and highest honors of our trade to his credit. He never stopped smiling and wondering. Every film he got his hands on was a way to start over. Constantly studying, Rolando was an ally of culture and used the classics to get far in his work. In his legacy are decades of glory of Cuban journalism, so necessary today to launch good taste, excellence and the sometimes stagnant work of our mass media. That’s why his death overwhelms us with pain, that’s why we are shocked by the news of his absence.