Front Door to Cuba

Timetable History of Cuba

The 21st Century

Navigate the Timetables Next Previous Page

2000

February 28. The Second Annual "Festival del Habano," (a showcase for cigar enthusiasts world wide) continues until March 3.

May 7. In a more symbolic than legal decision, Cuban courts order the US to pay $121 billion in damages for the 4-decade-long embargo. A similar lawsuit in November 1999 found the US government liable for deaths and damage from "aggressive policies towards Cuba," in the amount of $181 billion. Observers claim that both lawsuits came about in response to a ruling by a US federal judge in Miami ordering Cuba to pay $187 million to families of pilots shot down by Cuban fighter planes in 1996.

June 28. Elián Gonzalez returns to Cuba.

July 27. In Santiago de Cuba, Jerry Brown, Mayor of Oakland, California, signs a proclamation declaring the respective cities as "Sister Cities." Also signing the proclamation is the Mayor of Santiago de Cuba, Nicolas Crbonell Igarza.

September 6. Fidel Castro speaks on the opening day of the Millenium Summit in New York.

September 7. The Cuban government announces that two U.S. newspapers will open bureaus in Havana: Dallas Morning News and Chicago Tribune. (CNN and The Associated Press already have bureaus in Cuba.)

October 11. The remains of two Cuban pilots are buried in Miami. Crispin Garcia and Juan de Mata Gonzalez died when their bomber crashed in the mountains of Nicaragua as they tried to land in a secret airfiend on April 18, 1961, during the invasion at Bay of Pigs.

November 17. In Panama, Posada Carriles and three other Cubans are arrested for a plot to assassinate Cuban leader Fidel Castro at the 10th Ibero American Summit. (They are convicted in April 2004 and pardoned by outgoing President Mireya Mascoso on August 26 2004.)

November 29. A 23-member task force in the U.S., which includes liberals and conservatives, calls for an end to the embargo to "help the island's transition to a post-Castro era and reduce the chances of U.S. military intervention.

December 13. Russian President Vladimir Putin visits Cuba. He is the first Russian leader to visit the island since Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev in 1989.

According to a World Health Organization report issued this year, Cuba's public health system ranks #39 out of 191 nations.

2001

February 15-17. In Havana, the Cuban Pubwash Group host over 30 participants from 7 countries in a workshop titles "Medical Research in Cuba: Strengthening International Cooperation."

February 19. In Havana, the U.S. Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), led by David Rockefeller, meets with President Fidel Castro. Also included are 19 U.S. bankers.

February 19. The Third Annual "Festival del Habano," continues until February 23.

March 16. Cuban President Fidel Castro is nominated for the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize by Norwegian Hallgeir Langeland, who sites Castro's efforts to help other developing nations as the reason. Included in the 103 nominees are UN Secretar-General Kofi Annan, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, U.S. peace broker Richard Holbrookee and Japanese historian Saburo Ienaga. The winner is to be announced on October 12.

March 22. A 3-day conference on the 40th Anniversary of the Bay of Pigs Invasion opens in Havana, attended by two former Kennedy White House officials (Arthur Schlesinger Jr. and Richard Goodwin), Robert Reynolds (CIA chief of Miami base, the largest CIA station in the world), and 5 members of Brigade 2506 (including Alfredo Duran and Luis Tornes).

March 28. In Washington, a new lobby group calling itself the Cuba Policy Foundation (CPF) and seeking the end of the embargo, announces it's creation as a "centrist organization" to challenge the lobby of the Cuban American National Foundation (CANF). CPF is founded by several former State Department officials, academics and business leaders.

April 1. According to a report by the Cuban Foundation for Human Rights, as of Jan. 1 of this year, 10% of Cuba's 300 political prisoners were jailed for having tried to exrecixe their right to freedom of opinion.

April 5. Eight African-American students from underprivileged backgrounds begin studying medicine (on scholarship) in Havana's Latin American School of Medical Sciences. They join about 4,000 Latin American students that have also received scholarships.

April 18. In Washington, the Cuba Policy Foundation releases a poll in which a majority of Americans are said to support the idea of doing business with Cuba and allowing travel to the island. Most agree with the decision to reunite Elián González with his father in Cuba.

September 11. In the worst case of airline terrorism in the Americas, 19 al-Qaeda terrorists take over four commercial passenger planes, crashing two into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in NYC and a third into the Pentagon in Arlington, VA. The fourth plane crashes into a field in Pennsylvania.

September 12. After a two-day tour of Cuba's medical facilities, former U.S. Surgeon General Jocelyn Elders says that "Cuba's health care system is better at keeping people healthy than the U.S. system." She adds that the U.S. is still has better health care for patients who are sick.

September 16. Cuban Cardinal Jamie Ortega holds a memorial Mass at Havana Cathedral in support of the victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attack on the U.S.

September 28. A group of policy organization and politicians with an interest in establishing more peaceful relations with Cuba ask that Presdient Bush remove Cuba from the list of terrorist nations. Signators to the agreement include Albert Fox, president of the Alliance for Responsible Cuba Policy; Wayne Smith, former head of the US Interests Seciton in Havana and a fellow at the Center for International Policy; Meda Benjamin of Global Exchange; Alejandro Portes, president of Cuban Committee for democracy; and Lisa Valanti, president of US-Cuba Sister Cities Association.

November 4. Hurricane Michelle, the worst in 50 years, hits Havana.

November 22. In its weekly export report, USDA announces that Cuba purchased 50,000 tons of U.S. wheat, 43,000 tons of corn, 12,000 tons of soybeans, 20,000 tons of soymeal, 5,000 tons of soyoil and 12,500 tons of rice. U.S. grain industry giants Cargill Inc. and Archer-Daniels-Midland are among those involved in the sale.

November 28. For the 10th consecutive time the United Nations votes to condemn the four-decade-old trade embargo by a vote of 167 to 3, with three nations abastaining (U.S., Israel and the Marshall Islands).

November 30. The U.S. government turns down a Cuban offer to compensate Americans for properties confiscated by the Revolution 40 years ago.

December 14. A study by the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco), reports that test scores and literacy levels for Cuban primary students are "near the top of a list of peers from across Latin America" in mathematics and language achievement.

December 16. The first shipment of American goods purchased by the Cuban government since the imposition of the trade embargo arrives in Havana harbor.

2002

January 3. A group of about 2,000 Americans travels to Cuba, including representatives of the Young Presidents Organization and their families, with licenses from the U.S. Treasury Department.

January 8. Six members of the U.S. Congress meet with Cuban President Fidel Castro. Later in the day they meet with a dozen members of two dissident groups in Havana.

January 24. Illinois Governor George Ryan begins a second visit to Cuba. Ryan is the only U.S. Governor to visit Cuba since 1959.

February 22. Four Cubans are arrested for organzing a memorial ceremony to exiles shot down over international waters on February 24 1996. (The two aircraft, belonging to exile group Brothers to the Rescue, had just flown illegally over Havana.)

February 26. The Fourth Annual "Festival del Habano," takes place until March 2.

March 28. Researchers from the University of Havana win an award by the Whitley Laing Foundation (a prestigious British non-governmental organization) for accomplishments in the field of environmental conservation. Assistant Professor Lourdes Mugica heads the research.

April 7. A newly created group of 34 US senators announce four goals: lift the ban on travel to Cuba; advance democracy on the Caribbean island; permit private financing of food and agricultural sales; and promote cooperation on drug interdiction. The group, known as the Congressional Cuban Working Group, consists of 17 Republicans and 17 Democrats.

April 21. U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer and a 24-member California delegation, on a visit to Havana, eat a dinner with Castro that includes California-grown beans.

May 6. In a lecture to the Heritage Foundation in Washington D.C., Undersecretary of State John R. Bolton acuses Cuba of potential biological terrorism.

May 10. The Varela Project is delivered to the Cuban National Assembly with more than 11,000 signatures calling for free speech, electoral reforms, and amnesty for 250 political prisoners.

May 12. Ex U.S. President Jimmy Carter arrives in Havana.

May 13. While visiting the Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology in Havana, Jimmy Carter denounces allegations of bioterrorism.

May 14. Jimmy Carter speaks to the Cuban people (in Spanish) on national television.

May 15. Granma, the official Cuban newspaper, runs the entire speech by Carter.

June 3. In Miami's Little Havana, firebombs are thrown at the buildings of the Cuban American National Foundation and Alpha 66 (both are anti-Castro organizations). There's little damage and nobody is hurt.

July 8. Ralph Nader, on a 3-day visit to Cuba, attends a dinner with Fidel Castro in Havana.

July 8. Cuban poet/writer Cintio Vitier is named winner of Mexico's Juan Rulfo Prize for literature.

July 22. Governor John Hoeven of North Dakota arrives in Havana for a 4-day visit.

July 23. The U.S. House of Representatives votes to allow the sale of goods to Cuba and to end the travel ban.

July 27. A U.S. delegation that includes two members of Congress and a former Secretary of Agriculture arrive in Havana for a 5-day stay on the island.

July 28. Tampa Mayor Dick Greco and 15 local business leaders go on a three-day secret visit to Cuba.

August 9. U.S. House Majority Leader Dick Armey, a Republican from Texas, says he believes the U.S. should open trade with Cuba.

September 18. 22 Cuban musicians who were nominated for Latin Grammy awards are unable to attend the ceremony in Los Angeles because they do not receive U.S. visas.

September 26. A five-day food and agricultural trade show opens in Cuba. This is the biggest U.S.-Cuban economic event since the 1950s. 285 companies from 33 states attend, including Archer Daniels Midland, Cargill, ConAgra Foods, Hormel Foods, Perdue Farms and Tyson Foods. Florida sends 31 companies, more than any other state.

September 27. From the agricultural trade show in Havana, Minnesota governer Jesse Ventura urges an end to the embargo. He says: "How can we switch them to capitalism if we don't work with them?"

According to an article in the Christian Science Monitor (10/23/03) about 180,000 U.S. citizens visited Cuba in 2002.

2003

January 14. Cuban dissident leader Oswaldo Paya visits Miami. He asks for tolerance and mutual respect in the common quest for a more democratic Cuba. [In the previous weeks, Paya accepted an award from the European Union's parliament, had a meeting with Pope John Paul II and met in Washington with US Secretary of State Colin L. Powell. Some Cuban-Americans refer to him as a hero, others as "Fidel's ambassador."]

February 24. The Fifth Annual "Festival del Habano," (a showcase for cigar enthusiasts world wide) continues until February 28.

March 19. In the Isle of Youth, six hijackers with knives divert a plane (heading for Havana) to Key West, Florida. The planes are not returned to Cuba; instead, they're sold to pay lawsuits against the Cuban government.

March 22. Seventy-five (75) pro-democracy activists are arrested for "conspiring with the U.S."

April 2. In Havana, 6 men highjack a ship in Havana Bay and order the captain to sail for the U.S.

April 11. Three men are executed by firing squad after being convicted of terrorism (for the April 2 hijacking).

April 17. The UN Human Rights Group rejects an amendment criticizing a dissident crackdown in Cuba. Instead, it approves a milder resolution calling for a UN rights monitor to visit the island.

April 18. In Miami, the family of an American businessman killed by a Cuban firing squad in 1961 (during the Bay of Pigs invasion) wins a lawsuit for $67 million against the Cuban government.

July 13. Francisco Repilado, aka Compay Segundo of Buena Vista Social Club, dies at age 95 of kidney failure in Havana.

July 16. 12 Cubans are captured by US Coast Guards about 40 miles outside of Key West in a 1951 Chevy pickup truck ingeniously turned into a boat. The Cubans are returned to Cuba, and their vehicle is destroyed and sunk with machine gun fire.

August. In Miami, the FBI officially closes its case on Luis Posada Carriles. According to FBI spokeswoman Judi Orihuela, “several boxes of evidence were removed from the bureau’s evidence room” and destroyed (including a key fax signed by Carriles).
[The approval to remove and destroy files also required a signature from the U.S. Attorney’s office, who happened to be Ed Pesquera – Hector’s son.]
FBI agent in charge of the Miami bureau, Hector Pesquera, retires in December.
The destruction of evidence is reported in an article by Ann Louise Baldach in the Washington Post (2006).

October 24. The U.S. Senate votes (59 to 36) in favor of lifting the ban on travel to Cuba. The result is similar to a vote at the House of Representatives last month. This is a major "rebuff" of President Bush's policy towards Cuba. (The travel ban was introduced by President John F. Kennedy in 1963.)

October 31. Two Cuban baseball players defect to the U.S.; 24-year old pitcher Maels Rodriguez, is said to be one of the best players to leave Cuba.

November 4. The UN General Assembly votes overwhelmingly against the U.S. economic embargo of Cuba for the 12th consecutive year. Only 3 nations vote for the embargo: the U.S., Israel and the Marshall Islands.

December 8. Pianist Ruben Gonzales, of Buena Vista Social Club, dies at age 84 in Havana from severe arthritis and lung and kidney ailments.

2004

January 7. U.S. officials back out of scheduled immigration talks with Cuban officials, stating that the Cubans are unwilling to discuss key issues on the U.S. agenda.

Janury 14. Cuba's first deputy minister of science reports a 30% increase in biotechnological exports during 2001-2003.

January 22. Patriarch Bartholomew, senior spiritual leader of the Orthodox Christian faith, arrives in Havana. This is the first time any Orthodox Patriarch visits Latin America.

February 23. The Sixth Annual "Festival del Habano," continues until February 27.

February 26. U.S. President Bush signs Presidential Proclamation 7757, which bans vessels from traveling to Cuban ports from U.S. ports.

March 4. Ten Cubans, including blind lawyer Juan Carlos Gonzalez Leiva, are arrested trying to visit an independent journalist at a hospital in Ciego de Avila, east of Havana.

April 14. About 300 U.S. farming representatives attend a 3-day meeting in Havana.

April 16. Cuba spends $100 million on U.S. food, including wheat and corn, eggs, milk and peas, etc. The largest single sale, $8.9 million worth of corn, is made from Archer Daniels Midland, of Decantur, Illinois.

April 27. Juan Carlos Gonzalez Leiva, a blind lawyer, is convicted of contempt and public disorder while resisting arrest in Havana. He receives a 4-year jail sentence, but the 9 other dissidents tried at the same time receive shorter sentences.

April 30. According to a letter sent by the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) to the U.S. Congress late last year (and now provided to the Associated Press) the Treasury Department had 4 full-time employees dedicated to investigating Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein, and over 2 dozen assigned to investigating Cuban Embargo violations.
The letter reveals that over $8 million were collected in embargo violation fines since 1994, and over 10,683 "enforcement investigations" opened since 1990. Relating to terrorism, the OFAC opened 93 "enforcement investigations" between 1990 and 2003.

May 1. At a May Day speech, Castro criticizes Mexico and Peru for voting in favor of the U.S.-sponsored UN human rights resolution against Cuba. Within a few days, both countries recall tier ambassadors from Havana.

May 7. U.S. president G.W. Bush announces tougher sanctions on Cuba (starting on June 30) including:

May 10. Cuba freezes most U.S. dollar sales until further notice, excluding food, gasoline and personal hygiene products.

May 14. An estimated 1 million people march through Havana to protest against recently announced U.S. sanctions. Fidel Castro leads the march.

June 6. Four Cuban dissidents held in prison for more than 2 years without trial are released.

June 21. Due to the island's worst drought in history (affecting 4 million people), Cuba declares a state of alert in 4 provinces: Camaguey, Las Tunas, Holguin and Guantanamo.

July 7. By a vote of 221 to 194, the U.S. House of Representatives oppose the Bush administration's recent sanctions on Cuba.

August 26. In Panama, 4 Cubans convicted in April for a plot to assassinate Fidel Castro are pardoned by President Mireya Moscoso a week before she is to leave office. The men are Luis Posada Carriles, Gaspar Jimenez, Guillermo Novo and Pedro Remon.

September 13. Hurricane Ivan sweeps across the tobacco-growing region of southwestern Cuba, with 160-mile-per-hour winds and giant waves. In anticipation of the Category 5 storm, Cubans had evauated 1.5 million people.

October 1. Cuba shuts down 118 factories in power crisis.

October 6. U.S. State Department denies visas to 65 Cuban scholars wishing to attend the Latin American Studies Association annual meeting in Las Vegas. This marks the first time in 25 years that Cuban scholars are blocked from the conference (100 attended last year).

October 8. Andres Nazario Sargen dies in Miami at age 88. He was one of the founders of the paramilitary group Alpha 66.

October 19. After speaking at a graduation ceremony, Fidel Castro falls and fractures his left knee. He returns later to say that he's "all in one piece."

October 26. Cuba ends the circulation of the U.S. dollar as of November 8.

October 28. For the 13th consecutive year, the UN General Assembly votes overwhelmingly against the U.S. embargo against Cuba.

November 30. Dissidents Raul Rivero and Osvaldo Alfonso Valdes, jailed last year for working for the U.S., are released from prison. Three other dissidents were released yesterday: Oscar Espinosa Chepe, Margarito Broche and Marcelo Lopez (allegedly because of poor health).

December 6. Dissident Jorge Olivera is the 7th dissident to be freed in the last week. (Olivera was sentenced to 18 years in prison after being accused of working for the U.S. He was one of 75 dissidents arrested in a crackdown, 61 of which remain in jail as of this day.

December 13. Cuba begins a military exercise called "Bastion 2004," which includes thousands of troops and civilians. Defense Minister Raul Castro leads the drill.

December 15. Los Van Van play to a crowd of about 5,000 in Havana's Malecon.

December 16. A number of U.S. lawmakers and food firms meet in Havana. By the end of the week, Cuba has agreed to purchase about $125 million in farm goods from U.S. companies.

December 21. Thousands of university students rally outside the U.S. Interest Section in Havana to protest a Christmas display supporting dissidents.

December 26. Cuba's minister of tourism announces this year 2 million people have visited the island. The figure represents an 8% increase over last year.

2005

February 21. The Seventh Annual "Festival del Habano," (a showcase for cigar enthusiasts world wide) takes place until February 25.

March 19. Inmates riot at Havana's Combinado del Este prison.

March 20. The weekly precession by the "Ladies in White" (wives of political prisoners) is interrupted by female government supporters shouting "Viva Fidel." The "Ladies in White" have been holding a weekly precession after church services in support of dissidents arrested during a weeklong crackdown that began on March 18 2003.

March 22. Cuban officials announce that 20 doctors will be sent to impoverished Sierra Leone, in West Africa.

April 5. Again inmates riot at Havana's Combinado del Este prison. Two deaths are reported.

April 14. The United Nations Commission on Human Rights approves a measure critical of Cuba's human rights record. In Havana, Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque says that "Cuba does not accept this resolution and will not cooperate with its spurious mandate."

April 17. In island-wide elections 169 municipal assemblies are up for grab (every 2-1/2 years). More than 8 million Cubans participate.

May 16. In Miami, Luis Posada Carrilles calls a press conference and brags that the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is not even looking for him. He is arrested shortly after.

Kornbluh: “Despite an outstanding Interpol warrant for his arrest, for two months the Bush administration permitted him to flaunt his presence in Miami, where he is still considered a heroic figure in the hardliner anti-Castro exile community.” (Global Research)

May 20. Over 150 dissenters gether in Havana to demand democratic reforms and the release of political prisoners.

May 28. Cuban scientists announce that a new cholera vaccine is ready for field testing in Africa. The vaccine was developed and has been successfully tested at the island's Instituto Finlay.

June 24. A number of foreign businesses are asked to leave Cuba, including Nestle, British American Tobacco and others.

July. A group of about 150 Cuban dissidents meet openly to discuss a peaceful transition to a post-Castro Cuba.

July 8. Hurricane Dennis, a category-4 storm with 140 MPH winds, passes through Cuba.

July 22. Dissident organizer Rene Gomez Manzano is arrested in Havana. He is charged with violating the Law for the Protection of the National Independence and Economy of Cuba.

July 28. The U.S. State Department appoints Caleb McCarry as the new "transition coordinator" for Cuba. The existence of this "position" is criticized as a "blatant intervention in the internal affairs of another state."

August 4. Swimmers discover a sunken U.S. ship off eastern Cuba. The 106-foot boat, believed to have been uncovered by the recent passing of Hurricane Dennis, was found in shallow water near Siboney beach, south of Santiago.

August 7. Singer Ibrahim Ferrer (of the Buena Vista Social Club) dies in a Havana hospital at age 78.

August 9. In the US, a 3-judge panel of the Court of Apeals overturns the convictions and sentences of the Cuban Five, claiming they did not receive a fair trial.

August 13. Castro celebrates his 79th birthday with events all over the island.

August 16. A speedboat heading for Florida overturns and only 3 survivors are found after drifting at sea for 5 days. 31 others are believed to be dead.

August 17. More than 50 dissenters are arrested in recent weeks.

October 13. A 6-year-old Cuban boy drowns at sea when a boat smuggling Cubans to Florida capsizes after outrunning the U.S. Coast Guard.

October 13. Aremelio Ferras Pellicer dies at age 82. Pellicer was a veteran of the rebel attack on the Moncada Barracks on July 26, 1953.

November 27. Ten Cubans are rescued at sea by a Celebrity Cruises ocean liner named Zenith. Nine of the ten were returned to Cuba on December 4 (as per the Wet Foot - Dry Foot immigration policy).

December 2. The Revolutionary Armed Forces celebrates 49 years in existence. [According to estimates by the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London, Cuba presently has around 46,000 active troops, 39,000 reserves, and a militia of at least 1 million.]

December 5. According to figures released by the U.S. Border Patrol, 2,530 Cubans have reached South Florida by sea during this year. In 2004 the figure was 955, and in 2003 it was 1,072.

December 8. In Barbados, Leaders of Caribbean nations hold a summit to discuss health care cooperation and cultural exchanges. A major focus is the relationship between Cuba and the U.S.

December 13. The "Ladies in White" are denied travel visa to Strasbourg, France, where they were to receive the 2005 Sakharov Prize, a human rights award. For over two years, the "Ladies in White" have marched every Sunday in silence to demand the release of their husbands, in jail since March 2003. [Other winners this year include Nigerian human rights lawyer Hauwa Ibrahim and Paris-based Reporters Without Borders.]

December 15. An exhibition by controversial American photographer Robert Mapplethorpe opens in Havana. The exhibition features 48 photographs from the artist's career and runs through Feburary 15 2006.

December 16. In Havana, exploratory peace talks between the Colombia government and the rebel group known as the National Liberation Army (ELN). Noted author Gabriel Garcia Marquez serves as opening facilitator, and the meeting includes ELN military commander Antonio Garcia. Since 1998, similar talks have ended in failure. The ELN emerged in 1964, and is said to have been inspired by the Cuban Revolution of 1959.

December 21. Peace talks between ELN members and the Colombia government end on a positive note, as both parties agree to meet again at the end of January in Havana.

2006

July 11. US President G.W. Bush approves $80 million to be used for "boosting democracy in Cuba." The fund is the result of proposals from a commission (members of which include Condoleezza Rice and Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez) exploring "US policy towards Cuba after the eventual death of Fidel Castro." The Cuban government refers to this as an "act of aggression," and Cuban dissident-journalist Oscar Espinosa Chepe considers the fund "…counterproductive. I believe Cubans have to be the ones who love our problems and any interference serves to complicate the situation," he says.

2007

February 12. Armando Jaime Casielles, Meyer Lansky's driver during the 1950s, dies in Havana of lung cancer. Mr. Casielles was 75 years old, and had spent the last decades of his life promoting Afro-Cuban dance music.

February 27. The Eighth Annual "Festival del Habano," continues until March 3.

March 1. US Senator Michael B. Enzi introduces the "Freedom to Travel to Cuba Act" on the floor of the senate: "If you keep on doing what you have always been doing," he says, "you are going to wind up getting what you already got. …We are not hurting the Cuban government, we are hurting the Cuban people. …It is time for a different policy."

April 8. Cuban Ambassador to Angola, Pedro Ross Leal, announces that Cuba will send specialists to help reduce deaths from malaria, HIV/aIDS and cholera. As well as sending physicians to Angola, Cuba will send vaccines and help build new medical facilities.

April 14. From an editorial in the Washington Post by US Senators Charles B. Rangel and Jeff Flake: "…we need a new deal with ourselves on Cuba policy… The administration should begin by ending its insistence that it will respond only to Cuba's complee conversion to democracy and free markets… And Congress should increase aMerican influence by building bridges rather than barriers to Cuba… American openness is a source of strength, not a concession to dictatorships."

May 8. All immigration charges against Luis Posada Carriles are dropped (by US federal judge Kathleen Cardone).

June 18. Vilma Espin Guillois, renowned revolutionary and wife of Raul Castro, dies in Havana at age 77.

June 18. The United Nations Human Rights Council removes Cuba from the list of nations believed to be violators of human rights.

Previous | Next Timetable